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Costa Rica's Roads | Driving Conditions

Costa Rica is one of the worlds most beautiful and interesting tourist destinations. But to get the most out of your Costa Rica experience, you will need to get off the "beaten track" and travel the highways, byways and rocky roads of this mountainous country, the "Switzerland of Central America."

The Interamericana (Panamerican Highway) runs through Costa Rica and is the main entry point by car. The border post in the north (to Nicaragua) is called Peñas Blancas and in the south (to Panamá) Paso Canoas.

There are many speed traps along this major artery, as well as some random police checks for seat belts and especially near the borders, for valid travel documents.

The highway speed is 80km/h, but since the Interamericana (Highway #1) passes through many small towns the speed frequently drops to 50 or even 30 km/h as you suddenly find yourself in a school zone.

Most of the highway is not divided. A common indicator that a police checkpoint is ahead is that oncoming cars flick their lights at you. Drivers also appear to flick their lights sometimes when someone has overtaken them. A speeding ticket is approximately 40,000 Colons (US $80), and although the police are generally congenial, foreign drivers are occasionally illegally offered an "on the spot" fine that is half that or less.

Many Costa Rican roads are in bad shape, and short distances can take a very long time. To avoid potholes, drivers will often snake through the left and right lanes, usually returning to the right when oncoming traffic approaches. While this may seem erratic to North American drivers, one becomes quickly accustomed to it.

Driving at night is highly inadvisable due to the unpredictability of road conditions and lack of safety features such as guard rails on the many hairpin turns in the hills.

Navigation can prove challenging. Road signs are relatively few, and those that do exist can be inaccurate. It is recommended that you have a good road map with the small towns listed, since road signs will often only indicate the next town, not the direction of the next major city.

Towns generally do not have town-limit signs; you are best to look at the names on the roadside food stores and restaurants to determine the place you are passing.

There are no formal street addresses in Costa Rica but two informal systems exist. The first (often used in tourist information) indicates the road on which the establishment is located (e.g. "6th Avenue") together with the crossroad interval (e.g. "between 21st and 23rd Streets").

In practice, street signs are virtually non-existent, and locals do not even know the name of the street they are on. The second system, which is much more reliable and understood by locals, is known as the "Tico address", usually involving an oriented distance (e.g. "100 meters south, 50 meters east") from a landmark (e.g. "the cathedral").

 

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