What Is the Cheapest US City to Fly to Costa Rica From?

Miami, Houston, and Los Angeles consistently offer the cheapest flights to Costa Rica. Fort Lauderdale and Dallas are also competitive. For Nosara specifically, fly into Liberia (LIR) rather than San Jose - it's closer and often cheaper.

Miami has the most flight options to Costa Rica, with multiple airlines competing on the route. Direct flights to Liberia (LIR) run daily, and you can often find roundtrip fares under $300 during off-peak seasons. Houston is a close second, especially if you're flying United or connecting from other US cities.

Here's the key insight for Nosara visitors: most people automatically search for flights to San Jose (SJO), but Liberia (LIR) is the better choice. Liberia is about 2.5 hours from Nosara compared to 5+ hours from San Jose. You'll save half a day of travel, and LIR flights are often the same price or cheaper than SJO.

Budget airlines like Spirit and Frontier fly to Costa Rica from several US hubs, though you'll pay extra for bags. Southwest has excellent service to Liberia from many US cities with free checked bags included. JetBlue and Alaska also run competitive routes during peak season.

Pro tips: book 6-8 weeks ahead for the best prices. Use Google Flights to track prices and set alerts. Be flexible with dates - flying mid-week (Tuesday/Wednesday) is usually cheapest. And consider green season (May-November) when flights drop significantly while Nosara's weather remains great for surfing.