Renting a car · Before you book
Renting a car in Costa Rica: requirements, insurance and deposit explained
Insurance is where most rental surprises in Costa Rica come from — usually because the price someone saw online did not include what the law requires. Here is how it all works, in plain language, before you book.
What you need to rent
The paperwork is simple. To rent a car with us you need:
- A valid driver's license from your country, held for at least two years.
- Your passport, or a credit card in the driver's name.
- A minimum age of 21.
Two drivers are included with every rental at no extra cost, so whoever will share the driving should bring their license to the handover too. Travelling as a family or group? Our 7-seater guide covers seats, luggage and child seats.
Driving on your foreign license
Tourists can drive in Costa Rica with the license from their home country while their tourist stay is valid — you do not need a local license. Keep your passport, or at least a copy of the photo page and the entry stamp, in the car together with your license. Traffic police can ask for them at routine checkpoints, and having them ready turns a stop into a two-minute conversation. For everything else about the road itself, read what nobody tells you before you drive off.
How insurance works in Costa Rica
Costa Rican law requires every rental car to carry third-party liability insurance. It covers damage you cause to other people and their property. It is mandatory, it cannot be declined, and in most cases the coverage that comes with a credit card does not replace it.
This is the single biggest source of confusion for visitors. Many booking sites show a low daily rate without this insurance, and the real price only appears at the counter. With us, third-party insurance is included in every rental, and it is already in the price we quote.
If a daily rate looks too good to be true, check whether the mandatory insurance is in it.
Choosing your coverage
Third-party insurance covers others, not the car you are driving. For the rental car itself, you choose an additional level of coverage when you book:
- Full insurance adds protection for collision and theft of the rental vehicle, with a deductible.
- Full coverage with deductible extends that protection further — including items such as glass and tires — with a lower deductible.
Before you confirm, we send you the price and exactly what each option includes, so you can compare them side by side. No insurance option anywhere covers damage from deliberately risky driving, such as crossing a river you cannot see the bottom of — one more reason to choose the right car for your route in the first place.
The security deposit
Every rental has a security deposit — an amount held, not charged, while you have the car. It is released when you return the vehicle in the agreed condition.
The deposit depends on the vehicle and on the coverage you choose: the more coverage you take, the lower the deposit. It can be a hold on a credit card or a cash deposit. We tell you the exact amount in your quote, before you confirm the booking — never for the first time at handover.
- — Driver's license (held 2+ years) for each driver
- — Passport, or a credit card in the driver's name
- — The card or cash for the security deposit
- — Your booking confirmation on WhatsApp
Paying, and avoiding surprises
We accept cash in US dollars or colones, credit and debit cards (Visa, Mastercard and American Express) and bank transfers. Every rental includes unlimited kilometers, and all charges and conditions are shared with you before you confirm. No hidden fees.
Picking up at the airport? Read how airport delivery works at SJO and Liberia — and if anything in your quote is unclear, ask us. A real person answers on WhatsApp.
Get a quote with everything included
Insurance, deposit and conditions — all in writing before you confirm.
