Renting a car in Costa Rica and have no idea which company to go with? In this post, we’ll share with you our personal recommendation for our car rental in Costa Rica experience: Adobe Rent a Car.
And for those of you who want a jump start on booking your car, we have teamed up with this Costa Rica car rental company to give discounts and extra benefits to our readers. Just click on our Costa Rica car rental discount link here to check quotes, availability and make reservations with our promo. Also check our renting a car in Costa Rica post for more tips!
Adobe Rent a Car Costa Rica: Best Car Rental in Costa Rica
Why did we choose Adobe for our very first car rental experience in Costa Rica? Adobe Rent a Car Costa Rica is 100% Costa Rican, have been in business for over 30 years and have offices all throughout the country. They offer the latest car models, excellent customer service and all inclusive pricing which will make planning your vacation to Costa Rica less of a headache.
Read more below!
The Importance of All-Inclusive Pricing in Costa Rica
What is all inclusive pricing and why is it important in Costa Rica? Well you may have heard that renting a car in Costa Rica is a scam and read many horror stories from previous tourists. Unfortunately, there are companies in Costa Rica that implement what we see as dishonest practices regarding insurance.
For example, if you check third party booking sites (not the direct car rental website), you may see a crazy cheap price like $5-10 USD a day. When you go to book that car, your total will be only like $50 for a week. Score! You got such a good deal right? You book it and think that everything is done and confirmed with nothing else to do for your car rental.
However, when you arrive in Costa Rica and pick up the car, the agency tells you that you have an additional X amount of hundred dollars to pay and that your deposit will be something crazy like $3000 USD. And that you have to pay an extra airport fee. Or that you have to purchase all these other insurances or if you didn’t purchase any insurance, then your deposit will be $5000 USD. This happens because the third party booking site you booked with only showed the “base” price and never included any taxes, fees or insurance. Because they never mentioned or showed it, you had no idea there were other charges to pay.
So you’re left with an incredibly awful experience and you feel like you were scammed.
Adobe Rent a Car doesn’t do ANY of that. They offer all-inclusive pricing so the total amount on your reservation is exactly what you pay when you pick up the car. No extra fees, taxes or charges. You know exactly which insurances you will pay for and which are optional. You also know how much your deposit will be.
What to Know About Costa Rican Car Rental Insurance
Adobe Rent a Car’s insurances are easy to understand as they are very straightforward. Plus, there are only 3 options offered when booking online. Read more about Adobe Rent a Car’s insurances here.
Some other agencies make it super confusing. They may have up to or more than 5 insurance options, use confusing language and just aren’t clear. Also some of them may offer options such as If you purchase insurance 1 but not 2, 3 and 4, your deposit is $5000 USD. If you purchase insurances 1, 2 and 3, your deposit is $500. If you purchase insurance 1, 2 and 4, your deposit is $2000.
SO confusing right?
Adobe Rent a Car doesn’t do that at all.
One of the benefits of renting a car through Mytanfeet is that we offer a $500 or $750 USD deposit instead of the original $1000 USD deposit.
Pros About Adobe Rent a Car
They are 100% Costa Rican
As a traveler, I much prefer my money to go to the locals than the foreign companies. And this is especially in a country that depends on tourism so much like Costa Rica.
The entire Adobe Rent a Car company is Costa Rican, from the owners to all employees.
Being a 100% Costa Rican company also gives a bit more peace of mind because they know Costa Rican laws inside and out.
Everyone in the company knows the roads, knows what it’s like to drive in Costa Rica and knows what tourists are looking for when it comes to a good car rental experience.
Easy to Understand Insurance
Adobe Car Rental makes it easy to understand exactly what you are paying for and what insurance covers what. They also clearly explain which insurance is optional and which insurance is not.
Excellent Service
When it comes to customer service, Adobe has excellent customer service. From their reservations department to their counter agents, everyone is polite, knowledgeable and friendly.
Well Maintained Fleet
Another reason why Adobe Rent a Car is the best car rental in Costa Rica is their well maintained fleet. They have a fleet of cars that are no more than 2 years old, keeping them in very good condition.
This is something very important to consider when price comparison shopping. You may see a cheap car rental but keep in mind that that company may use really old cars, like 5 years or more. A 1 year old rental car vs 5 year old rental car is drastically different in Costa Rica. The 5 year old car may have something like 500,000 kilometers on it and the condition of that car will not be the same as a 1 year old rental car.
Transparency
No hidden fees, no surprise taxes, no last minute charges. Nothing. You don’t need to worry about any of that when you rent a car with Adobe!
As mentioned earlier, they use an all-inclusive pricing structure so clients pay exactly the amount written on their confirmation.
My Experience: Our Adobe Rent a Car Review
I first rented a car with Adobe Rent a Car in 2014 before our partnership with them. I wanted to rent with a local company and heard many great things about Adobe. My experience went flawlessly. They delivered my car to our condo in Jaco and had to picked up there as well. I rented a sedan (Hyundai Accent) for me and 2 friends and we drove from Jaco to Manuel Antonio National Park and Playas del Coco.
The car worked great, was comfortable and clean. Everything was clearly explained to me by the agent and I had no confusion about what I was paying for. After my car rental experience with Adobe Rent a Car Costa Rica, we knew that we wanted to partner with them for our blog.
We are very happy that we are able to give our Mytanfeet readers a car rental discount and extra freebies to help them save money on their vacation!
If you have any questions about our discount or about Adobe Rent a Car Costa Rica, please feel free to contact us.
Read more Costa Rica travel tips below!
Tips for using Airbnb in Costa Rica
Sammi says
Hi Cherie, yes you can select the Ciudad Quesada office for the pick up and return as it’s the closest office but Adobe can deliver your car to your hotel in La Fortuna for free so in the comment section of the reservation, please enter the name of your hotel you would like the car to be delivered and picked up and the time (delivery/pick up hours are 830 AM to 430 PM).
Cherie S says
Hello! I don’t see an office listed in La Fortuna area. Will the Ciudad Quesada office deliver a car to La Fortuna and then drop off back at the Quesada office?
Misty says
Hey Yeison & Samantha! We are planning our trip to Costa Rica (2 adults & our 10 year old daughter) in November and would love some advice on what type of car to rent.
We are flying into San Jose, then heading to Punta Uva, then to Monte Verde, over to Samara and then flying out of Liberia.
Would love a response!
Sammi says
Definitely a 4wd/4×4, as November is end of rainy season and you’re going to Monteverde which doesn’t have very good roads.
Carol says
Sammi
We are traveling to CR at the end of November and will rent a car. We are looking at Adobe for the rental. We will fly into Liberia but won’t arrive until 10:00pm. Is there way to get the car at that time?
Sammi says
Hi Carol, yes if you would like your car when you land, just put in your flight information and in the comment section when you’re making the reservation, write that you would like the car when you land at X TIME so that Adobe knows to station an agent at the airport to meet you.
Tammy M says
We had a great experience with both Adobe and using your blog. Thanks for all the great information. Adobe made the rental experience super simple. I’m so glad we decided to rent a car and explore!
Sammi says
Thank you for your feedback Tammy and glad you had a good experience 🙂
Judy says
We rented an SUV through Mytanfeet/Adobe in February of 2020. Our experience was great. When I was concerned about whether the car would fit 6 comfortably, they sent detail pictures of the car. They provided car seats for our two grandchildren and delivered and picked up the car at pretty much exactly the agreed upon time. We could’t be happier. The discount was great too. It was a simple no hassle process. I recommended to the concierge at our rental.
Sammi says
Hi Judy, thank you so much for your feedback and we’re very happy to hear you had a good experience with Adobe!
Chris says
Hi,
great blog and website. Helped us a lot in planning our first trip to Costa Rica!
I rented a 4×4 from Adobe and it was a really smooth operation. Can only recommend this company.
In downtown San Jose I got a car in good condition. They have clerks that speak an excellent English and they didn’t try to sell me any extra insurance or other stuff I don’t want or need. The only thing worrying me was the missing rear license plate. And returning the car at the airport was also fast and absolutely hassle free.
I did however book the car through a German agency because of insurance issues. Adobe answered my emails quickly when I double-checked if the reservation came through.
Driving in Costa Rica is very relaxed – outside of San Jose at least. I saw not more than five patrol cars in this one week, and they obviously didn’t care about the missing plate.
Sammi says
Glad you had a great experience and thanks for your feedback!
Yass says
Hi,
Thanks for your amazing blog!
You convinced me of renting a car with Adobe 🙂 I just have one concern – I am 23 years old, and when I tried to get a quotation, I was not asked for my age/DOB. I just want to know if/how much would the young renter fee be. Could you help me out with this please?
Thanks again
Sammi says
Hi Yass! We got your email but the minimum age for Adobe is 23 so you are good!
Carole says
Hello. Unfortunately we booked through a different travel company that does not offer all the perks that your site does. I would very much like to cancel my reservations and rebook through your site. But noticed that at this late date the 3 Hyundai Tucson’s we booked are not available. I wonder if you could assist in helping me switch since the cars we booked are reserved I wonder if we could transfer that reservation in order to receive your perks. We leave tomorrow!
Sammi says
Hi Carole!
We will be happy to assist you, we just sent you an email. (Let me know if you didn’t get it, sometimes it may have gone to Spam).
Niall says
Hello
Great blog and website…super helpful for planning my first trip to CR! I need to hire a car from Tamarindo and am going to Monteverde and then on to SJO aiport over 5 days. Can you recommend the best type of car for this trip ? 4×2 or 4×4 ? I will be travelling in December/January.
thanks!
Sammi says
Hi Niall, we just sent you an email!