Travel to Costa Rica

1. Is it difficult to get to Costa Rica?
2. What are the best airline options from the United States?
3. What about the best options from Europe for flights?
4. Can you recommend a travel agency to work with?
5. What is the best day to arrive at ILISA?
6. Can you suggest some things that I should bring?
   

1. Is it difficult to get to Costa Rica?
   Traveling to Costa Rica has become easier during the last few years due to the increased number of airlines that offer more flights to the country.
2. What are the best Airline options from the United States?
   You have many good travel options, depending on your preferences and where you live. To travel from the US, LACSA, Costa Rica’s national airline, offers direct flights from Miami, Los Angeles, New York and New Orleans. If you don’t live in or near any of these cities or prefer a North American airline, American Airlines is probably the next best choice because it has the most flights to Costa Rica and an extensive route net within the US. If you live near Houston or Dallas, Continental Airlines is also a good choice. United is a possibility if you live near Los Angeles or Washington, DC. Delta Airlines also recently began daily flights to San José from Atlanta.
3. What about the best options from Europe for flights?
   From Europe your best choice is most likely Iberia which flies to Costa Rica from Madrid or alternatively British Airways. If you are looking for bargain rates you might try Condor and LTU from Germany, each offering direct flights from Franfurt and München, or Martinair from Holland who flies to Miami from where you’d connect with LACSA.
4. Can you recommend a travel agency to work with?
   You can make travel reservations by contacting airlines directly or through your favorite travel agency. We recommend using Google Flights to get the best fare possible.
5. What is the best day to arrive at ILISA?
   In general we recommend to arrive on the Saturday or Sunday before the start of your classes. If you need to arrive a few days early, usually it’s no problem to accommodate you with your host family for a few extra days.
6. Can you suggest some things that I should bring?
   See our packing list for details.