Hi. My wife and I will be in C.R. for almost two weeks in May and were thinking of renting a car for the time period. We're flying in and out of San Jose and would like to drive to some of the nearby attractions before heading to the Guanacaste area for a business meeting.

Should we drive ourselves around or take a bus back and forth between San Jose and Guanacaste?

Thanks for the advice...

Had a week in Costa Rica about 5 years ago. Rented a van.

Main roads were pretty good... Secondary roads, and roads to some attractions were rough but worth it.

If you're familiar with diriving in less developed, latin countries you'll be OK. An example of what I mean by that: We were stopped for speeding (probably were), by a person along the highway with a radar gun, who showed a badge. He was in plain clothes, unmarked car. He said he was an officer, and we could pay him a $75 fine right there, or go quite a ways to a courthouse/jail to protest it. We offered him $50 and he took it.

Very beautiful country. You'll enjoy it.

You do not want to take a bus. Rent a taxi or see if it would be better to take an air taxi into a smaller airport. I took one into Manuel Antonio two years ago and it was quick. Cost me about $100 per person though.

Gabe

Driving in San Jose is a nightmare!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just returned from san jose where I rented a car and drove to Mamuel Antonio. Got lost in San Jose for about 2 hours. Road signs are few and street numbers do not exist. I would take a private bus or cab if not too far.

Hello,
My husband and I will be driving in Costa Rica in March, so I've done some research about cops/tickets, etc.
DO NOT pay a ticket on the side of the road--you have up to two months to pay a ticket after you leave the country should you receive one. I got that info from Fodor's. You also don't want the cops to know that you have any money, this I heard from a friend that just came back from the country. Just shrug and show your "empty" wallet.
Also, I have heard from several people that a 4WD is a MUST, even for main roads. So I switched my car reservaation. I also highly recommend picking up the latest Fodor's Costa Rica guide, it is excellent!
Have a great trip!