There are 5 ways to get from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica by plane, train, bus, car, or bus (Flixbus)
Select an option below to see step-by-step directions and to compare ticket prices and travel times in Rome2Rio's travel planner.
Fly from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport
best- Fly from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) to Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO)plane SBA - SJO
11h 23m$172–754Train to Los Angeles International Airport, fly
cheapest- Take the train from Santa Barbara to Los Angelestrain
- Fly from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO)plane LAX - SJO
11h 37m$156–535Train, bus
- Take the train from Santa Barbara to Los Angelestrain
- Take the train from Los Angeles to San Marcos Amtraktrain
- Take the bus from San Marcos to Terminal Central de Autobuses del Nortebus
- Take the bus from Terminal Central de Autobuses del Norte to Tapachulabus
- Take the bus from Tapachula to San Salvadorbus
- Take the bus from Terminal San Carlos - CCA to Terminal Atlántico Nortebus
4d 14h$749–1,496Drive 5,482.6 km
- Drive from Santa Barbara to San Josécar 5,482.6 km
2d 20h$736–1,062Bus
- Take the bus from Santa Barbara Bus Stop to Los Angeles Union Stationbus
- Take the bus from Los Angeles to Managuabus
- Take the bus from Managua to Terminal NicaBusbus
4d 18h$390–460
Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) to Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) flights
Questions & Answers
The cheapest way to get from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica is to train and fly which costs $150 - $550 and takes 11h 37m.
The fastest way to get from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica is to fly which takes 11h 23m and costs $170 - $800.
No, there is no direct bus from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica. However, there are services departing from Santa Barbara Bus Stop and arriving at Terminal NicaBus via Cesar E Chavez / Vignes, Los Angeles and Managua. The journey, including transfers, takes approximately 4 days 18h.
The distance between Santa Barbara and Costa Rica is 4543 km. The road distance is 5482.6 km.
The best way to get from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica without a car is to bus which takes 4 days 18h and costs $390 - $460.
It takes approximately 11h 23m to get from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica, including transfers.
Santa Barbara to Costa Rica bus services, operated by Flixbus USA, depart from Santa Barbara Bus Stop station.
The best way to get from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica is to fly which takes 11h 23m and costs $170 - $800. Alternatively, you can bus, which costs $390 - $460 and takes 4 days 18h.
Santa Barbara to Costa Rica bus services, operated by Flixbus USA, arrive at Los Angeles Union Station.
Costa Rica is 1h ahead of Santa Barbara. It is currently 6:04 PM in Santa Barbara and 7:04 PM in Costa Rica.
What companies run services between Santa Barbara, CA, USA and Costa Rica?
United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and two other airlines fly from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA) to Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) 3 times a day. Alternatively, you can take a bus from Santa Barbara Bus Stop to Terminal NicaBus via Los Angeles Union Station, Cesar E Chavez / Vignes, Los Angeles, and Managua in around 4d 18h.
- Website
- avianca.com
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via San Salvador
- Ave. Duration
- 9h 1m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- $210–750
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Guatemala City
- Ave. Duration
- 7h 35m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- $210–750
- Website
- united.com
Flights from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via San Francisco
- Ave. Duration
- 9h 44m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- $190–800
Flights from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Los Angeles International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 10h 40m
- When
- Friday
- Estimated price
- $170–750
Flights from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Denver
- Ave. Duration
- 15h 15m
- When
- Friday and Saturday
- Estimated price
- $190–800
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 5h 49m
- When
- Friday and Saturday
- Estimated price
- $120–550
- Website
- alaskaair.com
Flights from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Los Angeles International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 8h 23m
- When
- Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday
- Estimated price
- $170–750
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 5h 42m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- $120–550
- Website
- delta.com
Flights from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Los Angeles International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 11h 25m
- When
- Friday
- Estimated price
- $170–750
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 5h 31m
- When
- Friday
- Estimated price
- $120–550
- Website
- aeromexico.com
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Mexico City
- Ave. Duration
- 9h 50m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- $120–550
- Website
- southwest.com
Flights from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Las Vegas
- Ave. Duration
- 12h 30m
- When
- Monday, Thursday, and Friday
- Estimated price
- $170–750
- Website
- volaris.com
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Guatemala City
- Ave. Duration
- 7h 18m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- $100–320
- Website
- vivaaerobus.com
Flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Juan Santamaría International Airport via Monterrey
- Ave. Duration
- 9h 20m
- When
- Monday and Friday
- Estimated price
- $160–550
Rome2Rio's guide to Amtrak
Contact Details
- Phone
- +1 800-872-7245
- Website
- amtrak.com
Train from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles
- Ave. Duration
- 2h 53m
- Frequency
- Every 4 hours
- Estimated price
- $28–65
- Website
- https://www.amtrak.com/home.html
Train from Los Angeles to San Marcos Amtrak
- Ave. Duration
- 32h 20m
- Frequency
- 3 times a week
- Estimated price
- $390–900
- Website
- https://www.amtrak.com/home.html
- Phone
- +1 800 923 1799
- contactus@omexusa.net
- Website
- omnibusexpress.com
Bus from San Marcos to Terminal Central de Autobuses del Norte
- Ave. Duration
- 21h 17m
- Frequency
- Once daily
- Estimated price
- $140–220
- Schedules at
- omnibusexpress.com
- Phone
- +52 55 4386 4652
- solucioneshola@ado.com.mx
- Website
- ado.com.mx
Bus from Terminal Central de Autobuses del Norte to Tapachula
- Ave. Duration
- 18h 50m
- Frequency
- 5 times a day
- Estimated price
- $95–170
- Schedules at
- ado.com.mx
- Book at
- ado.com.mx
- Phone
- +𝟓𝟎𝟑 𝟐𝟐𝟐𝟒 𝟔𝟓𝟒𝟖
- elcondorinternacional@gmail.com
- Website
- facebook.com
Bus from Tapachula to San Salvador
- Ave. Duration
- 10h
- Frequency
- Twice daily
- Estimated price
- $50
- Schedules at
- facebook.com
- Phone
- +52 962 625 2435
- info@ticabus.com
- Website
- ticabus.com
Bus from Tapachula to San Salvador
- Ave. Duration
- 10h
- Frequency
- 4 times a week
- Estimated price
- $30–45
- Website
- https://www.ticabus.com/en/
- Phone
- +504 9919 5375
- Website
- cristobalcolon.com.gt
Bus from Terminal San Carlos - CCA to Terminal Atlántico Norte
- Ave. Duration
- 20h
- Frequency
- 3 times a week
- Estimated price
- $65–95
- Schedules at
- cristobalcolon.com.gt
- Road
- $65–95
- Phone
- +1 (855) 626-8585
- Website
- flixbus.com
Bus from Santa Barbara Bus Stop to Los Angeles Union Station
- Ave. Duration
- 2h 20m
- Frequency
- 4 times a week
- Estimated price
- $11–21
- Schedules at
- flixbus.com
- Phone
- +1 213 368 1172
- info@boletosdebus.com
- Website
- busesusatours.com
Bus from Los Angeles to Managua
- Ave. Duration
- 4d 6h
- Frequency
- Once a week
- Estimated price
- $340–400
- Schedules at
- busesusatours.com
- Phone
- +505 2222 2276
- Nicabusinternacionalsa@gmail.com
- Website
- nicabus.com.ni
Bus from Managua to Terminal NicaBus
- Ave. Duration
- 7h 15m
- Frequency
- Once daily
- Estimated price
- $37–38
- Website
- https://nicabus.com.ni/en/
Want to know more about travelling around Costa Rica
Rome2Rio's Travel Guide series provide vital information for the global traveller. Filled with useful and timely travel information, the guides answer all the hard questions - such as 'How do I buy a ticket?', 'Should I book online before I travel? ', 'How much should I expect to pay?', 'Do the trains and buses have Wifi?' - to help you get the most out of your next trip.
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More Questions & Answers
Yes, the driving distance between Santa Barbara to Costa Rica is 5483 km. It takes approximately 2 days 20h to drive from Santa Barbara to Costa Rica.
There are 754+ hotels available in Costa Rica.





















