Visiting Costa Rica on a Budget

Traveling to Costa Rica can be one of the best trips of your life and it doesn’t have to drain your pocket book. Most people spend about $65 a day per person while visiting Costa Rica. This can add up quickly and for most people, cost too much. If done right ,you can spend only $20 a day, do anything you’d like and be in contact with the local people and often end up having unexpected adventures.

Lodging

It’s much easier to stay on a budget if you have a travel companion to share lodging costs. low cost places to stay range from US$5 – US$10 per person per night. You should expect a very clean, safe room and you will often be able stay in prime locations on the beach or within walking distance of a National Park, volcano or other attraction. You might want to consider making reservations for a few nights lodging in this price range if there is a particular place you really want to stay, but you should almost never have trouble finding a room.

Transportation
 
The local bus (all the way across the country is about seven hours and US$5) will probably be your main form of transportation. You will most likely spend the majority of the time near the area you are staying and may not need much transportation while visiting. You will have a little money for a few cab rides on this budget.

Food 
Most of your breakfasts and lunches will be in small family run restaurants called sodas, and at $20 a day, there is room in the budget for a couple of beers or a glass of wine with a nice dinner at a beachfront restaurant every once in a while.

Activities
 
Most of what you do will involve walking. The only real way to see the rainforest, cloud forests and tropical dry forests is to get out and walk in them a lot. You will have to decide if you want to budget a couple of guides for a day or two. You’ll have to buy less gifts, of course.

Doing a little research before you go is a good idea. You will be able to secure that great place your dreaming of and not have to skimp on the rest of the trip to pay for it. Costa Rica has many treasures waiting for you to discover them. You won’t need to spend all your money to find where they await.