Last updated on July 18th, 2019 at 11:47 am
Written by Nikki Solano
Nikki is the CEO of Pura Vida! eh? Inc. (Costa Rica Discounts), and the author of the guidebooks Moon Costa Rica (2019, 2021, 2023, and 2025 editions) and Moon Best of Costa Rica (2022 edition) from Moon Travel Guides. Together with her Costa Rican husband, Ricky, she operates the Costa Rica Travel Blog, created the online community DIY Costa Rica, built the Costa Rica Destination Tool, oversees the brand-new (summer 2023) Costa Rica Travel Shop, and designed the Costa Rica Trip Planning 101 E-Course. Also, Nikki wrote the Costa Rica cover feature for Wanderlust Magazine's sustainability-focused Travel Green List issue, showcased Costa Rica destinations and experiences on Rick Steves' Monday Night Travel show and podcast/radio show, and served as the Costa Rica Destination Editor for Essentialist, a luxury travel brand. Want to show your appreciation for her free article below? Thank Nikki here. ❤️️
For you. For free.
Looking for Costa Rica car rental discounts? We’ve got em’! Check out our FREE COSTA RICA DISCOUNT CODES page for details. Con mucho gusto (you’re welcome) and pura vida!
Flying into or out of San Jose (a.k.a., the SJO Airport) instead? See our related post:
Driving Directions To The SJO Airport / Driving Directions From The SJO Airport
Get the Costa Rica info you need by browsing our article's TABLE OF CONTENTS:
DRIVING DIRECTIONS FOR COSTA RICA
As we touch on in our related blog post Costa Rica Transportation: 12 Ways To Get Around Costa Rica, a popular method of Costa Rica transportation is a personal vehicle rental. If you have read our blog post Renting A Car In Costa Rica: Should You Do It? (as well as our other helpful articles How Not To Fall For Costa Rica Car Rental Scams and Costa Rica Car Rental Insurance), once you have made the decision to rent a vehicle, the next wave of questions you will ask yourself will likely revolve around routes, drive times, driving distances, and other in-country driving logistics. If you plan to fly into and/or out of the Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport (a.k.a., the LIR Airport), then one of the first tasks at hand will be to secure driving directions from the LIR Airport to whichever destination you plan to travel to at the start of your trip.
Fortunately, we have compiled a list of driving directions for Costa Rica (complete with maps and downloadable/printable direction copies) to save you precious trip planning time. If you are asking yourself, “How do I get to the LIR Airport from…” or “How do I get from the LIR Airport to…” either the SJO Airport, La Fortuna (Arenal), Monteverde, Manuel Antonio, Samara, Tamarindo, Coco, or Puerto Viejo (de Talamanca), don’t miss the information we have pulled together for you below.
Tip:
- When accessing any of the driving directions documents we provide below, don’t forget to save a copy to your device or preferred cloud-service provider, and/or print a hard copy for your records. This will allow you to access the directions at a later date if you find yourself without internet access during your trip, while on the road, and/or if your GPS stops working.
HOW TO GET TO THE LIR AIRPORT (FROM OTHER COSTA RICA DESTINATIONS)
Need to get from a Costa Rica destination to the LIR Airport? No problem! See our list of driving directions to the LIR Airport below.
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from the SJO Airport
Approximate driving distance between the SJO Airport and the LIR Airport: 210 km
Approximate drive time from the SJO Airport to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 3 hours 11 minutes
Approximate drive time from the SJO Airport to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 3 hours and 45 minutes
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from La Fortuna (Arenal)
Approximate driving distance between La Fortuna (Arenal) and the LIR Airport: 141 km
Approximate drive time from La Fortuna (Arenal) to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 2 hours 36 minutes
Approximate drive time from La Fortuna (Arenal) to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 3 hours and 15 minutes
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from Monteverde
Approximate driving distance between Monteverde and the LIR Airport: 123 km
Approximate drive time from Monteverde to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 2 hours 18 minutes
Approximate drive time from Monteverde to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 3 hours and 0 minutes
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from Manuel Antonio
Approximate driving distance between Manuel Antonio and the LIR Airport: 264 km
Approximate drive time from Manuel Antonio to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 4 hours 5 minutes
Approximate drive time from Manuel Antonio to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 4 hours 45 minutes
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from Samara
Approximate driving distance between Samara and the LIR Airport: 104 km
Approximate drive time from Samara to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 1 hours 48 minutes
Approximate drive time from Samara to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 2 hours and 15 minutes
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from Tamarindo
Approximate driving distance between Tamarindo and the LIR Airport: 67 km
Approximate drive time from Tamarindo to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 1 hour 12 minutes
Approximate drive time from Tamarindo to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 1 hour 20 minutes
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from Playa Del Coco
Approximate driving distance between Playa del Coco and the LIR Airport: 24 km
Approximate drive time from Playa del Coco to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 0 hours 25 minutes
Approximate drive time from Playa del Coco to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 0 hours and 30 minutes
Driving directions to the LIR Airport from Puerto Viejo (de Talamanca)
Approximate driving distance between Puerto Viejo (de Talamanca) and the LIR Airport: 435 km
Approximate drive time from Puerto Viejo (de Talamanca) to the LIR Airport (according to Google Maps): 7 hours 49 minutes
Approximate drive time from Puerto Viejo (de Talamanca) to the LIR Airport (our more accurate approximation): 8 hours and 45 minutes
HOW TO GET FROM THE LIR AIRPORT (TO OTHER COSTA RICA DESTINATIONS)
Need to get to a Costa Rica destination from the LIR Airport? No problem! See our list of driving directions from the LIR Airport below.
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to the SJO Airport
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and the SJO Airport: 210 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to the SJO Airport (according to Google Maps): 3 hours 11 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to the SJO Airport (our more accurate approximation): 3 hours and 45 minutes
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to La Fortuna (Arenal)
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and La Fortuna (Arenal): 141 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to La Fortuna (Arenal) (according to Google Maps): 2 hours 36 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to La Fortuna (Arenal) (our more accurate approximation): 3 hours and 15 minutes
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to Monteverde
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and Monteverde: 123 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Monteverde (according to Google Maps): 2 hours 18 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Monteverde (our more accurate approximation): 3 hours and 0 minutes
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to Manuel Antonio
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and Manuel Antonio: 264 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Manuel Antonio (according to Google Maps): 4 hours 5 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Manuel Antonio (our more accurate approximation): 4 hours 45 minutes
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to Samara
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and Samara: 104 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Samara (according to Google Maps): 1 hours 48 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Samara (our more accurate approximation): 2 hours and 15 minutes
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to Tamarindo
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and Tamarindo: 67 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Tamarindo (according to Google Maps): 1 hour 12 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Tamarindo (our more accurate approximation): 1 hour 20 minutes
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to Playa Del Coco
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and Playa del Coco: 24 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Playa del Coco (according to Google Maps): 0 hours 25 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Playa del Coco (our more accurate approximation): 0 hours and 30 minutes
Driving directions from the LIR Airport to Puerto Viejo
Approximate driving distance between the LIR Airport and Puerto Viejo: 435 km
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Puerto Viejo (according to Google Maps): 7 hours 49 minutes
Approximate drive time from the LIR Airport to Puerto Viejo (our more accurate approximation): 8 hours 45 minutes
QUESTION TO COMMENT ON: Have you made the drive to/from the LIR Airport? How did your drive time compare to ours noted above?
Pura vida!
Don’t miss our related posts:
Driving Directions To The LIR Airport / Driving Directions From The LIR Airport
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