With palm trees, sand and clear blue waters, Costa Rica is the perfect tropical getaway any time of year, so book your flight to a slice of paradise for under $400 la.
These bargain fares are for flights to the Costa Rican cities of San Jose and Liberia. They apply to trips taking place from November to December, with some additional trips from January to September 2023.
Many airlines are offering these reduced fares, so make sure you get your tickets within the next few days.
Trading Basics
Airlines: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Avianca, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue and United Airlines.
Route: Austin, Boston, Las Vegas, Nashville, Newark, New York, Philadelphia, Washington and other cities have discounted routes to San Jose and Liberia.
How to put: Find your ideal date through Google Flights, then book directly with the airline of your choice.
Date of department: Generally November to December, with some additional rows from January to September; Dates vary by route and holidays are excluded.
Recorded by: The next one to two days.
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sample flight
This bundle of discounted flights doesn’t have many routes, but it does include options from many smaller cities like Buffalo, New York, and Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Here are some highlights:
- Blue Jet: John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to Guanacaste Airport (LIR), prices from $329.
- Delta: Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to LIR, starting at $343 (including Atlanta transit).
- Delta: Dulles International Airport (IAD) to LIR, prices start from $344 (including Atlanta transit fees).
- Alaska: Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO), starting at $356.
- Delta: Nashville International Airport (BNA) to SJO, starting at $386 (including Atlanta transfers).
- American: Sioux Falls Regional Airport (FSD) to SJO, starting at $389 (including a stop in Dallas-Fort Worth).
When booking flights, we recommend searching through Google Flights to determine your best dates. Then, book your tickets on the airline’s website as the airlines are more reliable if your flight is canceled, delayed or changed booking.
For a September 17 flight to San Jose from Los Angeles, Google Flights shows the $356 Alaska flight as the cheapest option. Delta also offers a flight to San Jose on the same day, but it’s slightly more expensive at $396.
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If you return to Los Angeles a week later, on September 24, Alaska has a flight departing San Jose at 1:30 a.m., which might be a bit inconvenient but keeps the fare the same at $356.
All fares in this discounted flight group apply to the basic economy class option only. In this case, the basic economy class for Alaska is the airline’s Economy option and does not include seat selection. Passengers flying on Economy fares also cannot change their flights and they are the last to board. So you may also experience a shortage of overhead compartments for hand luggage if your flight is already full.
Despite these restrictions, this rate for a trip to San Jose is considered low, according to Google Flights; Normally, the cheapest flights to the capital of Costa Rica range from $930 to $2,050.
While some airlines’ basic economy fares still allow you to choose your seat on the plane for an extra fee, Alaska does not allow its Saver customers to choose a seat in the main cabin of the plane.
Maximize your purchases
Make sure to use a card that earns bonus points when buying airline tickets, like Platinum Card® from American Express (5 points per dollar on airline tickets booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travelup to $500,000 for these purchases per calendar year), Citi Prestige® Card (5 points per dollar on airfare), Citi Premier® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve (3 points per dollar on airfare), American Express® Gold Card (3 points per dollar on airfare when booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel) or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2 points per dollar for travel). Payment procedures this lesson for more on maximizing airline ticket purchases.
Information about the Citi Prestige Card has been independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Key point
After all, a flight to Costa Rica is definitely worth booking now, especially if you’re looking to travel somewhere with beaches and sunshine.
While basic economy may be limited, many of these fares are nearly 50% off, so if you’re looking to save on travel costs, it’s definitely a worthwhile option. Just make sure to book these tickets as early as possible as fares can change quite often — you don’t want to miss out on a discount.
