Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport or more commonly known as Guanacaste Airport (formerly known as Liberia International Airport) is the second main international airport in Costa Rica.
It is in the Guanacaste province near Liberia city and this is the airport you should fly into if you plan to visit the Guanacaste province.
In this guide, you’ll learn about the Guanacaste Airport.
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Location
Since it is less than an hour away from popular tourist attractions and best beaches in the Guanacaste province, the Guanacaste Airport is the ideal airport for those wanting to visit the Pacific coast, the Guanacaste mountain corridor and the Nicoya Peninsula.
Guanacaste Airport is 11.5 kilometers (7 miles) from Liberia, the capital city of the Guanacaste province.
It’s 30 minutes from the Gulf of Papagayo beaches of Coco, Hermosa, Ocotal and Panama and 1.5 hours approximatley from Tamarindo, Flamingo and Conchal. It is 2 hours from Samara and Nosara.
The Guanacaste Airport code is LIR.
Should I Fly Into San Jose or Guanacaste Airport?
- Fly into Guanacaste Airport for these beach towns: Conchal, Flamingo, Tamarindo, Avellanas, Grande, Brasilito, Potrero, La Cruz, Samara, Nosara, Ostional, Playas del Coco, Gulf of Papagayo, Hermosa, Ocotal, Riu, Four Seasons, Westin)
- You can also fly into Guanacaste Airport for Montezuma, Paquera, Tambor, Mal Pais and Santa Teresa.
- For those going to Rincon de la Vieja, Bijagua, Nuevo Arenal or Nicoya, Guanacaste Airport is best.
- Going to Manuel Antonio, Jaco, Puerto Viejo, San Jose, Tortuguero, Dominical, Uvita, Ojochal, Puerto Jimenez, Sarapiqui, Bajos del Toro, San Isidro de Perez Zeledon or Drake Bay? Fly into San Jose International Airport as that is closest.
- If you’re going to La Fortuna or Monteverde, then you can fly to either airport. 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 as there aren’t nearly as many people and the roads are well paved.
*During high season months December through April, particularly in the mornings and at noon, the intersection in front of LIR Airport can get extremely backed up and traffic accidents occasionally occur there. Drive safe!*
SJO Airport sometimes may be cheaper than LIR. Check for both airports first.
As for hotels, there aren’t many hotel options by Guanacaste Airport. For Liberia, there is the Hilton Garden Inn Guanacaste Airport that has a free shuttle and is only a two minute drive away. There is also a Hampton by Hill Guanacaste Airport two minutes away with a free shuttle.
However, the closest beach town to the airport, Playas del Coco is only about a 25-30 minute drive so you can definitely stay there for your last night before your departure instead of near the airport.
Read more about which international airport in Costa Rica you should fly into.
About Guanacaste Airport
This airport is not as busy as the Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) in San Jose but it is a full airport with duty free stores, car rentals, pet relief area, souvenir shops, one airport lounge and food. They curretnyl have 10 gates and are slowly expanding to add more services.
Local airlines such as Sansa fly into Guanacaste Airport and their check in is inside the same terminal as the international terminals. You can read more about taking local flights in Costa Rica here.
Guanacaste Airport Food, Shopping, Duty Free, Currency, Services
Inside the airport but not past security, there is a mini market and cafe. If you need to wait for other people in your group to arrive, you can hang out at the cafe.
Although it closes at 7 PM, they have chairs outside the cafe, on the main sidewalk of the airport that you can use.
In the departure terminal, there are several souvenir shops, a jewelry store and an art gallery. There is also the duty free store inside Guanacaste Airport that sells alcohol and normal duty free items.
For food, there isn’t a whole lot. There is a cafe, bakery, a bar, ice cream stand, a small pastry/sandwich stand and two small restaurants.
Food is VERY expensive in this airport, so if you can, buy snacks and food from the outside before arriving.
Wifi is free inside the airport terminal.
Most seats now have charging hubs and there are dedicated working stations. There is even an eco-friendly paddle your own power bikes!
Arriving to Guanacaste Airport
When you land at Guanacaste Airport, you will need to follow the signs to go through immigration and customs. Immigration is for people and you will go through immigration first.
They will ask your full name, occupation, place you’re staying in Costa Rica, how long you’ll be in Costa Rica and proof of exit. If you’re bringing more than $10,000 USD in cash, you’ll need to declare it.
If everything is on the up and up, the agent should stamp your passport. In addition, they will write how many days you can legally be in the country for.
For Group 1 countries like Canada, USA, Spain and UK, it is 180 days. But the officer can give you any amount of days they feel like.
In the immigration hall, there are bathrooms (3-4 stalls per gender). There are also bathrooms in baggage claim, but that hall does not have air conditioning.
Then there are bathrooms in the main terminal of the airport, on both ends.
Then after passport control, you will then go to baggage claim to collect your luggage and go through customs.
When you go through customs, make sure to put EVERYTHING in the scanner including backpacks and purses, laying down flat. Do not put duty free.
After customs, pick up your luggage and exit through the double doors into the airport. Then straight ahead through the glass double doors, you can find your tour company/hotel/car rental agent/driver/etc.
Guanacaste Airport has implemented something called VPass (www.vpassguanacaste.com), which is a VIP fast track through immigration and customs, in addition to expedited security screening, baggage handling and private meet and greet service.
Per adult, costs $150 plus tax USD. children under 8 are free. You can purchase per way or round trip.
Read more about going through customs and immigration at San Jose and Liberia Airport here.
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 up to 8 bottles of alcohol and they have all sorts. There is an official taxi stand outside the airport.
Parking at Guanacaste Airport
This airport has its own parking lot but it is not covered under roof at all nor has any facilities. It’s completely open with no shade.
The two sections are for car rentals, tour companies, hotels and private shuttles only. The next paved section is general parking which costs around 1300 CRC per hour (~$2.75 USD).
The unpaved parking section in the very back is closed.
Guanacaste Airport Arrivals Video
We made a short video tour of Guanacaste Airport which you can watch below. *Taken in 2021, so they have added a couple of things, but it’s essentially the same.*
Transportation from Guanacaste 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.
There are a couple of public buses that pass right by the airport (Tamarindo/Nosara) but not many of them. You most likely will need to walk out to the main road Route 21 where the bus stop is to flag down your bus (~30 minute walk).
Read more about taking the bus in Costa Rica here.
Private 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.
Contact us if you’d like a private airport shuttle!
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.
Shared shuttles have limited schedules and cannot wait for you if you are late so make sure you have plenty of time between landing and your shuttle pick up time. Get 10% off your Interbus shared shuttle here!
You can read more about taking shuttles in Costa Rica here.
Taxis: There will always be orange airport taxis waiting outside the arrival gate at the official airport taxi stand. Remember that generally, taxis are going to be more expensive than shuttles.
Read about taking taxis in Costa Rica here.
Ride share: Unfortunately Uber are not common at Guanacaste Airport and police are constantly looking to catch Uber drivers. Do not count on using ride shares at this 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
How to get to Tamarindo from Liberia Airport
Guanacaste Airport Car Rentals
If you are renting a car in Costa Rica, you will find car rental company counters inside Guanacaste Airport. They will be in the baggage claim area and you can find companies like Alamo, Hertz, Budget, Enterprise, Thrifty and more.
However, since Guanacaste Airport is too small for the car rental offices, companies will shuttle you to their airport office close by.
We have a partnership with Adobe Rent a Car who has an office ten minutes away (8.2 km or 5 miles) from Guanacaste Airport. We offer dive discounts and lots of extra benefits (free cooler, free SIM card, 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 Guanacaste Airport. See what the airport looks like and if you’re renting a car with Adobe Rent a Car, 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.
Please note that the general public is not allowed inside the airport to wait for guests, they must wait outside. The Adobe agent will be waiting for you outside the exit.
Guanacaste Airport Hotels
If you need a place to stay close to the airport, there are two hotel chains just a 2 minute drive from the airport, the Hampton by Hilton Guanacaste Airport and the Hilton Garden Inn Guanacaste Airport. Both offer free airport shuttle.
Want to read about other options? Click here to read our article for best hotels near Liberia Guanacaste Airport.
Other Important Information
You no longer need to pay the $29 exit tax, it is included in *most* airline tickets. There is a payment office just in case some airlines do not include the tax in the plane ticket price.
The intersection outside the airport is constantly backed up during the high tourism season of December to April. If you are landing around noon to early afternoon, plan for lots of traffic.
If your departure flight is around 11 – 2 PM, make sure to leave your hotel with plenty of time to account for traffic and get there around 2.5 hours before your flight departure.
Read more Costa Rica travel tips below!
Costa Rica Vacation Checklist
- First time to Costa Rica? Read our First Time in Costa Rica guide.
- Click the link to get our detailed Costa Rica Packing List so you know what essential items to bring.
- Do not forget to purchase Travel Insurance for your trip to Costa Rica.
- Stay connected by purchasing a prepaid SIM Card in Costa Rica. Get 10% off your Airalo eSIM package with our promo code “mytanfeet”
- Save money with Mytanfeet Deals for tours and hotels. Save more money with our Costa Rica Car Rental Discount.
Syl says
I need to pickup someone at the Liberia airport soon. Where can I park the car while I go meet them inside the terminal?
Sammi says
Liberia Airport has a free parking lot, when you turn inside the road, you’ll see another turn to the left to the parking lot
Jonathan says
Just came through Liberia airport. Was told there’s no longer a Kolbi kiosk. Have to go into Liberia or wait until you get to your destination. We ended up getting ours at a mini supermarket in Playa Hermosa. The sim cards are somewhat complicated to activate–very complicated if you are not fluent in Spanish. Fortunately the staff at this little market was super helpful.
Beth says
Can u buy alcohol at the duty free when arriving in Costa Rica to take to your hotel? How many bottles can Canadians buy?
Sammi says
Yes, there is a small duty free store at the airport after immigration, they told me up to I think 6 liters a person (not sure exact amount).
Michael says
I will be heading to Costa Rice for my honeymoon at the end of June. When leaving Costa Rica the LIR website suggests arriving 3 hours before your scheduled flight. Has this been your experience? Our departing flight takes off at 7am and I really am not wanting to have to wake up my future wife early enough to get to the airport by 4 am as I prefer keeping my head attached to my body and changing the ticket isn’t possible.
Sammi says
Hi Michael, you don’t need to be there 3 hours before. Liberia Airport is tiny (I think only 8 gates) and only a handful of flights a day so security is fast and it doesn’t take that long. In the morning, there are several flights at once but you can perfectly arrive 2 hours before.
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.
John says
Does Liberia airport provide Special Assistance. I have a broken foot and need an assistant. How do I arrange that?
Sammi says
They can arrange a wheelchair for you, let the airport agents know
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.
Cheryl Matheson says
How about driving to Monteverde?
Sammi says
Please check our Monteverde road conditions post.
Harmonie Lovin says
Hi,
I’ve been trying to find more info on the San Isidro Perez Zeledon airport. It looks like Sansa allows someone to chose that airport, but there aren’t dates available. Google states it’s open, but other websites I’ve read say it’s not. Any word on the status?
Sammi says
I am not 100% sure, but I don’t see it on the Sansa list or their website as airports on their destination page. It might be for private charters only.
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.