Crossing the Border from Nicaragua to Costa Rica

Crossing the border from Nicaragua into Costa Rica is a lot cheaper than going the opposite direction! When you arrive to the border an attendant will check your passport before allowing you through the gate. After your passport is checked you will be lead to a booth where you will have to pay $1.00 (They didn’t say what it was for). Then you’ll enter an air-conditioned glass room where you’ll get your exit stamp to leave the country. Here you’ll have to pay $1.64 or 45 cordobas. And that’s it! You’ll exit the building and walk across the border 5 minutes.

Immigration building on the Nicaraguan side.

As you approach the other side you’ll want to stay to the right side of the road. On your right hand side you’ll see booths to buy bus tickets and on the left hand side you’ll see the immigration building. This building is where you’ll get your entrance stamp for Costa Rica. You’ll be given two immigration forms to fill out. Make sure you travel with a pen!

Booths to buy bus tickets.

You’ll give one of the immigration forms to the person behind the glass as well as your passport. Most likely they will ask you to show proof that you are leaving the country within the 30 day limit. Good new though, you won’t have to pay a thing to enter the country! After you have your stamp you’ll proceed to the next room where you’ll be asked to run your bags through a scanner and give your second immigration form to that person there.

Now you’re finished!! You’ll exit the building and need to get on a bus. You’re about 3 hours from Liberia Airport and 6 hours from San Jose. We took a bus called Central Lines which cost $12.00 dollars to go from the border to San Jose. It was a great bus with a bathroom on board and TVs to show movies, which helped pass the time. We stopped halfway through the trip at a restaurant to stretch our legs for 20 minutes and grab a bite to eat if we wanted. I would highly recommend this bus company!

Get more info on our website www.vayavolunteers.com!