Taking the Ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera Step by Step Guide

If you’re planning to visit Montezuma, Tambor, Santa Teresa, Malpaís, Paquera or any beach on the Nicoya Peninsula from San Jose, taking the ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera is one of the best ways to get there.

In this article, you will learn exactly how to take this ferry. We’ll give step by step instructions for buying tickets, how to cross with a car or by foot and how long the ferry is.

There is also an instructional video at this end of this post. We will also show you how to take the ferry to Naranjo which is almost exactly the same as the ferry to Paquera from Puntarenas.

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Taking the Ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera

The ferry takes you through Gulf of Nicoya so you get a nice scenic cruise. You’ll pass by a few islands along the way.

Puntarenas Ferry Location

The Puntarenas ferry is at the very end of “Paseo de los Turistas.” This is the main road that goes parallel along the coast.

If you’re driving from San Jose, the drive is very easy on the highway, taking around 1 hour and 45 minutes without traffic.

DO expect traffic however, so we highly recommend to leave one hour earlier as there is usually traffic and congestion from downtown.

You can put in Google Maps “Ferry El Carmen Puntarenas” as your destination for the ferry. If you use Waze, you can enter “Atracadero Ferry Paquera – Naranjo” as your destination.

Puntarenas Paquera Ferry Schedule

Here is the schedule for the ferry from Puntarena to Paquera.

Puntarenas – Paquera: 4 AM, 630 AM, 9 AM, 12 PM, 3 PM, 6 PM, 8 PM and 10 PM.
Paquera – Puntarenas: 4 AM, 630 AM, 9 AM, 12 PM, 3 PM, 6 PM, 8 PM and 10 PM.

Purchasing Ferry Tickets Online

You can purchase your ferry ticket online on the Quickpay CR website.

*Please note that we are not associated or are affiliated with them. We cannot fix website problems or purchase tickets for you. Contact them if you have any questions.*

They only sell a certain number of tickets online. Once those are sold out, you will then have to buy tickets in person.

Step 1: Choose Your Destination

Choose if you’re going from Puntarenas to Paquera or Paquera to Puntarenas. Then select your date. Then the hours will pop up, select which ferry time you want.

Click “Siguiente” which means next.

Step 2: Choose your ticket

Now, it’ll ask if you have a rental car or if you are a foot passenger. If you have a rental car, choose “Vehiculo.” Then it will pop up a list of various vehicles.

Choose “Vehiculo Liviano Automovil/SUV” which is for all cars like sedans and SUVs.

If you are driving a pick up truck that has a red license plate, then you need to choose “Vehiculo Carga Liviana Placa CL.” (Do not select “Con Remolque” which means with a trailer…unless you are bringing a trailer).

If you do not have a rental car, then you choose “Persona(s)” which means you are buying foot passenger tickets.

Then you need to select the number of adults, kids and seniors in your group. This is for everyone in your party.

If you have a rental car and two adults, then you purchase one ticket for your car and then two adult passenger tickets.

Step 3: General Information

In this last step before entering credit card details, you need to enter your license plate number if you are coming with a car, your full name, your phone number and a working email which will have the tickets emailed to.

For rental cars, normally agencies do not assign cars until the day before or day of, so if you’re renting a car, enter any 6 digit number or put in RENTALCAR.

You do not need to select “Datos para factura” unless you need a Costa Rican invoice.

Accept terms and conditions and click “Comprar” which means buy.

Step 4: Payment

A small box will pop up to confirm your information is correct, then a new browser tab will appear for you to click “Confirmar Compra” and enter your credit card details.

Once you purchase the tickets, they’ll email you the receipt and confirmation.

Tickets are non refundable. You can take a screenshot of your emailed ticket.

If you don’t see any tickets available for your date/time slot, it could be that they are already sold out.

They may only have in-person tickets available. If you are not able to buy them online, you will have to buy them in person.

Purchasing Ferry Tickets in Person

To purchase your ticket in person, you need to go to the ticket office across the street from the ferry dock. It’s on the right hand side and the store is called “To Go.”

**If you are traveling on a weekend or during the months of December through April and need to buy tickets in person, make sure to arrive at least 1.5-2 hours early to purchase tickets in person as those are busy tourism season months. If you are traveling during Christmas, New Years or Easter, I would arrive 2-3 hours early if you can’t purchase tickets beforehand*

When buying tickets in person, tell the cashier how many adults and children and if you have a car. I bought tickets for me, Yeison and our car so I told the lady “Dos adultos y un carro liviano por favor.”

Taking the Ferry With a Car

*You should arrive to the dock at least 1 hour before your ferry time if you already purchased tickets during high season (January – March).*

If you have a car, you will need to drive onto the car loading area by the dock. There is an officer wearing a yellow vest that will tell you where to go to wait in line.

There is also a sign that says “Fila de Ferry – Line to Ferry) when you are close. Follow it and there will be a line to the Naranjo and Paquera ferry on your left hand side. Make sure you get in the right ferry line!

Once you park in the waiting area, the ferry attendant will ask you for your tickets. If you purchased them online, you can show it to him on your phone.

When driving onto the dock, everyone except the driver must get out and board the boat by foot. Make sure all the foot passengers have their physical ticket with the. They will have to show it t the agent to board the ferry.

The loading time starts about 1 hour before departure. There is a loud speaker that will announce when it’s time to load the ferry and it is in English and Spanish.

If you’re renting a car, make sure to check out our special Costa Rica car rental discount and extra benefits!

If You are a Foot Passenger

For those traveling without a car, the process is the same. If you’re arriving by bus, you will get off the bus right at the ferry ticket office.

While you wait to board the ferry, there is a waiting area under a large white tarp in the dock loading area.

When they start loading the ferry, you will follow the foot passenger line to board the ferry. You’ll show the ticket to the ferry attendant and then board the boat.

The Ferry

The ferry has bathrooms and a cafeteria selling snacks, food, water, coffee and drinks.

There are outside seating areas as well as an inside air conditioned cabin with televisions. You can sit anywhere you want.

There is an open free Wifi network that requires you to sign up to use.

The ferry is also pet friendly. There is a specific area for pets on the bottom level with the cars. It’s called “area para mascotas” and they must be on a leash.

As soon as it’s time to leave, they will make an announcement over the loud speaker in English and Spanish.

The ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera takes around an hour. You will cruise through the Gulf of Nicoya and the views are beautiful. You’ll see a few islands and the Nicoya Penninsula coastline.

Getting off the ferry

When the ferry is close to Paquera, you will hear an announcement for drivers to get into their cars. Once the ferry is docked, foot passengers will get off first and then cars.

Once you get off, you can take a taxi, take the bus or drive to your next destination. There are buses from Paquera to Cobano, Montezuma and Santa Teresa.

I asked for the price of a taxi from Paquera ferry dock to Santa Teresa and the driver I asked told me it is around 30,000 CRC (~$60 USD).

Please note this is just what that particular driver told me that day, the price may change depending on the time of year and how that taxi driver feels that day.

Puntarenas Paquera Ferry Video

Watch a video of us taking the ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera below. You’ll see where the ticket office is, what the ferry is like and how the roads are.

As you can see, taking the ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera is super easy and fun!

Naranjo Ferry

If you are taking the Puntarenas ferry to Naranjo, the process is the same (same location) to board. The Naranjo ferry has a separate line for cars.

You can buy tickets online but it is on a different website: Coonatramar. It is similar to the Paquera ferry site and will ask for how many adults, kids and seniors there are. They also have prices for bicycles, motorcycles, cars, etc.

To buy tickets in person, their ticket office is a bit down the street from the Paquera ferry and the loading area is right next to the Paquera dock.

The ferry leaves Puntarenas to Playa Naranjo at 330 AM, 530 AM, 730 AM, 930 AM, 1130 AM, 130 PM, 330 PM, 530 PM, 730 PM and 930 PM.

The ferry returns to Puntarenas from Playa Naranjo at the same times.

The Naranjo ferry is the best option if you want to go to Samara.

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