Getting Here
Santa Teresa is located at the tip of the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica. Though the journey getting here is long, the natural untouched beauty, rich with wildlife and vegetation, is worth the trip!
International Airports in Costa Rica
The first step is to fly into one of the two international airports in Costa Rica. There is the Juan Santamaría International Airport in San Jose or the Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia. From there, there are three main ways to get to Santa Teresa.
Domestic Plane
There are domestic flights from either of the two international airports that will take you to Cobano, which is about a 30 minute drive from Makanas Beach Bungalows. The plane ride is only 25 minutes or so and the sights from above are incredible! The two companies that offer flights to Cobano are Costa Rica Green Airways and Sansa Airlines. Once you land in Cobano, you can get to Makanas by either taking a taxi or renting a car by the Cobano Airport.
Driving
You can rent a car from either of the two international airports (4×4 drive recommended). From San Jose, you will drive 1.5-2 hours to Puntarenas and take the Naviera Tambor Ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera. We recommend getting tickets ahead of time and tickets can be purchased online here. The ferry ride is about 90 minutes across the Golfo de Nicoya and offers beautiful sights, snacks/beverages for purchase, and a way to recharge before driving the final leg of the journey to Santa Teresa, which is about 1.5 hours away. Once you get off the ferry, follow the main road through the towns of Tambor and Cobano. Look for signs that point towards Santa Teresa. At the Mal Pais/Santa Teresa crossroads, take a right and follow the road for about 5 kilometers until you get to Makanas Beach Bungalows. The journey from San Jose is about 5 hours.
From Liberia Airport, it is best to plug the Makanas GPS directly into Google Maps. The best route is from Liberia to Santa Cruz, to Nicoya, to Jicaral, to Paquera, to Tambor, to Cobano, and finally to Santa Teresa. The journey to Makanas Beach Bungalows is about 4 hours.
*Please note that the entrance road to the property is steep, and the roads around Makanas Beach Bungalows (and much of Santa Teresa) are dirt roads, so we highly recommend renting a car with 4×4 drive.*
Shuttle
There are shuttles from either of the two international airports. The journey is about 4 hours from Liberia and 5 hours from San Jose (including the 90 minute ferry ride across the Golfo de Nicoya). The cost is around $65-80 USD per person. Here is a list of shuttle operators with routes to Santa Teresa: Santa Teresa Travels, Tropical Tours Shuttles, Interbus, ZumaTours. Please note that schedules vary with the high and low seasons.