Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Land
Border Crossings
Costa Rica shares land borders with Nicaragua and Panama. There is no fee for travel-
ers to enter Costa Rica; however, there have been several reports of towns recently
adding their own entry/exit fees, usually US$1.
NICARAGUA
Situated on the Interamericana,
Sapoá-Peñas Blancas
is the most heavily trafficked border
station between Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
This is the only official border between Nicaragua and Costa Rica that you can drive
across.
Waiting times at this border can be several hours. Plan on at least an hour's wait.
Tica Bus
( in Managua 222-6094, in Panama City 262 2084)
,
Nica Bus
( in Managua
228-1374)
and
TransNica
all have daily buses that serve points north and south. Regular
buses depart Peñas Blancas, on the Costa Rican side, for La Cruz, Liberia and San
José.
Note that Peñas Blancas is only a border post, not a town, so there is nowhere to stay.
Very rarely used by travelers, the
San Carlos-Los Chiles
crossing (
Click here
) must be
done by boat.
PANAMA
Note that Panama is GMT minus five hours, one hour ahead of Costa Rica.
At the time of writing, entry to Panama required proof of US$500 (per person), proof of
onward travel from Panama and two photocopies of your passport. Travelers have reported
being turned away from Panamanian border crossings even with onward bus tickets, so our
tip is to reserve an airline ticket online (for a flight originating in Panama), print the itinerary,
and let the reservation expire without actually booking it.
The Carretera Interamericana (Pan-American Hwy) at
Paso Canoas
is by far the most fre-
quently used entry and exit point with Panama, and is open 6am to 10pm Monday to Friday,
and to 8pm on weekends.
The border crossing in either direction is generally straightforward, if slow.
Get an exit stamp from Costa Rica at the
migración
before entering Panama; do the
same on the Panamanian side when entering Costa Rica.
