In this guide, I’ll take you through the entire process of crossing the border from Costa Rica to Nicaragua, Penas Blancas border by foot. You will find everything you need to know about exiting Costa Rica, entering Nicaragua, exiting Nicaragua and entering Costa Rica at the Penas Blancas border.
Costa Rica Nicaragua Penas Blancas Border Crossing Guide
Click on the section to skip to it.
- What You Need (Required documents, taxes, etc.)
- Getting to the Border
- Leaving Costa Rica
- Entering Nicaragua
- Leaving Nicaragua
- Entering Costa Rica
- Fees
- Safety Tips
What You Need for Crossing the Border Between Costa Rica and Nicaragua
- A valid passport that is not within 6 months of expiring (Nicaragua is strict about this)
- Costa Rica Exit Tax Receipt (if you are leaving Costa Rica)
- You must not have overstayed your tourist visa for either Costa Rica and Nicaragua
- Check if you need a visa to enter Nicaragua. (USA and Canada does not)
- A printed plane ticket out of Costa Rica if you are entering Costa Rica
- Small USD bills. All taxes are paid in USD.
How to get to the Penas Blancas Border Crossing in Costa Rica
- Car – You can drive your car to the border but that is as far as you can go as Costa Rican rental cars are not allowed to cross land borders. In this case, you will need to leave it at the house in the front. The family that lives there will watch it for you for a ~$5 USD a day. Do not leave any valuables inside! You’ll start seeing a huge line of trucks when you get close to the border. Don’t stay in this line. Keep going and you’ll be able to cross the over and park by the Costa Rica exit office.
- Private shuttle or taxi – You can book a private shuttle in Costa Rica to take you to the border. Depending on where you are traveling from, this private transfer (~$180 USD from the Guanacaste beaches). The shuttle will drop you off right at the border which then you will cross on your own by foot.
- Bus – You can take the public bus to the Penas Blancas border from Liberia (5 AM – 6:30 PM every 45 minutes with Grupo Transbasa) or San Jose (3:20 AM – 7 PM every hour with Caribenos), get off and cross the border by foot. You can also take a bus like Ticabus that goes from San Jose to Managua and to the rest of Central America. You will do the border crossing with Ticabus.
- Visa Run – If you are crossing the border purely for a visa run and don’t have your own transportation, check with Native’s Way (Tamarindo) as they offer visa runs (transportation only).
Leaving Costa Rica
To leave Costa Rica, you first need to pay the exit tax which you can pay at the border directly.
Costa Rica Exit Tax
Costa Rica charges an exit tax for all land crossings. There are buildings right when you enter at the border to pay your exit tax with lots of signs. With the Costa Rica exit office ahead of you, all the exit tax offices are to the right.
You must pay this exit tax before you exit Costa Rica which can be paid at one of these offices pictured above. They charge a little more for a “convenience fee” so the total will be $10 USD. You can also pay this online on the Banco de Costa Rica website for $8 USD. Print out your receipt and bring it with you.
Costa Rican Exit Office
As you walk towards the border, you’ll see lots of trucks. Costa Rica is the only country who didn’t sign the Central America Marchamo so you will see tons of big rig trucks waiting in line to cross. If you’re driving, you can go around them. Every time I’ve been to the Costa Rican exit office, it’s fairly empty with no line.
Go inside with your passport and exit tax receipt and hand your passport to the officer who will check it. They didn’t ask me any questions but they asked the lady in front of me where in Costa Rica they were staying before they left.
There is a bathroom outside to the left of the exit office (free).
Entering Nicaragua
Now, walk outside and follow the buses and groups of people towards Nicaragua.
After a few hundred meters, you’ll reach the office to enter Nicaragua. You’ll go through one main check point at the border where they will check for your Costa Rican exit stamp. However, any officer can stop you on the road to check your stamp.
Sometimes the officers will ask questions, sometimes not. They’re pretty friendly in all my experiences and don’t worry if you don’t know Spanish. Just show them your passport if they ask for it.
Nicaragua Entrance Office
Continue after this checkpoint and follow the signs to the Nicaraguan immigration office. You’ll see lots of people selling souvenirs, clothes, food and asking if you need change.
The Nicaragua immigration office is quite new and very nice with air conditioning. When you get inside (look for Entrada), get in line.
Then, you will get in the entrance line and pay a $12 USD tax to the immigration officer who takes your passport. When he has stamped it, he will write out a large receipt which you can keep. He will normally ask you where you are going in Nicaragua. Let him know the city and if you booked a hotel, tell him the first hotel you’re staying at in Nicaragua. Sometimes the officer doesn’t ask anything at all.
After you’re done, put any luggage or belongings through the luggage scanner for customs. After that, you are now officially in Nicaragua!
There there is a lady who will ask for a $1 USD municipality entrance fee.
If you continue walking outside, there are some restaurants and taxis if you need one. It’s about a thirty minute taxi ride to San Juan del Sur which costs around $30 USD. Also just in case, here is the bus schedule to Rivas and Managua below.
Leaving Nicaragua
Leaving Nicaragua is about the same process. The exit office is the same office as the entrance, just on the other side.
When you get inside, you have to pay another $1 USD municipality tax (to the small booth to the right) and $3 USD to exit to the officer who takes your passport. Put the location as your first hotel/hostel and town in Costa Rica. If you need the bathroom, it is to the left of the immigration office building and costs $1 USD.
After you get your Nicaraguan exit stamp, walk back on the main road towards the Costa Rican side. Like before, you’ll be stopped a couple times by officers to check your passport. Once you reach the Costa Rican side, head to the right side of the building to go through immigration to enter Costa Rica.
Entering Costa Rica
You’ll see a bunch of orange blocks making a line for the entrance. Try to get in line as fast as you can and while you are in line, get all your documents ready to present to the officer.
The next part is very important for foreigners when it comes to Costa Rica land entry requirements.
Costa Rica Entry Requirements
You will need to present to the immigration officer your flight out of Costa Rica if you’re a tourist. Tourist visas last 90 days for Group 1 countries and you must show proof you are leaving the country before your visa expires.
*IMPORTANT AS OF SEPTEMBER 2023. Costa Rica has now extended tourist visas for Group 1 countries from 90 days to 180 days. The officer will now probably ask you for a ticket out of 180 days. Group 1 countries are USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Germany, Chile… if you are not sure what group your passport is, please check with the Costa Rican embassy/consulate in your passport country.*
Proof of Onward Travel Out of Costa Rica
To emphasis this point, every foreigner must present a return flight ticket home or a ticket out of Costa Rica. Costa Rica is fairly strict about this in all of my experiences. Of all the times I have crossed the border, I’ve been asked for my flight out every single time.
There is a possibility that you can use a bus ticket, instead of a flight. However, this is not guaranteed to be accepted. I’ve known people who were denied entry with a bus ticket and the officer made them purchase a flight. So even though sometimes a bus or shuttle ticket may work, it honestly depends on the immigration officer you get. Some are super strict, some are more lenient.
They are more strict about perpetual tourists (people who “live” in Costa Rica as a tourist and do a border run to renew their tourist visa) so it is best to present a flight itinerary confirmation.
I never want to run into any hassles or problems at the border so I always present a printed confirmed flight ticket. If I’m not actually flying out, I’ll purchase a refundable ticket or many airlines have a 24 hour window where you can cancel without penalty regardless the fare type (like American Airlines). A lot of people use Onward Ticket to rent a ticket.
Getting Your New Costa Rica Stamp
Go up to the window and give the officer your passport first. He will probably ask you where you’re going, your occupation, and how long you are in Costa Rica for. Then when asked, show him your proof out of Costa Rica within 90 days.
Once approved, they will stamp your passport with your tourist stamp and write in how many days your tourist visa is valid for (normally 90).
And there you go! Exit the building, put your luggage or backpack if you have any through the machine and you are good to go! That is the complete guide to crossing the border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua at Penas Blancas.
Peñas Blancas Border Crossing Fees
To sum up, here are all the fees you need to pay when you are crossing the border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua. These prices are quoted in USD so pay in dollars but bring small bills because most of the time, they will not have any change.
Please note that Costa Rican currency is not accepted in Nicaragua and Nicaraguan currency is not accepted in Costa Rica. USD works in both countries and since prices are quoted in USD, pay in USD. Small bills only!
- $8 or 10 Costa Rica exit tax (price depends on where you pay for it)
- $12 Nicaragua (to the entrance immigration official)
- $1 Nicaragua entrance municipality tax
- $1 Nicaragua exit municipality tax (in the small booth of the exit office)
- $3 Nicaragua exit tax (to the exit immigration official)
Safety Tips for Crossing the Penas Blancas Border
I’ve heard about some people having trouble or being scared at the border but luckily I, a Asian-American female have never had a major problem and I have crossed alone and with other people. However, there are always people who will target tourists and try to scam you. Here are our tips and things to watch out for.
Do not accept any offers from people trying to help you
These people will pretend to help you for free and then try to charge you something ridiculous when you’ve crossed over. They are persistent and will follow you too.
Also do not accept any offers from someone claiming they can do the border crossing for you. It’s tempting but never let anyone walk away with your passport. Never. You don’t know what condition it will be when it comes back or what they did with it meanwhile.
If you have questions or are lost, ask the Costa Rican immigration officers or the police.
If you’re a solo traveler, look for other travelers and talk to them to see if you can cross together. You may need to write down some Spanish phrases because not all the officers speak English, especially on the Nicaraguan side. Check our Costa Rican Spanish guide for travelers to learn them.
No more custom forms
Some people might try to sell you these so walk away and find an immigration officer. I stopped a woman once who was about to pay $20 for a form! That is one of the common Costa Rica tourist scams.
Bring small USD bills
The immigration officers usually do not give change so make sure you pay in small bills for the taxes and fees. ($1 and $5). Never pull out a huge wad of cash either.
Do not leave your passport hanging out of your backpack or leave any belongings unattended
You do need to show it several times when crossing to the officers, but always put it away in a safe secure spot each time.
If you’re a solo traveler, try to find another group of travelers to join
Usually officers will bother you less if you’re in a group. If you go by yourself, they tend to bother the solo travelers more.
What to do if you overstay your visa
If you overstay, your passport will be marked and you will need to talk to your country’s embassy to figure out what to do. Usually if this is a one time occurrence and the overstayed time wasn’t very long, they can help you sort things out and it’s not a big deal.
However, if you overstay for a long time or multiple times, don’t think you will go undiscovered. Immigration will probably find out at some point, especially as they’re trying to crack down more on perpetual tourists. Once immigration finds out, you will be kicked out of the country and be denied entry for an undisclosed period of time (depends on your situation). We recommend to contact your country’s embassy/consulate in Costa Rica ASAP.
Do not overstay your visa, Costa Rica and Nicaragua do take this seriously. Nicaragua especially is very strict.
Read more Costa Rica travel tips below!
Driving in Costa Rica: In depth guide with tips and advice for driving in Costa Rica. Includes safety tips, information about how Costa Ricans drive, road sides, and more.
Renting a car in Costa Rica: Tips for renting a car in Costa Rica. What you need to know about car rental insurance, reputable companies, recommendations if you should or shouldn’t rent a car and more. You can also get our Costa Rica car rental discount.
Roland says
Hi Sammi,
I’m not particularly fond of border crossings, they usually take up too much time and scammers are everywhere. Since I don’t have a lot of time, I’d like to know the closest border crossing from Nicaragua to Costa Rica, coming from Reserva Biológica Indio Maíz. The closest (legal) one I could find is from San Carlos by boat to Los Chiles, do you know anything about that crossing? I want to avoid the at all costs, especially regarding the time of the year we’ll be crossing (1st of January).Thanks in advance for your answer ^^
Kind regards,
Roland
yeison says
Hi Ronald !
This is Yeison and I hope you are doing great.
I have used “Los Chiles” border a few times when I was working in tourism and the process is similar you have to stamp your passport right in front of the Hotel Tulipan and then just walk down the road and take a boat that will take you to San Carlos of Nicaragua. I have to being honest that border is more skatchy than Peñas blancas you don’t see as many people as you see in the other one. You will find people trying to “help you” to cross the border.
Anyways I think that anyone can do it, just be careful as always :). I wish I could give you detail instructions how of how to cross the border but you just have to stamp in front of the hotel where the immigrations office is then take the boat get the stamp in Nicaragua hang out for a few hours and then comeback.
Pura vida
Yeison
Mike says
I am going to be in SJDS with my wife and kids in a few weeks. We plan on crossing over to Costa Rica for a few days and then back to Nicaragua.
We have flight tickets out to MGA, Nicaragua and a shuttle reservation from Costa Rica back to Managua the day before our flight leaves MGA.
Does this qualify as a plane ticket out of Costa Rica that they will accept, or do they require you to fly out of Liberia/San Jose?
Sammi says
Hi Mike! You have a shuttle reservation ticket, that’ll be acceptable since you also have a plane ticket to pair with it so it shows exactly what day you will be leaving Costa Rica so they can’t argue with you on that. Have a fun trip!
Sara says
Hi Sammie and thanks for your answer!
I actually looked a little bit more because Jet Blue doesnt offer anything Canada. I have found Avianca.. And fully refundable tickets for flights across central and South americas. Do you have any good feedback about that Company?
Thanks again!
Its gettin closer!! (:(:
Sammi says
Hi Sara! Avianca is good, also you don’t technically need to have a ticket to your home country. It just needs to be an onward ticket to somewhere else. I haven’t done a refund or flown Avianca before but I have heard good things about it. Should be perfectly fine 🙂
Good luck and have a great trip!
Jeffrey Van Baalen says
Hi. I am traveling to CR from the USA and returning 3 weeks later. During my stay, I’d like to go to Nic. You say that, in order to return to CR, I will need to produce an airline ticket showing my departure from CR, but my ticket is an eTicket. So is a copy of the iterinary sufficient?
Thanks in advance,
Jeff
Sammi says
Hi Jeff! You should be able to show them the ticket on your phone, I’ve done it a few times before and it’s fine. Or if you get a chance to print it out that’s fine too!
LOREN says
HI Sammi,
Your an amazing woman having provided all these people with such detailed answers. I just have few questions as all the rest have been answered. Is there a car rental on the Nicaragua side of the border in walking distance? We plan to leave a Costa Rican rental car on their side (at that mans house if he still does that?) and hope to pick up a Nicaraguan car for 3 days. Is the Costa Rican exit tax still payable at the office on the border or do we need to go to a bank elsewhere. We will be coming back in with boat papers and a letter from the captain. Hopefully they will accept them to get back into the country. I will check w immigration tomorrow. Thanks in advance – Loren
Sammi says
Hi Loren! Haha I am just trying to help fellow travelers out since I know it can be a confusing process. There is a car rental on the Nicaraguan side of the border so you’ll have to contact them separately. We actually work with Adobe Rent a Car to help out our readers so if you want, we can contact them to see if we can get a deal for you to get a car in Costa Rica and Nicaragua with Adobe and they can bring it to you at the border. The exit tax is payable at the office at the border, make sure you pay the tax BEFORE you get in line or else you’ll have to do line all over again. There is a kiosk machine right inside, you can’t miss it.
Let us know and hope this helps 🙂
Sara says
Hi Sammi!
Thanks for all the answers but I am still not sure what option is best for me. Here’s the deal:
I am Canadian amd I wanna spend the winter in Costa Rica. I plan on leaving early december and stay until June or so. Buying a one way ticket is a lot cheaper and what I’d like to do since I don’t know exactly when I’m going back to Canada, but I don’t want to be turned around when I check in.
I am thinking off spending a few days in Nicaragua at the end of february to renew my Visa but the onward ticket as I come back to CR puzzles me..
I can’t seem to find refundable tickets.
I have tried Jet Blue but isn’t there any other airline that sells refundable tickets? Every blog I read says to buy refundable ticket but doesn’t mention any airline names..
Then the offficial visit costarica website states that a bus ticket is enough. I am confused. Thank you for your help!
Sammi says
Hi Sara!
Jet Blue has refundable tickets, when you search for tickets make sure it is under the Refundable section. I prefer Jet Blue because it’s faster and easier to refund than other airlines. I have done it on American Airlines and United before but it took four weeks to get my money back. The reason why I advise bringing an airplane ticket is because immigration at the land borders is getting much stricter and I prefer not to have to deal with any hassle. It’s really up to you which one you would like to use. An airplane ticket is the easiest since they don’t ever ask any questions whereas a bus ticket runs the chance of being questioned but still works. I just like to play it safe 🙂
Scott says
When you cross the boarder (ex:Nicaragua to Costa Rica) do you normally rent a car, catch a bus, or walk to you next destination? Or do you take a taxi to the next major city?
Sammi says
Hi Scott,
We normally grab a taxi since we head to San Juan del Sur for the day during visa runs. The closest town is Rivas which is way too far to walk so the smartest thing is to get a taxi or you can take a chicken bus to Rivas and then from Rivas take a normal bus to wherever you need to go.
Michael says
Hi
I am thinking of doing a visa run to San Juan del Sur from San Jose within the next couple of weeks and I have some questions for you. I thought that you had to stay a minimum of 72 hours out of CR in order to renew your visa. Is this true? Also, is it as cheap and easy as it sounds to get from the border to San Juan via taxi? Is it easier t catch the bus to the border and then cross into Nicaragua and take a taxi to San Juan?
What other relevant information should I be made aware of?
Thanking you in advance
Michael
Sammi says
Hi Michael! No you don’t need to stay out 72 hours. You can stay at at least 3 and you will be fine. I do my runs in one day now after I found that out! The taxi from the border to San Juan costs $20 – $25, takes about 30 – 40 minutes and there a bunch of taxis to choose from once you get across. You can take a public bus to the border, cross the border on foot and grab a taxi to San Juan too if you like. That’s usually what we do. Just note that if you take the bus back from the border to Liberia or wherever, it doesn’t run all night. The schedule is a bit hard to find but there are several buses running from the border to Liberia pretty often.
Mitch says
Hi Sammi,
Thank you so much for answering my question. I am planning to travel to CR with my sister on November 3rd. She wants to go to Granada, and we were researching NATURE AIR… Firstly is this a better Airline than Jetblue or have you used Nature Air? Secondly, have you heard of http://www.costaricabustickets.com/ I was going to buy a bus ticket with this company, but since I am going to have an airline ticket from either Jetblue or Nature air, that will fulfill my requirement the first time entering into CR.
After my sister and I finish with NICA, she is flying back to the States and I will go back to Costa Rica. So my next question is… Before I leave for Granada from CR, should I book a Bus ticket as my onward ticket 3 months in advance of the day I enter back into CR? For example, after Nica, say I decided to enter back into the CR November 27 from Nica… Before I leave Is it Wise to book the next onward ticket 3 months in advance of November 27th? that will give me 90 days more or less… and thus satisfy the CR law requirements of staying in country..
Last Question friend 🙂 Bus tickets are acceptable are they not to satisfy the requirements to stay in CR? Its just such a cheaper and more convenient way of travel… Yet you did mention that I can get a refundable ticket… can you explain again how to do this? or is the bus ticket fine?
Thank so much Sammi 🙂
Sammi says
Nature Air is one of the local ones in Costa Rica. I’ve never flown it myself but Yeison has and says it’s good. If you’re flying back into Costa Rica, most of the times the immigration don’t ask you for a ticket out. I’ve never had any officer ask for proof, they just asked me how long I was going to be in the country. Land crossing is a different story, it is mandatory and they will ask you for a ticket out.
You can try a bus ticket but I know that they give you a very hard time about it. The officers expect to see an airplane ticket and depending on your officer and their mood that day, you may pass without a word or you can be given a very difficult time about it. They are getting much more strict about the 90 day tourist visa. I always did a refundable ticket to avoid any mess or drama. It’s just easier that way which is what I recommend, especially since it’s your first time and (if) you don’t speak Spanish. My advice is to make the border crossing less stressful for you as possible and not take chances.
All you need to do is when you look for an airplane ticket, make sure you select a refundable one. Buy it, print out the ticket and show that the officer. Once across, you can refund it. I’d suggest buying it right before you cross or at least 24 hours to make it easier. That’s why I like Jetblue, it’s easier to refund and much faster.
Roma says
Hey, I am planning to cross the border to Costa Rica from Nicaragua. Afterwards, my plan is to cross the border to Panama the same way. I am not flying out of Costa Rica. Is this an absolute requirement that I need a plane ticket out of the country? Because if it is, what are their options for people who intend to leave by land? Is that not allowed? So far I’ve had no trouble doing this all the way to Nicaragua from the United States, but now that I stumble across this I am cautious before making my way to the border.
Thank you 🙂
Sammi says
Hi Roma! You absolutely have to show a ticket out within 90 days. I know people who use bus tix but were rejected or given a super hard time. In the past year, Costa Rica has been cracking down hard on the tourists and the 90 day rule. If you have a plane ticket at all within the next 90 days, that might work since obviously you have to leave CR. Also you need to show a plane ticket for Panama, that is a requirement as well.