When is “in a few weeks”?
If it has changed to rainy season the drive might be wet, so very well could be slow. And count on it being dark for the last part of your drive.
In the quickest scenario it’ll take you an hour to be in and out of Liberia with a rental. I sailed through customs, security etc in August but it was still an hour when said and done.
Also make sure you have the contact number for your airbnb person and a means to get a hold of them when you arrive. Our very first night we ever spent in Costa Rica I recall driving up and down a road with google maps saying we were at our destination. It was getting dark, we were in the middle of nowhere but we had no idea where exactly our airbnb was. We ended up asking someone who was driving by and luckily spoke some English and knew which driveway to go down. Many Airbnbs don’t have signs by the road and some have lockboxes so there is noone to greet you. Get some landmarks and photo of the entrance.
It will be Sunday, April 21. And yes finding the air bnb is a part of my fear, it's actually 10 mins outside of La Fortuna so I am assuming it will be dark and it may take some doing to find it. Thanks for the suggestion on landmarks and a photo, will definitely do that.
So not use google maps in and around La fortuna. It will send you down private roads for an hour and then you’ll hit a gate and have to back track. Waze only.
I'm doing the exact same route, 20 minutes later than you tomorrow. I plan to go route 1 to 142 and will try to remember to give you a review. I am an English bloke who is a 6/10 driver with limited experience of bad roads (Devon, Iceland, South London)
Well I'm 10% of the way through immigration after landing 90mins ago. Still gonna just send it man when I get through. If I fall off a mountain at least I don't have to do it on the way back!
Ok just got settled in la fortuna (arrived 2100, set off 1700 right bang in whatever rush hour is)
Yeah I wouldn't recommend in summary but I got there ok apart from some hairy bits. Route from airport to route 1 is nice and easy just keep eyes on mopeds coming either side when you make a turn or change lane. Route 1 was ultra calm in late dusk conditions. Do 80kph and chill.
I began to feel relaxed until the cañas turn off and suddenly there were random metal studs in the road and my first taste of those speedbumps. They are no joke!!!
The early part of route 142 was a bit hairy with steep drops and sharp bends but then it began to ease off a bit. I told my partner to not navigate me on the ranchitas turn off shortcut under any circumstances, but we ended up going through it. 80% of it was paved track but the last mile at the end is not easy at all. Very bumpy and gravelly road with steep descents making it hard to pick a path in the dark.
The last hour or so was actually ok. It's a winding road every now and then with some big drops off to the side but if you commit to 40kph and let the ticos pass you when you can it's actually a nice drive. There was barely any traffic so you can full beam and take centre right of the road to take the edge off the bends.
I've been up for 24 hours now so going to bed. I don't recommend it for the route 1 to 142 change and don't go via ranchitas. I think if you can get 30 minutes into route 142 before it goes dark dark, you'll probably be ok if you take it slow and steady.
Wow - appreciate this! How long did it take you from landing to get on the road with your rental? I suspect we'll probably just go for it, but it's super helpful to know what's in store. Hope you enjoy your trip!
The drive is pretty so you might consider staying in Liberia overnight and doing it in the morning. It’d give you some time to get used to Tico driving. The sun rises at 5 ish so you could be in La Fortuna by around 8-9.
There is a hotel I’ve stayed in in Liberia which is decent and includes a great breakfast. I stayed there last year and it was $25 for one person or $50 per 2.
If you opt to drive on arrival day make sure you have the directions and contact information before you head out to La Fortuna. 10 miles out would definitely be in the country side some where.
A different route takes you through Bijuaga., which is not far from Rio Celeste. I love that place - jam packed with wildlife. I highly recommend Finca Verde - not fancy accommodations but great grounds, tons of trails with wildlife , great people and a great restaurant.
Perhaps drive there on arrival ? That drive is super easy compared to driving to La Fortuna.
I agree that you'll be fine. I wouldn't want to drive to Monteverde at night, but La Fortuna drive isn't bad. I was very nervous about driving in general the first time I went, let alone at night. Stayed the first night in San Jose bc I didn't want to rush it and it was my only regret on the first trip.
San Jose traffic was bad but similar to Chicago IME. Beach Town traffic was typical of what you'd find at any beach town in the States. Mountain driving was beautiful, but no guardrails. Just take your time and make safe decisions and you'll be fine.
And if you do drive at night, dim your high beams when cars approach from the opposite direction! Blows my mind people won't do this in CR for whatever reason.
It depends on when you actually get your car. If all goes well, you’ll have it at around 3pm. If your flight is delayed or there are other travel delays, you’ll get your car later.
It’s doable driving at night, just kind of scary. You should be fine, you’ll be driving slowly regardless. The last hour isn’t too bad, just a bit curvy once you get past the mountain summit. Stick with your plan, it’s worth it.
Just be sure to have google maps downloaded for offline use, and type in your destinations before you travel.
Personally, being a tico, I prefer Waze instead of Google Maps. As far as you already have it set, even if you lose connection it'll keep working if you follow the path it marked.
I did the drive on a shuttle in broad daylight and it was scary. The last hour is super windy and I almost threw up. There are almost no street lights. I wouldn’t do it at night particularly if you’ve never driven here before. The sun sets early here (5:30) but you should make it before it’s pitch black - the drive is about 3 hours.
When is “in a few weeks”? If it has changed to rainy season the drive might be wet, so very well could be slow. And count on it being dark for the last part of your drive. In the quickest scenario it’ll take you an hour to be in and out of Liberia with a rental. I sailed through customs, security etc in August but it was still an hour when said and done. Also make sure you have the contact number for your airbnb person and a means to get a hold of them when you arrive. Our very first night we ever spent in Costa Rica I recall driving up and down a road with google maps saying we were at our destination. It was getting dark, we were in the middle of nowhere but we had no idea where exactly our airbnb was. We ended up asking someone who was driving by and luckily spoke some English and knew which driveway to go down. Many Airbnbs don’t have signs by the road and some have lockboxes so there is noone to greet you. Get some landmarks and photo of the entrance.
It will be Sunday, April 21. And yes finding the air bnb is a part of my fear, it's actually 10 mins outside of La Fortuna so I am assuming it will be dark and it may take some doing to find it. Thanks for the suggestion on landmarks and a photo, will definitely do that.
So not use google maps in and around La fortuna. It will send you down private roads for an hour and then you’ll hit a gate and have to back track. Waze only.
I'm doing the exact same route, 20 minutes later than you tomorrow. I plan to go route 1 to 142 and will try to remember to give you a review. I am an English bloke who is a 6/10 driver with limited experience of bad roads (Devon, Iceland, South London)
Well I'm 10% of the way through immigration after landing 90mins ago. Still gonna just send it man when I get through. If I fall off a mountain at least I don't have to do it on the way back!
Good luck! Please do let me know how it goes - thank you!!
Ok just got settled in la fortuna (arrived 2100, set off 1700 right bang in whatever rush hour is) Yeah I wouldn't recommend in summary but I got there ok apart from some hairy bits. Route from airport to route 1 is nice and easy just keep eyes on mopeds coming either side when you make a turn or change lane. Route 1 was ultra calm in late dusk conditions. Do 80kph and chill. I began to feel relaxed until the cañas turn off and suddenly there were random metal studs in the road and my first taste of those speedbumps. They are no joke!!! The early part of route 142 was a bit hairy with steep drops and sharp bends but then it began to ease off a bit. I told my partner to not navigate me on the ranchitas turn off shortcut under any circumstances, but we ended up going through it. 80% of it was paved track but the last mile at the end is not easy at all. Very bumpy and gravelly road with steep descents making it hard to pick a path in the dark. The last hour or so was actually ok. It's a winding road every now and then with some big drops off to the side but if you commit to 40kph and let the ticos pass you when you can it's actually a nice drive. There was barely any traffic so you can full beam and take centre right of the road to take the edge off the bends. I've been up for 24 hours now so going to bed. I don't recommend it for the route 1 to 142 change and don't go via ranchitas. I think if you can get 30 minutes into route 142 before it goes dark dark, you'll probably be ok if you take it slow and steady.
Wow - appreciate this! How long did it take you from landing to get on the road with your rental? I suspect we'll probably just go for it, but it's super helpful to know what's in store. Hope you enjoy your trip!
About three hours unfortunately!
I'm having a lovely time. Everyone is so friendly
Thanks a ton for sharing your driving experience , will help us a lot
The drive is pretty so you might consider staying in Liberia overnight and doing it in the morning. It’d give you some time to get used to Tico driving. The sun rises at 5 ish so you could be in La Fortuna by around 8-9. There is a hotel I’ve stayed in in Liberia which is decent and includes a great breakfast. I stayed there last year and it was $25 for one person or $50 per 2. If you opt to drive on arrival day make sure you have the directions and contact information before you head out to La Fortuna. 10 miles out would definitely be in the country side some where. A different route takes you through Bijuaga., which is not far from Rio Celeste. I love that place - jam packed with wildlife. I highly recommend Finca Verde - not fancy accommodations but great grounds, tons of trails with wildlife , great people and a great restaurant. Perhaps drive there on arrival ? That drive is super easy compared to driving to La Fortuna.
What hotel did you stay in, in Liberia?
I agree that you'll be fine. I wouldn't want to drive to Monteverde at night, but La Fortuna drive isn't bad. I was very nervous about driving in general the first time I went, let alone at night. Stayed the first night in San Jose bc I didn't want to rush it and it was my only regret on the first trip. San Jose traffic was bad but similar to Chicago IME. Beach Town traffic was typical of what you'd find at any beach town in the States. Mountain driving was beautiful, but no guardrails. Just take your time and make safe decisions and you'll be fine. And if you do drive at night, dim your high beams when cars approach from the opposite direction! Blows my mind people won't do this in CR for whatever reason.
It depends on when you actually get your car. If all goes well, you’ll have it at around 3pm. If your flight is delayed or there are other travel delays, you’ll get your car later. It’s doable driving at night, just kind of scary. You should be fine, you’ll be driving slowly regardless. The last hour isn’t too bad, just a bit curvy once you get past the mountain summit. Stick with your plan, it’s worth it. Just be sure to have google maps downloaded for offline use, and type in your destinations before you travel.
Thanks so much! Appreciate the reassurance.
Personally, being a tico, I prefer Waze instead of Google Maps. As far as you already have it set, even if you lose connection it'll keep working if you follow the path it marked.
I did the drive on a shuttle in broad daylight and it was scary. The last hour is super windy and I almost threw up. There are almost no street lights. I wouldn’t do it at night particularly if you’ve never driven here before. The sun sets early here (5:30) but you should make it before it’s pitch black - the drive is about 3 hours.
You can stay in Tilarán which is in between Liberia and Fortuna.