There are two main airplanes that fly to the Montezuma area, landing in the Tambor airport, which are Nature Air and Sansa.
Both flights normally only fly to and from San Jose, so if you want to fly from one beach town to another, you normally have to buy two tickets and go to San Jose to transfer. This is expensive and takes a long time. Sometimes the flights will hop from town to town before going to San Jose, so you may be able to arrange to fly to Nosara or Punta Islita directly from Tambor, but I haven’t heard of anyone doing this.
The prices depend on the flight and the season, and the schedules change by season as well. As you’d expect, in high season (Dec-Apr) they offer more flights. They also tend to fill up so it’s good to book in advance. In rainy season, you can often book the day before and find a flight available.
The flight is super fun and beautiful. Highly recommended just for the journey itself. The earliest morning flight is really spectacular, and you’ll see early-morning light over the ocean, volcanoes, islands, jungle, etc. It’s worth the price of the ticket just for the view itself, and saving time is an added benefit.
The price, each way is usually around $60-90 depending on various factors.
Nature Air
This is the better of the two airlines, with nicer planes. They do a better job of answering their phones, handling bookings, etc and are more oriented towards English-speaking foreign customers.
Website: Nature Air
Phone: CR: (506) 2299 6000 / US: 1-800-235-9272
Sansa
Sansa usually has a few more flights, and is the better choice for people arriving internationally who want to transfer directly to one of the beach town, since Sansa leaves from the same international airport in San Jose.
Website: Sansa
Phone: CR: (506) 2290-4100 / US: 1-877-767-2672
Private Charter Flights
Both Sansa and Nature Air offer private charter flights. Here are some approximate prices from 2012:
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- VIP Costa Rica Charter Flights (Email to [email protected] / Phone 2241-5364)
By plane from San Jose to Tambor airport (one way flight):
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- 4 passenger plane : US$457
- 12 passenger plane : US$1265
By Helicopter from San Jose to Tambor airport ( one way flight):
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- 4 passenger Helicopter: US$1722
- 6 passenger Helicopter: US$2750
Further Info
In rainy/green season, bad weather can sometimes cause a flight to be cancelled or delayed. So, if you’re planning on taking a flight from one of the tourist towns to San Jose to catch an international flight, then consider staying an extra day near the airport to make sure you won’t miss it.
