Tamarindo is a top destination in Costa Rica with excellent beginner surfing waves, yummy restaurants and fun outdoor activities. Additionally, it is only a 1.5 hour drive from Guanacaste Airport, making it a great destination for all visitors.
If you are planning on visiting Tamarindo, Conchal or Flamingo, it won’t be too difficult to plan an amazing vacation.
In this post, you’ll find out how to get to Tamarindo from Guanacaste Airport.
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Driving
The drive from Guanacaste Airport to Tamarindo is not a difficult one. It is all on well paved roads and there are only five turns so you can perfectly drive there in a sedan. If you plan to rent a car, there are many car rental companies in Guanacaste Airport.
All the car rental agencies are a 5-10 minute drive from the airport so they will pick up clients at the airport and bring them to their office to get the car.
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For GPS, the best app is Waze but Google Maps work too. You will need to enter your hotel name as the destination.
Shuttle
A private shuttle is around $120 USD one way for 1-5 people. Private shuttles can stop along the way or take you to the supermarket or bank before dropping you off at your place.
There are shared and private shuttles to Tamarindo from Guanacaste Airport. Tamarindo Tours and Transfers offers shared shuttles for $30 USD per person, minimum 3 people.
Taxi/Uber
Taxis are readily available at Guanacaste Airport Airport. Most importantly, look for the official airport taxis in Costa Rica, they have a stand.
Uber is not readily available at Guanacaste Airport as police actively check for them. Avoid using Uber from there.
There are Ubers in Tamarindo in case you need to go from Tamarindo to Guanacaste Airport.
If you’re arriving late at night or are visiting on Christmas, New Years or Easter, we recommend to pre-book a private shuttle. That way you don’t have to worry about getting ripped off or checking multiple taxis to find a reasonable rate. You are also guaranteed a ride and someone waiting for you.
Flying
Tamarindo has its own local airport in Costa Rica. Since Guanacaste Airport to Tamarindo is only a 1 hour drive and 10 minute flight, this route isn’t readily available.
I have flown from Tamarindo – San Jose before, and the plane stopped at Guanacaste Airport along the way. But this was a logistical route issue, it was not a regular route.
From Tamarindo airport, you pick up your car rental or take a taxi to your final destination. The airport to Tamarindo is a 5 minute drive and about a 30 minute drive to Flamingo.
Public Bus
Liberia Municipal has a direct bus to Tamarindo that leaves at 3:50 am, 4:30 am, 5:15 am , 6:10 am*, 7:10 am, 8:10 am, 10:10 am*(only Sat and Sun), 11:10 am*, 1:10 pm, 2:10 pm, 4:10 pm, 5:10 pm, 6:10 pm* (This route goes through Flamingo, Brasilito, Matapalo. Takes around 3 hours. Normally is 2ish). The cost is around 1400 Costa Rican colones ($2.30)
This bus is supposed to stop at Guanacaste Airport but there have been reports of this bus not turning into the airport. You can ask the airport staff if they have seen the bus turn into the airport that day. If not, you may have to walk 30 minutes out to the main highway under the hot sun.
If you are lucky and happen to arrive when the bus turns into the airport, the bus stop is towards the departures end of the airport. The bus should turn into Guanacaste Airport about 20-25 minutes after the times above.
How to Get to Tamarindo from San Jose Airport
If you are landing in San Jose International Airport, you can still easily get to Tamarindo although it is a much longer journey.
Driving
The drive from San Jose to Tamarindo is around 4.5 hours. It is on a well paved route the entire way and the quickest way is to go via Route 18 crossing the Friendship bridge.
You can read our guide about the drive from San Jose to Tamarindo here for recommended stops.
Flying
You can fly from San Jose to Tamarindo which costs around $150 USD one way with Sansa Air, it is a 30 minute flight.
Bus
There is a public bus from San Jose to Tamarindo with TIG. It is around 5 and a half hours.
Shuttle
You can take shared or private shuttles to Tamarindo from San Jose. A private shuttle costs around $3420 one way for 1-5 people. A shared shuttle with Interbus from San Jose to Tamarindo is around $75 USD per adult one way. Get 10% off this Interbus shared shuttle in the link!
Contact us to book your shuttle (private or shared).
Other posts
Find out how to get to Manuel Antonio from San Jose, Guanacaste and other destinations.
Read about getting to Playas del Coco and Gulf of Papagayo from Liberia and San Jose.
Find out how to get to Drake Bay in the Osa Peninsula.
Will says
Hi I’m a single passenger and I was wondering if it is still possible to get in the ride share the 20 dollers deal ? Is that possible or am I going to have to take the bus?
Sammi says
Hey Will, you’ll have to reach out to the transportation companies as they normally run with a minimum requirement, like 3 passengers for the $20 shuttle. If there aren’t enough people, you’ll have to pay for the whole shuttle or wait and see if other people book.
Dave says
Hey there, great website! Need your help in making a decision. My wife and I are trying to decide between public or private shuttle from LIR airport to Tamarindo (would need a return too after 4 days). What are the public shuttle times? Is there a company for either that you would suggest to book tickets ahead of time? I feel like the private shuttle only makes sense for the 2 of us if the public shuttle doesn’t run anytime around when we land… looking forward to heading your advice!
Sammi says
Hi Dave, there are private shuttles and private drivers but if you want a shared shuttle, Native’s Way offers shared shuttles with a minimum number of passengers from the airport to Tamarindo. You’ll have to check with them for rates and availability. In case they don’t have any availability for a shared service or if you decide you want a private shuttle, please feel free to let us know and contact us.
Jen says
Hi- is there a bridge on the way to Tamarindo from Liberia?
Sammi says
There are some small bridges, like very short ones.
Barb says
We are planning on going to Tamarinda Costa Rica for a month in February. We would arrive in San Jose airport
We are interested in taking shared shuttle
How often do they run?
Sammi says
Hello Barb, for shared shuttles, check with Interbus or Ride CR. Shared shuttles will not pick you up directly from the airport, you will have to taxi down the street to either the Pollorostis restaurant or Fiesta Casino (~5-10 min drive). Their websites should have shared shuttle schedules.
Brandon says
Hey! Love the website.
I was whatsapping with the Liberia airport, and they told me the public bus that leaves from the airport does not pass through Flamingo, and that if I wanted to take a public bus, I should go from the airport to Santa Cruz, then from there to Flamingo. As this is out of the way, I don’t want to do this, haha!
Does this match what anyone else has heard/ experienced?
Sammi says
I think there is a direct bus from Liberia so you’d need to taxi into Liberia downtown, take the Transportes La Pampa bus to Flamingo/Tamarindo. The bus doesn’t pick up from the airport. There are lots of red taxis you can take into downtown Liberia once you exit the airport.