This December, the Juan Santamaria Airport will inaugurate a new four level building of six thousand square meters that will add four new boarding gates, a VIP room and an area for pets. With this new addition, Costa Rica’s main airport will be able to handle 600 more passengers per hour. This new building is part of the works of project La Candela which will be completed by mid-2019 and whic...

Avianca announced it will be adjusting the itineraries of flights to and from Costa Rica in order to “improve the service offered to clients”. “The schedule will begin earlier. We are looking to benefit travelers by arriving in a schedule were airports are less crowded, and in this way optimize their time in the air terminals”, explains the press release. The changes will be implemented star...

TAC Airlines, a company with over 50 years offering domestic flights in Guatemala, will be ready to begin operations in Costa Rica by November 16. TAC Airlines Costa Rica will offer flights to Liberia, Tambor, Quepos, Drake, Tamarindo and Puerto Jimenez from the Tobias Bolaños Airport in Pavas, the company operates Cessna Grand Caravan aircrafts with capacity for 12 passengers and Embraer for...

Spirit Airlines inaugurated today the new flight connecting Orlando, Florida, US to San Jose, Costa Rica, this flight duplicates the number of seats available in this route. In the last three months of the year Spirit will handle this route with commercial planes Airbus A320 with 182 seats and A319 with 145 seats. This means that in the last trimester of the year the new flight will add an app...

A man originating from Mexico was apprehended by officials of the Drug Control Police (PCD) of the Ministry of Public Security, carrying $27,100.00 in cash that had not been reported. This detention took place at the Juan Santamaria Airport in Alajuela, when the man tried to come into Costa Rica carrying the money in a manila folder inside a briefcase. The man is 51 years-old and of last nam...

Aeris Holdings, administrator of the Juan Santamaria Airport in Costa Rica announced the investment of $3.8 million in technology to reinforce security, monitoring and surveillance of passengers and flights while improving efficiency. 20 self-service check-in kiosks, a new operations and communication center , the creation of a crisis response room, and free WiFi are part of what has been imple...

Captain Guillermo Hoppe Pacheco, General Director of Civil Aviation, informed today of the decision to declare yellow alert for Costa Rica’s international airports as a preventive measure in response to the general labor strike. The yellow alert involves increasing security in the perimeter of the airports, in the terminal access points and in the airport in general; this with the purpose of gu...

Photo Credit: La Nacion/Shirley Vásquez Even though this Tuesday public institutions in Costa Rica report having been less affected than yesterday by the general labor strike, and a very low percentage of employees that joined the movement, some areas and people were still affected throughout the day mainly due to protesters marching in the middle of the roads. One of roads affected was the ...

Following instructions given by President Carlos Alvarado, Costa Rica’s Public Security took control this Sunday evening of the ports of Limon and Moin of the Atlantic Zone Development and Port Administration Group (JAPDEVA), the Costa Rican Oil Refinery (Recope) and the Juan Santamaria and Daniel Oduber international airports in Alajuela and Liberia respectively. “With these actions we are gua...

The request under code sharing presented by the companies was approved by the Technical Council of Civil Aviation. A codeshare agreement between two airlines, allow these to share the same flight under their own airline designator and flight number, opening new destinations for travelers. Currently Emirates Airlines offers five flights a week from Dubai to Fort Lauderdale, Florida and the same...

Sun Country Airlines announced that it will increase its operation from the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota to Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica for the high season, between December 2018 and March 2019. With this increase of 15 flights, the airline will operate a total of 53 flights that will be distributed as follows: 6 in December 2018, 14 in January 2019, 15 in February and...

JetBlue Airways will be operating its Mint ‘premium travel’ service with a seasonal route from New York (John F. Kennedy Airport) to Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica (Daniel Oduber International Airport) starting December 15, 2018. JetBlue Mint offers “fully lie-flat seats (16 in business class), artisanal dining options, the most free inflight entertainment, revitalizing amenities and more”, in...

The strike of air traffic controllers at the Juan Santamaria Airport in Costa Rica caused the delay of at least seven flights since 6 a.m. Thursday morning. According to AERIS, company in charge of the operation of the airport the flights affected are from airlines Delta, AA, United and Condor. The air traffic controllers strike obeys to a dispute between the labor union and the General Dire...

The expansion work at the Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste began early last year and were supposed to be conclude before the end of the year, however, after several delays the additional 4,118 square meters (44,326 square feet) in boarding gates and 417 square meters (4,488.55 square feet)of the main lobby as well as new infrastructure for counters, stores and additional ...

After an extension of almost 300% in area this Monday, July 16 the duty-free store administered by the Joint Institute for Social Aid (IMAS, its Spanish acronym) reopened to receive travelers entering Costa Rica. The duty-free store was closed for close to four months for the remodeling works and it went from 100 square meters to 475 square meters. The total investment was of over $1.4 million....

The Juan Santamaria International Airport will welcome travelers in a colorful and innovative way, with the incorporation of giant sculptures of Costa Rican wild animals, beautiful photographs of the country’s landscapes, technology and more. These elements are all part of the “Sense of Place 2018” campaign which has the objective of making the hours in the airport fun and entertaining while at...

Air Canada announced the increase in the frequency of flights connecting Montreal, Canada to Liberia, Guanacaste, going from one to three flights a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays) starting December 18, 2018; while flights from Toronto to Liberia will go from four a week to daily as of December 15, 2018, the increase in flights will maintain through April 2019, covering the high season. ...

The Costa Rican Tourism Board (ICT) announced the agreement with Apple Vacations to operate a new charter flight connecting Rockford, Illinois to Liberia, Guanacaste. The new flight will be operating once a week starting January 4th and through April 5, 2019. Apple Vacations is a travel agency that organizes vacation tour packages for North American tourists and operates its own charter pla...

Florida Ice & Farm (FIFCO) opened its new Imperial Bar at the Daniel Oduber Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste; this is the third of its kind in the country, but the first one operated as a franchise. The Imperial Bars are part the FIFCO Hospitality division which operates Reserva Conchal, where the first Imperial Bar opened; the second one is located at the Juan Santamaria Airport. “The Hosp...

Sunwing Airlines announced today the opening of a new route that will connect Vancouver, Canada and Liberia in Costa Rica, starting December 23, 2018. The flight will initially operate only from December 23 through March 31, departing on Sundays, to offer Canadians an opportunity to escape the cold weather of those months and enjoy the warm summer in Costa Rica. This is the second direct fl...

Low-cost airline Volaris inaugurated its new route San Jose, Costa Rica to Washington D.C. via El Salvador this Wednesday, May 16. The flights will travel from San Jose twice a week on Monday and Wednesdays at 1:30 p.m. arriving in Washington D.C. at 11:35 p.m. While from the U.S. capital to Costa Rica the flights are scheduled from Dulles Airport on Tuesdays and Thursdays leaving at 1:52 a.m. ...

According to the timeline given by the construction company in charge of the works at the new Quepos aerodrome, the new landing strip will be ready by the end of July this year. On May 18, 2018 the General Directorate of Civil Aviation will take possession of the land that will be used for the second stage of the aerodrome, and therefore on May 19 the work will commence to build the Domestic Te...

The Juan Santamaria International Airport became the first airport in Central America to get the Airport Carbon Accreditation in Mapping level, which is awarded by the Airports Council International and ratifying the commitment of the airport administrator, AERIS, with Costa Rica and the environment. “The Airport Carbon Accreditation is empowering Airports’ efforts to make further strides in ma...

The idea is to get travelers, specially foreign tourists to identify with the country the minute they get off the plane at the Juan Santamaria Airport in Costa Rica. “Sense of Arrival” is the name of the project that will transform the cold halls of the main international airport in Costa Rica into scenes inspired by the rainforests, the paradisiac beaches and culture and traditions of the cou...

Costa Rica inaugurated the new domestic terminal at the Juan Santamaria Airport this Monday morning. The construction work of the new building began in November 2017 and although it was expected to be ready by the end of March it took an additional month to complete the work. The new terminal operates 38% on solar energy, has counter space for domestic airlines and comfortable boarding rooms...

French company Vinci Airports signed an agreement to acquire the portfolio of Airports Worldwide, which includes co-control stakes of Costa Rica’s two major airports, 48.75% of the Juan Santamaria International Airport and 45% stake in the Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste. The agreement also included airports in the United States and Europe, “The operation boosts Vinci...

Just one month ago Volaris Airlines inaugurated its route Costa Rica to Los Angeles, California; and today, April 18 it began operating the new San Jose, Costa Rica to New York, NY, USA route via El Salvador. This new route has a two-day frequency, Tuesdays and Fridays from San Jose and Wednesdays and Saturdays from New York. The flight makes a stop in El Salvador. Back in September 2018...

The Juan Santamaria International Airport in Costa Rica was ranked in second place in Central America and the Caribbean according to the World Airport Awards by Skytrax. The Costa Rican airport took second place to the Tocumen Airport in Panama which was recognized as having the best staff; the third place in the region was given by Norman Manley Airport in Kingston, Jamaica and the top five w...

A Dutchman tried to enter Costa Rica through the Juan Santamaria Airport with methamphetamines hidden in the double lining of his suitcase. The 50-year-old man, of last names Caurbocia Peña, who apparently has no criminal record or pending criminal causes, flew in from Zurich, Switzerland and had a ticket to go back to this same destination on April 10. Methamphetamine is a stimulant drug tha...

The Daniel Oduber International Airport inaugurated today the extended Passenger Terminal and presented the new measures taken by the airport to respond to the increase in the arrival of tourists to the province of Guanacaste. President Luis Guillermo Solis and the First Lady Mercedes Peña were present during the activity organized by the General Directorate of Civil Aviation. The extension...

The Ministry of Public Works and Transportation (MOPT) of Costa Rica informed they will be closing the crossroad in front of the Fiesta Casino, near the Juan Santamaría Airport in Alajuela this Thursday at 8 a.m. This road connects the area known as INVU Las Cañas and the General Cañas highway on the way from Alajuela to San Jose. The access from INVU to the Airport will also be closed tempo...

The Limon Airport will receive an investment of over U.S. $2.6 million for a new terminal that will comply with all international aeronautic norms to continue to promote the connectivity and competitiveness of this province. The new Terminal will have waiting rooms, governmental offices, division of passenger flows (National/International), fire prevention system, and water treatment plants. It...

Tourism is the main economic activity for Costa Rica, we are in the middle of the high season and having a lot of traffic in the airports is a good thing, or at least one would think that, except that for the past few months many tourists have entered or left the country with the bad experience of having to wait in line for a very long time at the Juan Santamaria Airport. The posts on different...

The Quepos airstrip is receiving an important investment of over US$9.5 million that will better the conditions and infrastructure with the purpose of strengthening local tourism. The General Directorate of Civil Aviation explained that the runway will be built with hydraulic cement with a capacity of 50 thousand pounds of weight and will be extended from the current 13 meters (42.65 feet) in w...

The Costa Rica Tourism Institute (ICT) will be participating in the meeting Routes Americas which will be held in Quito, Ecuador starting today, February 13 and through February 15, with the purpose of negotiating the arrival of new airlines to the country. This event gathers all airlines that operate in America, close to 70, as well as representatives from different airports in the region, de...

Nature Air received the green light from the General Directorate of Civil Aviation to resume its operations in Costa Rica last Thursday, after a suspension of more than 20 days. The domestic airline has confirmed their flights will be operating again on Friday, February 9. According to general manager Nelson Vega, they are maintaining all the destinations but they are reducing the frequency of ...

A total of 26 airlines offer flights from the Juan Santamaria Airport in Alajuela, Costa Rica, while 11 airlines operate from the Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. According to information from the Costa Rica Tourism Institute (ICT), flights from the Juan Santamaria Airport offer services to 37 destinations, and the ones from the Daniel Oduber Airport co...

The Juan Santamaria International Airport begins implementing new technology procedures of satellite navigation today, through which they expect to improve considerably in the times of arrivals and departures of flights. The project, under the name “Costa Rica Pura Vida” is being implemented by experts in navigation of Civil Aviation and has the support of the airlines and Aeris, the company in...

In the last few years Costa Rica has worked in attracting new airlines to offer service in the country. So far this year the Tourism Institute (ICT) confirms it has generated 96,501 additional seats thanks to the arrival of new airlines and the increase in the frequency of flights to and from Costa Rica. Minister of Tourism, Mauricio Ventura, explained that Costa Rica has created its own strate...

This Tuesday evening the Drug Control Police (PCD) of the Ministry of Public Security, arrested a U.S. man entering Costa Rica through the Juan Santamaria Airport, originating from San Francisco, California with a load of marijuana extract in his luggage. The man of last name Trague is 24 years-old and was traveling from San Francisco through Houston with Costa Rica as his last stop, his retu...