Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport or Liberia International Airport is the second main international airport in Costa Rica. It is in the Guanacaste province near Liberia city. Since the Guanacaste province has grown tremendously in popularity the past several years, the Liberia Airport has become the hub for those who want to visit the pristine Pacific coast of Costa Rica.
To accommodate all these new visitors, Guanacaste needed a more well constructed airport since it has not been updated since 1995. It under one major renovation in 2012 and is undergoing construction again in 2018 to expand the airport more.
In this guide, you’ll learn about the Liberia Airport.
This post has been updated March 2018.
Location
Since it is less than an hour away from popular beaches and tourist attractions in Guanacaste, Liberia International Airport is the ideal landing spot for those wanting to visit the Pacific coast, the Guanacaste mountain corridor and the Nicoya Peninsula. The Liberia International Airport code is LIR.
Libera International Airport map
Liberia International Airport is 11.5 kilometers from Liberia, the capital city of the Guanacaste province. It’s 25 minutes from the Gulf of Papagayo beaches of Coco, Hermosa and Panama and 1 hour from Tamarindo. Flamingo and Conchal.
Should I Fly Into San Jose or Liberia Airport?
- If you’re going to Guanacaste (destinations like Conchal, Flamingo, Tamarindo, Avellanas, Grande, Coco, Hermosa, Ocotal, Riu, Four Seasons, Westin) then LIR Airport is the one you want to fly into as it is the closest.
- Going to Manuel Antonio, Jaco, Puerto Viejo, San Jose, Dominical, Uvita? Fly into SJO Airport as that is closest.
- If you’re going to La Fortuna or Monteverde, then you can fly to either airport because the driving time is the same for both airports, around 3 hours.
There are some pros and cons to flying to SJO and LIR Airport however.
San Jose International Airport is right by San Jose, the capital city of Costa Rica. This is where most of the country’s population lives and works so the traffic is terrible. It is a lot more hectic and stressful to drive in San Jose than Liberia. Liberia is in Guanacaste and it is super easy to drive there as there aren’t nearly as many people and the roads are well paved.
SJO Airport may be cheaper than LIR since Liberia is a much smaller airport so I would check for both airports first. When I visit my home in WA state, prices were around $200 more expensive to Liberia Airport to Seattle. Sometimes they still are depending on the time of year but luckily, more flights are opening up to LIR!
If you are planning to visit Guanacaste but flights are cheaper to SJO Airport, know that you will need to take either a 5-6 hour bus ride or drive around 4 hours to get from San Jose to Liberia. It may be worth spending that extra $100-200 to save time. There are buses from San Jose to Liberia every hour from 6 AM to 8 PM.
As for hotels, there aren’t many hotel options by Liberia Airport. There is only one, the Hilton, that has a free shuttle and is only a two minute drive away. The rest of the hotels are smaller and further away so you will have to pay for a shuttle or taxi.
About Liberia International Airport
This airport is not as busy as the Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) in San Jose but it is a full airport with a duty free store, car rentals, souvenir shops and some fast food stands. The airport also has a small parking lot and waiting area inside. It’s a small airport and waiting times are not super long because of this.
Liberia Airport Arrivals
Right now there are only 7 gates but they will be adding several more.
These are the airlines currently flying into LIR Airport. This is the list as of January 2018 and may not reflect current conditions.
- Alaska Airlines
- United Airlines
- Southwest Airlines
- American Airlines
- Delta Airlines
- JetBlue Airway
- KLM
- AVIANCA
- WestJet
- SunWing
- Air France
- Swift Air
- Sun Country Airlines
- Air Canada
Liberia Airport Food, Shopping, Duty Free, Currency, Services
There are a couple of fast food places inside Liberia Airport and souvenir stores. Once you past security, you will see a large Britt Cafe souvenir shops, a jewelry store and an art gallery. There is also the duty free store inside Liberia International Airport that sells alcohol and normal duty free items.
For food, there isn’t a whole lot. There is a small cafe, a restaurant that sells sandwiches and typical Costa Rican food and a Quiznos.
There is a duty free and currency exchange right after you finish immigration. You will see both places when you are at immigration. At the duty free, they told me foreigners can buy 8 bottles of alcohol and they have all sorts.
Outside of customs, there is a Kolbi stand where you can purchase a prepaid sim card. There is also a ICT Costa Rican tourism board office where you can get free Costa Rica maps.
Transportation from Liberia Airport
Public bus: The Liberia public city bus between the airport and Liberia runs every hour on the hour from 5 AM to 9 PM. From the bus station in Liberia, you can take a bus to the border, San Jose, Playas del Coco and other destinations for cheaper than a shuttle or taxi. Downside to this is that the buses are usually very full, longer waiting times and longer bus rides. Read more about taking the bus in Costa Rica here.
Airport shuttle: You can book a private shuttle to meet you at LIR Airport. Private shuttles will meet you outside the airport when you land and take you directly to your destination. This is a good option if you’re not renting a car and coming in a large group.
Shared shuttles: You can also take shared shuttles but they can’t meet you directly at the airport. They will request you to go to the Hilton Garden Inn Hotel down the street for pick up. Depending on your destination, there are usually an AM and PM shared shuttle to places like La Fortuna, Monteverde, Montezuma, Santa Teresa, etc. You can read more about taking shuttles in Costa Rica here.
Taxis: There will always be airport taxis waiting outside the arrival gate if you want to take a taxi. Remember that taxis are going to be more expensive than shuttles and they can charge even higher rates for holidays. You will see red and orange taxis which are the official taxis. Unfortunately Uber is not in Liberia yet. Read about taking taxis in Costa Rica here.
From Liberia Airport
Here are our articles on how to get to destinations from Liberia Airport.
How to get to Playas del Coco/Gulf of Papagayo from Liberia Airport
Liberia Airport Car Rentals
If you are renting a car in Costa Rica, you will find all the car rental companies inside Liberia Airport. They will be in the baggage claim area and you can find companies like Alamo, Hertz, Budget, Enterprise, Thrifty and more. However, since LIR Airport is too small for the car rental offices, most companies will shuttle you to their airport office close by. Some companies will bring the car to the airport parking lot but there may be an extra fee for it.
We have a partnership with Adobe Rent a Car who has an office two minutes away from Liberia Airport to give up to 20% discounts and lots of extra benefits (free cooler, free local cell phone, free surf racks, etc.). You can check out our Costa Rica car rental discount here.
You can also watch in the video below the process of picking up the car from Liberia Airport. See what the airport looks like and if you’re renting a car with Adobe, what the process is to meet the team. (We highly recommend reserving a car in advance instead of booking at the airport since you will be able to research about the insurances, fees and taxes).
Liberia Airport Hotels
If you need a place to stay close to the airport, there is one hotel that is just across the road from the airport, the Hilton Garden Inn.
Although more expensive being the Hilton, it is the closest compared to others. For a cheaper option, check out Hotel Santa Ana further away but more budget friendly.
Want to read about other options? Click here to read our article for best hotels near Liberia Airport.
Other Important Information
- You no longer need to pay the $29 exit tax, it is included in many airline tickets. There is a board and payment office for you to check since some airlines (Canadian) have not included it yet. Make sure to check if you bought your ticket a long time ago too (more than 1 year).
- There is a Kolbi stand in the airport when you exit customs. You can buy a pre-paid Costa Rica sim card there.
- Find out what it’s like to go through customs and immigration in Costa Rica.
- We recommend arriving at least 2 hours early for an international flight.
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Jeremy says
Do you happen to know the approximate cost of an official taxi to Playa Hermosa? My hotel has not gotten back to us regarding transport yet, but I want to explore this option. It looks like a shuttle is approx. 50 USD?
Sammi says
It’d be around $55, a private shuttle is $50 for 1-4 people.
luis says
are the prices at the inside duty free and post customs duty free the same? I hear that there are differences.
Sammi says
To be honest I am not sure, I have only bought things at the duty free after immigration, not the duty frees in the airport waiting areas.
Paul says
Hi. Any advice appreciated. I have a hire car (Alamo) and after a month I leave at 6.45am (United). The car office opens at 5.00am. I had an idea as I am on my own to drive to the short term car park mentioned and take my bag to check in (guessing 3 hours before the flight at about 4.00am). Then return to the car and take it to the offsite office and get the shuttle back. Do you think this will work? Any other suggestion?
Thanks
Sammi says
Hi Paul, you really don’t need to be at Liberia Airport 3 hours before, it’s a tiny airport that’s rarely busy so 1.5-2 hours before is perfectly fine and you can drop your car off at 5 AM, that’s what we do when we rent with Adobe and have an early morning flight except Adobe office starts receiving cars at 4:40 AM.
KaRess says
If you are going to Tamarinda would you suggest a shuttle or a rental car. We will be doing excursions also.
Sammi says
Hi Karess, it depends. You can just shuttle and do day trips with a tour company if you don’t want to drive. Or if you want to explore more and go off on your own, then I recommend a car. But if it’s for a short trip and you don’t want to drive, then shuttle and booking tours is perfectly fine.
Jennifer says
We arrive at LIR on a Saturday around noon and plan to pick up our rental car. Will we have time to drive to La Fortuna before it gets dark? If not, any suggestions on where to stay along the way. We’d like to get close so we can get the most out our our day on Sunday without using up daylight (and dry hours) driving. Thanks!
Sammi says
Hi Jennifer, you can read this post for the route from Liberia to Arenal and get recommendations here: Driving Guanacaste to Arenal If you’re landing at noon, you’ll be able to have enough time to get to La Fortuna before dark (it gets dark by 6 PM). I would just not highly recommend it if you’re coming in our very rainy months like September and October but generally it’s dry and cloudy in the day and rains at night.
Jennifer Johnson says
How can I contact the Duty Free store to place preorder?
Sammi says
I honestly have no idea but here is the number for the airport: +506 2666 9600. They should be able to transfer you over to the duty free store.
Mel says
Is there a safe lot to park a car for a week?
Sammi says
Liberia Airport doesn’t have a long term parking lot and I don’t recommend leaving it there for a week at all. You can contact your car rental company if you’re renting a car if you can leave it or I know some people have left it at the Hilton Garden Inn by the airport but they were guests. You can reach out to them and see if they have any options for non guests and see how much it costs.
Tara says
Can you please tell me what the arrivals duty free hours are? As well can you recommend a cheap shuttle to Tamarindo?
Sammi says
I am not sure what the hours are, but I have been there at 6 AM and it wasn’t open yet so maybe it opens around 7. You can email our friend who runs a tour/transportation in Liberia for a quote to Tamarindo: shamantours@live.com
Abbie says
Hi guys! So happy to have stumbled upon your blog, I think I’ve read every word on all the Costa Rica posts! We are coming down from Seattle in 2 weeks! Looking for current concrete advice that there is a kiosk to purchase SIM cards for our iPhones when we arrive at LIR? I’ve been searching everywhere to make sure.
Thank you for all your posts and great info! I’m loving it all, especially from a fellow PNW kid!
Ben says
Since noone else has replied, when you arrive, can you let me know if there is a kiosk to purchase the SIM cards? We will be traveling in Feb and I want to verify. May of 2013 was our last trip and there was not a Kiosk at that time – we had to ask the shuttle driver to stop on the way to our resort.
Sammi says
Yes, there should be one. Last time I was there (2014) there was.
Ben says
Thanks Sammi!
Sammi says
Hi Abbie, yes there is a kiosk when you leave customs. Have a great time in CR and enjoy the fall in Seattle for me, I miss it terribly!
Loren Reed Brothers says
Thanks Sammi for your reply to Nancy. I assume your friend Randall can provide transportation for 2 to Casa Conde del Mar? Is that $50 for one way? I will probably drop him an email. 🙂 I also want to clarify that there is no public transportation directly from the LIR to the coast? We are working on a tight budget (oh BTW Go Huskies! We are up in Concrete, WA in the North Cascades.)
Sammi says
Hi! Yep he can, it’s $50 one way and feel free to shoot him an email for all the details. There is a public bus that goes from LIR to the beaches like Coco but I don’t think there is one directly to Playa Panama where Casa Conde Del Mar (I’m not positive). I do know there is 3 (I think) buses a day that go through Hermosa/Panama area.
Ohh a Husky fan!! I miss UW so much. Go Huskies!! 🙂
Nancy says
Hey guys,
Thanks for the awesome website! We are arriving at LIR on October 2 and heading to Vista Perfecta in Coco. We would like to pre-book a shuttle. Is there a company you can recommend, and what should we expect to pay? We are a family of four.
Sammi says
Hi Nancy! We always use Shaman Tours, it is run by a Costa Rican and they do tours, shuttles, etc. It is $50 for four people, his email is shamantours@live.com and his name is Randall. Let me know if you have other questions!
Nancy says
Thank you so much for getting back to me! We will email him for sure and we’ll let you know if we have any more questions.
Liz says
Great information – it has been soooo helpful to us! We are set to arrive at Liberia airport on July 5 and will go to Villa Serena. We have a pickup scheduled to take us there but thought their rates were pretty high – $50 plus tip in cash. Is this normal and is it ok to pay in US dollars? Would a taxi be more economical?
Thank you for your info and thank you for elevating our excitement for this trip with all the wonderful information you provide!
Liz
Sammi says
Hi Liz! That’s the right price. It’s usually about $50 if you hire a shuttle and it’s OK to pay in dollars. It is a bit expensive :/ Hope you have a great time here!
Dave says
Does anyone know the names and phone numbers of the two jewelry stores in Liberiia LIR airport terminal in Costa Rica?
Keith says
United Airlines flys direct from Chicago on Saturday and Sundays in high season.
Sammi says
Awesome! Thank you, I’ll add that to the list.
Costa rica girl says
I LOVED the old airport, so much fun to watch people come in with “deer in headlights” syndrome. Had so much more character….
yeison says
Hehehe yes I remember that … One time I saw a person getting out of the airplane with rubber boots, and a Poncho … ready for the jungle!
Thanks for stopping by.
Pura vida
Lindsey Monge says
When we landed in Costa Rica, we arrived at Liberia airport, but this was before the new renovation. I was afraid because it was only my second flight ever and they parked the plane on the runway and had us comb down and walk the pavement toward the main building. It was my first time physically on a runway and there were security guards with big guns. It’s kind of funny now looking back on it though 🙂
Sammi says
I remember the first time I ever got to walk on the runway (in Bahamas) I was SO excited but at least I didn’t have men with guns haha. The new airport is super nice now and was a much needed upgrade from the old one.