San Jose Airport by J Ash

2 March 2008   Customer Rating :

I travel to Costa Rica once or twice a year for over 18 years and they do not let you bring on beverages post initial security as they check your carry on manually in the jetway for liquids. I think they need to allow passengers to purchase an additional water to take on as most flights I am on are 5 hours. Otherwise just a small average airport.

San Jose Airport by Michelle Wright

2 March 2008   Customer Rating :

Do not pay the airport exit tax with a credit card! hen I got my credit card statement from Capital One, I had a $5 transaction fee for paying the airport tax. Plus I had interest accruing from it. The airport tax payment was considered a cash advance, not a purchase. I was surprised. I paid the airport tax in Argentina with my Visa, from U.S. Bank, and the transaction was not considered as a cash advance.

San Jose Airport by M Desjardins

7 December 2007   Customer Rating :

Just a tip re: the 26$ USD exit tax. It may be paid in advance at most hotels. With that in hand you can skip the main line and get to check-in a lot faster. The airport is suffering majorly from increased tourism and business travellers. Hopefully the new gates they are adding/repairing will help alleviate the wait times. Our flight out (Dec 1, 2007) on Air Canada (AC999) was delayed by various (given) reasons: not enough busses to get you to your plane, not enough security to escort you to your plane, too many planes, etc. My best advice is don't get too worked up like some passengers I saw, relax and enjoy your final few moments in beautiful Costa Rica.

San Jose Airport by J Neiman

19 January 2007   Customer Rating : n/a

The latest edition to the airport taxes in Costa Rica, not only include a $26 USD exit tax per person, but also now is planned a $15 USD entry tax per person. For a family of 4 visiting thats $164 USD. This extra $15 is implemented to replace an existing 3% hotel tourism tax that should be levied at hotels but inconsistently collected. Unlike the hotel tourist tax, this new $15 USD tax is levied across tourists and nationals - whether or not they intended on actually staying at a hotel.

San Jose Airport by Perry Merkel

9 January 2007

Yes, there is a $26 USD departure tax that must be paid before you "check in", however you may pay with credit card. I found the airport to be overall very clean and efficiently maintained. Plenty of fast food type joints, but no other restaurant options. Nicely done shops, offering "all things Costa Rican" and the usual duty-free stores, which offered a very good selection of aged-rums (from Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Cuba, etc). Samples were usually offered. American Airlines does not have their own lounge, however one could get a day-pass to the lounge downstairs for $20 USD.

San Jose Airport  by Roberto Gutierrez

29 June 2005

Juan Santamaria International has come a long way since it first opened back in the 50's, which i remember. Its been going threw another renovation phase and this is the first since the orginal terminal was torn down and rebuilt. Alterra(the owner) is adding more waiting lounges and boarding areas threw out the terminal, extending it. It is simple to navigate threw out the airport since its one terminal and not as large as some of the American and European airports. Immigration lines are short and custom officers moves really quickly. Taca/Lacsa basically owns the airport with the most flights per day using SJO as a hub from North America to South America, other airlines has daily flights to and from North America and Europe as Iberia(from Spain), Continental(from Houston and Newark), American(from Miami), US airways(from Ft. Lauderdale and Charlston), Mexicana(from Mexico), and Delta(from Atlanta). SJO food selection is ok realizing that you shouldnt be waiting to long and i only wish that the Costa Rican government improve the expensive tax to leave the country(even nationals have to pay which is outragous). Besides the expensive departure tax....SJO is a welcoming airport(the best in Central America)with easy navigation around and great service. I have always loved SJO airport since it opened in the mid 50's and its imporving every time i visit.

San Jose Airport  by G Erichsen

29 June 2005

Although dark in places (except in the attractive new addition), SJO is a pleasant enough of an airport to pass through in transit. The main drawback is that the food court is too small for the number of people there during the periods that Lacsa/Taca is using the airport as its hub. The shops have a reasonable selection of souvenirs at not-outrageous prices, but the food court (three American-chain fast-food eateries) is overpriced even by airport standards. My main complaint about this airport might not be of concern to many people, but I felt a bit disap-pointed that the airport didn't have the feel of really being in Costa Rica. All prices were in dollars (not all that surprising, really), and the restaurants had monolingual menus, the language not being Spanish. I would have appreciated feeling a bit more like I was in Costa Rica for my brief stay rather than in a Disneyland version of Costa Rica. OK, it was possible to buy gallo pinto (rice and beans) at the Burger King for breakfast, but that was about the only thing different at the airport than what I could have found at an airport in the United States. By the way, if you're traveling in transit, there's no customs check at all, and no exit tax.

San Jose Airport  by J Davis

6 May 2005

SJO is currently undergoing a enlargement due to the sudden increase of airport traffic and there are plans for a business class lounge in the making. Immigration lines seem to be quite a wait after 6 P.M. but earlier in the morning you can get threw immigration and customs in less than 45 minutes. The $26 departure tax is a pain when it should be included with the price of the ticket but besides the $26 tax SJO is a pleasant airport to pass threw and is in better condition than its rival airports threw out central america.

San Jose Airport  by Robert Sanchez

22 April 2005

The airport has been under construction for years. You have to pay a $26 departure tax on top of all the taxes that the Ticos have built into your ticket price. For all this money you get long lines to pay the departure tax, long lines to check in (Delta says to get there three hours before departure but their staff doesn't arrive until an hour and a half before departure), long lines at the x-ray (only two!), no business class lounges, and inefficiency.

San Jose Airport  by Jeff Williams

21 April 2005

There are two issues with this generally pleasant small airport currently being rebuilt. The first is that at most times of the day it will take you a minimum of 1hr and often much more to get your departure tax stamp (not usually too long), check in (can be long) and clear security (often queues out into the car park) because of lots of flights departing at the same time early in the morning with very few X-ray machines. Secondly, for business class travellers there is no lounge and I don't know whether one is planned.

San Jose Airport  by Bill Maes

1 April 2005

The airport seemed very efficient at my travel times in and out. I have made a point of not traveling into SJO after 18:00, as it appears that every airline has scheduled a flight after that point. I have witnessed very long lines curving the length of the arrival terminal and customs after 18:00. For the departure tax, I have purchased the stamp upon my arrival in SJO. This has saved the headaches of waiting at departure.

San Jose Airport  by Tony Lai

3 December 2004

SJO is a small airport. On arrival, going through passport control was a breeze. Baggage claim was fairly quick. Took about 15 minutes. There is a no mans land area in which you can hire a car or rent a car. Checking in for the return flight was a breeze. Security was very efficient. Shopping options are decent for an airport of its size. My only gripe is the $26.00 departure tax. Most airport departure taxes are included in the price of the ticket. My gripe was having to pay for the $26.00 departure tax prior to checking in. I wonder why it wasn't included in the price of the ticket?

San Jose Airport  by Chris Smigliani

21 October 2004

Returned to SJO last week for the first time since 1999. It has improved dramatically, taking the top spot once again in Central America's airports (SAL had gained the spot for a while). The new check-in area is fantastic, and Security is organized (was not the case before). The shopping has improved (although prices at the Airport are considerably higher than everywhere except Multiplaza). Arrivals, Immigration, Baggage Claim and Customs are also very well organized. Now if we could only bring back the great Tico service that we had on the Costa Rican airline LACSA, and ditch horrible Grupo TACA, we'd all find traveling to SJO a complete joy.

San Jose Airport  by Ronnie Gibson

9 August 2004

SJO is a nice small airport with easy access between the terminal and gates. I fly to this airport every year to see my family in Costa Rica. There is about 3 or so places to eat and a few duty free shops. Immigration lines are long between 10:00-1:00 and expect to wait 45 minutes. Security lines are always short though. The only problem i have is the $26.00/ 11,500 tax they charge to leave Costa Rica.

San Jose Airport  by Norman Clark

9 May 2004

One of the world's best small airports: clean, efficient, and thoughtfully laid out. What a great welcome to Costa Rica!

San Jose Airport  by J Trevers

15 December 2003

A nice welcome to Costa Rica, complete with relaxing waterfalls. Immigration was quick and customs nearly non-existent. Annoyingly, everyone insists departing passengers arrive 3 hours before their flights. This is entirely unnecessary. An hour and a half should be plenty. Security was a bit slow, but efficient. Be sure to check out the souvenir shops with free samples of coffee and chocolate covered coffee beans!

San Jose Airport  by T Chapman

26 November 2003

Clean and modern airport. Rarely delays. Burger King, Church's Chicken and Papa John's are the food selections. Plenty of souvenir shops. Gets a little crowded as arriving flights walk through same terminal as departing flights. Immigration is slow. Peak times seem to be 1100 to 1400. Can expect 30 to 45 minute wait at immigration. Customs requires you to XRay screen all bags. On departure - $26 USD departure tax. If US citizen need passport to enter CR.

San Jose Airport  by Bill Hoffman

12 October 2003

San Jose airport in Costa Rica is a small airport. Once you get off your flight, you are out of there in twenty minutes. Immigration lines are short, and it is very easy to find transportation. It took five minutes to get through security. The only complaint is there are only two or three places to eat, and they are all more expensive (or so it seems) than other airports. There are only eight gates, so you should not be confused.

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