Tamarindo is one area where the bus schedules are totally loco! We do our best to keep this page updated as much as possible with the constantly changing schedules! Please, leave us a comment if the times are correct/incorrect so we can make sure we are as up-to-date as possible. Thank you!
There are 3 different bus companies that provide service to Tamarindo.
1) Transportes La Pampa – goes back and forth to Liberia Municipal Station. These buses leave from in front of the Plaza. See map and photos below.
2) Empresa Alfaro – which goes back and forth to the Terminal 7-10 in San José. This bus leaves from Calle Cruz see map and photos.
3) Tralapa – which goes back and forth to the Terminal Tralapa in San José . This bus leaves from in front of the Plaza. See map and photos.
To and from Liberia
Transportes La Pampa: From the Liberia Municipal Station
Purchase your ticket to Tamarindo from the ticket window at the Liberia Terminal de buses Municipal. And from the driver if you are leaving Tamarindo. As of January 2018 the trip to costs 1400₡ and takes about 2.5hrs depending on time of day. We asked the ticket vender to write out the schedule and it is in the photos below (May 2017)
Liberia to Tamarindo: 3:50am, 4:30am, 5:15am , 6:10am*, 7:10am, 8:10am, 10:10am*(only Sat+Sun), 11:10am*, 1:10pm, 2:10pm, 4:10pm, 5:10pm, 6:10pm*. Both ways.
*longer route through Flamingo, Brasilito, Matapalo (~3hrs).
Tamarindo to Liberia: 3:30am, 4:30am, 5:45am, 7:30am, 9am, 10am, 11:30, 1pm, 2:15pm, 4:15pm, 5pm. Likely also 6:30pm but we will confirm soon.
Liberia Airport to Tamarindo
Normally the bus going both to and from Tamarindo will pass right in front of the airport. However, we have had reports of the bus not making the detour off the main highway to the airport doors. The distance from the highway to the airport doors is about 2km. This is one of the annoying inconsistencies in the CR bus service! If you are headed to the airport make sure you ask the driver if he is going to the airport.
If you are coming from Tamarindo it takes about 2hrs to get to the airport and if you are coming from Liberia it will pass about 20 minutes after the scheduled time above.
To and from San José
Empresa Alfaro: to and from the 7-10 Terminal San José
From San José to Tamarindo buses leave at 11:30am and 3:30pm.
From Tamarindo to San José buses leave at 3:30am (via Liberia) and 5:30am (via Puente la Amistad) and on Sundays there is an extra bus at 1pm (via Liberia).
This bus costs 5700₡ as of Feb 2019 and takes about 6hrs. The bus via Puente La Amistad is about 1/2 hr faster. It leaves from Calle Cruz see map and photos. Have a look at the Terminal 7-10 to see where you end up. Not a bad idea to get your ticket at least one day before. However if it is full you will likely be allowed to stand.
Tralapa: to and from the Tralapa Terminal San José
From San José to Tamarindo buses go at 7am and 4pm. From Tamarindo to San José buses go at 7:30am and 2pm. Both through Liberia. Price as of February 2018 is 5500₡ and the trip takes 6 – 6.5hrs. This bus leaves from in front of the Plaza. See map and photos. Tickets can be purchased beforehand at the small soda in front of Hotel Portofino, diagonal from the plaza. Your ticket can also be purchased from the bus driver at pickup. Not a bad idea to get your ticket at least one day before. However if it is full you will likely be allowed to stand. Check out where you end up in San José: Terminal Tralapa.
Tamarindo to Monteverde
Here is our latest traveller advice for this trip, Feb 2019: “We took the 5.30am Bus to San Jose (ca. 5700 Colones) leaving Tamarindo from the Plaza and a few other stops in Tamarindo. We got off the Bus at the Gas Station where it goes to Sardinal at 8.45am (Road 606). Then we waited for the Bus that was coming from San Jose (it leaves SJ at 5.30am and goes directly to Monteverde). We got the Bus at around 9.10am (it was 3000 Colones) and it took another 1.5h to Monteverde. Arrived there at 10.45am. Ca. 8700C and 5h15min.” (Feb 2019)
Check the comments below for how to get from Monteverde.
Fun stuff to do
If you want to get to know the area around Tamarindo in a more intimate setting, check out the Mangrove and Estuary boat tour for close up views of wildlife and local surrounding wetlands.
If you are still planning for your upcoming trip, I am told this Trip Planner from Gecko Trail is quite useful to help you prioritize where you want to spend your time! Gecko Trail is a ICT certified Travel Agency that has great core values and gives back to the community. So much to see and do in this beautiful country!
Help your fellow traveller
If you have taken any of the buses on this page, please drop us a comment below about how the trip went, what time you left, how long it took and what it cost. And, definitely let us know if we have anything wrong.
Lets help each other in our travels!
You have a typo below:
From Tamarindo to San José buses leave at 3:30am (via Liberia) and 5:30pm (via Puente la Amistad) and on Sundays there is an extra bus at 1pm (via Liberia).
It should read 5:30AM 🙂
Thank you, Cassie!!
Also, Tralapa bus tickets can’t be purchased in advance from the Supermercado 2001 still. The bus for San Jose also leaves for the same bus stop that the buses to Liberia depart from (Plaza Tamarindo).
Thanks again, Cassie. I have made a not above. It amazes me how often things change for Tamarindo! We will see what new twist they come up with next month!
They no longer sell Tralapa tickets at the supermarket 2001. I was told for this company that you buy your ticket directly in the bus, however I was told 7am, 730am, and 8am. I was also told this company goes first to Santa Cruz and the to Liberia which makes no sense. Couldn’t find a sign of the schedule, so I went to Alfaro for the 530 am bus.
Thanks, Kim! I will try to doublecheck on some of those details and get things updated above. It may make sense for the bus to go via Santa Cruz since this is one of the spots this company services but I will check on the bus times. When I was there in May they only had one in the morning – but it is Costa Rica, where buses and schedules never stay the same for long!
Thanks for the information. It was so helpful! I just took the 7.30am bus from Tamarindo to Liberia. The cost was 2000 colones and it left a few minutes early. It also didn’t stop at the Liberia airport, so I had to ask the driver to let me off at the entrance on the way past.
Carolyn! Thanks for the update on this bus route. I will definitely make a note above that the bus didn’t stop at the airport. I was just there and my buses did stop at the airport – Costa Rica is so inconsistent sometimes! When you say ‘entrance on the way past’ do you mean the main highway passing the airport turn off so you had to walk the 2km to the airport?
Yes, that’s correct—I got off the bus on the highway at the airport turnoff. I was very lucky and got a ride with an American heading into the airport though!
When I got on the bus I did ask the driver if he was going to the airport, but perhaps there was a miscommunication.
Wow, that is really frustrating! The only thing I can think of is that the driver forgot to make the turn. But, this is why I made the centrocoasting(!). Cost Rica can be so frustrating in how inconsistent it is! Thank you again for sharing your experience. This is really important info for travellers. Great job on being so aware of what is going on and knowing when you needed to get up and get off close to the airport!
I am in Tamarindo. I need to leave tomorrow morning to get to Monteverde. How would I go about getting there?? I’m really confused w/ these different buses.
Hi Marco. This trip is a bit of a long one. You’re ultimately going to want to get to Puntarenas to catch the bus that goes from Puntarenas to Monteverde. There are a few per day but I would recommend trying to get the one at 1:15pm. Basically you will start out in Tamarindo and head to Liberia. You need to start early, the 5:45am bus. There are a ton of local buses with Transportes la Pampa that head that direction. This trip will take you about 2.5hrs. In Liberia there are buses going to Puntarenas almost every hour and this stretch takes about 3hrs. Then you get the bus to Monteverde. I know this seems long, but the other option is to go via Santa Cruz – Nicoya which I don’t know much about and I don’t believe it is much of a shortcut even if it looks closer on a map since you’ll need to switch buses a few times. It will be less confusing for you to go from station to station in 3 buses. But a long day at about 9hrs of buses in total.
Hola,
I traveling with my husband and teenage daughter. I am looking for info on how to get from Tamarindo to Samara, then Samara to Puntarenas.
Gracias,
Ruby
Hi Ruby! To get from Tamarindo to Samara you will want to head to Nicoya first. I haven’t gone via Santa Cruz before but if I were you I would get the bus from Tamarindo to Santa Cruz (1hr) and from there head to Nicoya (1/2hr). From Nicoya there are several buses that go to Samara. Then for going to Puntarenas you have two options. The first is to go from Samara to Nicoya (~1.5hrs), then Nicoya to Liberia (2-2.5hrs) and then Liberia to Puntarenas (3hrs). If you start early this can be done in one day. The other option is to get on the bus from Samara to San José. This bus does not pass Puntarenas but it gets fairly close. You would tell the driver that you want to go to Puntarenas so he will drop you in the best spot. Most drivers are helpful with this. But, I would also go to the office in Samara and ask them where this drop off spot will be. Sorry, I am not 100% sure but it will be near Barranca. As long as he drops you in the right spot (in my experience drivers are very good at this) you can then wait for the bus to Puntarenas to pass, or take a taxi the rest of the way. You can also post this question on the FB page called Costa Rica by Bus and see if anyone has any first hand experience with this route. Have a great trip! And it would be great if you could report back and let us know how it goes to help the next person 🙂
I am in Tamarindo as I type this. The La Pampa bus from Tamarindo to Liberia at 6:30am does not exist (it didn’t show up right now) and the locals at the bus station say the next one is at 7:30am. Just letting you know, so you can update the site.
Thank you, Brian! And I’m so sorry for the bad information. I hope you will forgive us! I have updated the site.
No worries, it might be a low season thing. Maybe it runs in high season.
Also, for Tamarindo to Monteverde/Santa Elena. One can take the San Jose direct bus, then get off at La Irma on the Panamanian highway. It’s basically a gas station. From there the bus to Monteverde stops at 10.30am and 3:00pm. Although we did not actually take these buses or have pictures to confirm. We found another couple to split a $60 4×4 taxi to Monteverde instead. There were 2 official taxis waiting at La Irma when we arrived.
We are arriving in Tamarindo by bus from Liberia on Tuesday afternoon. Our first destination is the Palm Plaza Commercial Center. Is there a bus stop near there? Are there any landmarks we should watch for to get off the bus at a convenient location. Any other suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.
The location indicated on the map above is the ‘Plaza’ in Tamarindo and a main bus stop. I don’t know if it is the Palm Plaza you speak of but if you are looking for the center then this is likely your stop. Have a great trip!
Hello,
My friend and I will be travelling from Tamarindo to San Jose on Mar 7. Just looking to confirm what time the Tralapa bus leaves Tamarindo? And do they charge for luggage?
Thank you very much,
Spandana Saginala
Hi Spandana, the only schedules I have for right now is what is on this page. I will be back to update this page in a few weeks but not in time for your trip. I believe the current schedules is w/ Empressa Alfara – 3:30am, 5:30am and possibly ~1pm on Sundays http://empresaalfaro.com/guanacaste_sanjose.html. You are best to ask your hotel when you are in Tamarindo to be sure as they will know. I am sorry I don’t have the latest information at the moment. This schedule has changed often. The bus doesn’t charge for regular luggage but will charge for a surfboard if you are brining one – usually 2000 colones.