San Jose Airport car rental comparison

Car Rental in San Jose Airport

San Jose is in the center and capital of Costa Rica, making it an ideal base to explore the country with a rental car from San Jose Airport. In San Jose you can expect vibrant restaurants, lively nightlife and unique traditions showcased in a number of first-class museums and galleries.

Main attractions in San Jose

San Jose has a number of deeply historical and fascinating neighborhoods. You’ll find charming former colonial buildings lovingly converted into hip galleries and eateries in areas like Barrio Amón and Barrio Escalante.

San Jose’s central museums are the country's best, with the spectacular Museo Nacional de Costa Rica found next to the city's nicest open space, Parque Nacional. You'll also find the curious Museo de Jade here, housing some 7,000 carved artifacts. The museum is across from the Plaza de la Cultura – a lively center for street art, performances, and ice cream vendors. 

Historical buildings like the Teatro Nacional should also be on your itinerary and a stop-over at the bustling Mercado Central Market. More attractions can be visited with rental cars from San Jose Airport. To the west of the city, you’ll find La Sabana Metropolitan Park, the country’s largest urban park offering wide open spaces, sports, shopping and the Museum of Costa Rican Art. Being so close to lushly forested national parks like Juan Castro Blanco, Braulio Carrillo, and Tapanti, there are countless day trips conveniently accessed with a cheap rental car from San Jose Airport. You'll also find the reptile center, Refugio Herpetologico de Costa Rica, west of the city.

Despite being landlocked, you can still indulge in coastal trips from San Jose, as it’s less than 90 minutes’ drive when you rent a car from San Jose Airport to the surfing paradise of Jaco. The journey itself offers some great scenery, passing the Carara National Park. Be sure to take cash for the toll booths if you use the new highway.

Where to eat in San Jose

San Jose's restaurant scene is vibrant, offering Costa Rican staples like chifrijo (a rice and pork dish) and, of course, coffee. Eateries are generally divided between bars serving bocas, international restaurants, cafes, and farm-to-table options. In San Jose, La Oveja Negra and Feria Verde de Aranjuez (a farmer's market) both offer a range of local must-try dishes. When driving west into San Jose's suburbs like Brasil with San Jose Airport car rentals, you’ll find a wealth of restaurants and bars.

Exploring the great outdoors from San Jose Airport

San Jose's day trips are unrivaled. From the breathtaking Irazu Volcano due east of the city to the luscious tropical parks that surround it, you'll be spoilt for choice. From San Jose, one of the most popular outdoor trips is to the coffee plantation, Barva de Heredia. You’ll also find a range of exhilarating rafting excursions with a cheap car rental from San Jose Airport, including on Balsa River and Rio Pacuare. For hikes, the beautiful La Paz Waterfall Gardens, Poas Volcano, Catarata del Toro, and Tres Cruces are idyllic, well-designed trails. 

How do you book a rental car in San Jose?

You can find the best car rental in San Jose Airport by using HAPPYCAR. Simply enter your intended travel dates for a full overview of cheap car rentals in Costa Rica. You can then click the price filter to find the cheapest car rental in San Jose Airport for collection. HAPPYCAR can help you book your trip, with convenient bookings in airports around the world, including cheap car rentals from Philadelphia Airport PHL and cheap car rentals at Tampa Airport TPA. 

How far is the airport from San Jose?

San Jose’s Juan Santamaría International Airport is conveniently located less than 11 miles north-west of the city center. You can expect to arrive at the city’s main attractions in under 20 minutes with a car hire from San Jose Airport, depending on traffic.

What kind of car should I book?

The most popular car hires in San Jose tend to be standard and mini vehicles, like the Suzuki Jimny. These allow you to navigate the main roads and highways easily. However, if you're planning on hitting the mountain trails, a four-wheel-drive vehicle will be necessary.

What is the speed limit in San Jose?

Costa Rica's speed limits are all measured in km. The highway has a minimum speed of 50 km/h (ca. 30 mph), with a maximum limit of 120 km/h (ca. 74 mph). Town and city centers like San Jose have a limit of 40 km/h, with further limits of 25 km/h near schools and hospitals.

Find and book a car rental in San Jose Airport and compare the best possible deals with HAPPYCAR. HAPPYCAR can help you find cheap car rentals in Houston and cheap car rentals in Dallas, among other cities around the world.