Budget for One Week in Costa Rica

Is Costa Rica a budget friendly destination for solo female travelers? I spent a week in January enjoying the best of capital city San Jose and the mountainous jungles of this hugely popular tourist spot. (Sorry, no beaches on this Costa Rica itinerary.) Read on for every penny spent in my budget for one week in Costa Rica.

Note: All prices are converted to USD. This trip took place in 2018 and I’ve added some notes on what prices are like in 2025.

Transportation Budget for One Week in Costa Rica: $665.26

$378 flight BWI to San Jose

$10.78 Uber from airport

$4.92 bus San Jose to La Fortuna

$15 shuttle pass for getting around La Fortuna/Arenal

$29 Jeep-boat-Jeep La Fortuna/Arenal to Monteverde

$4.10 bus Monteverde to San Jose

$2.46 taxi to airport

$221 flight to BWI

Travel Tip: Some folks will say that you can’t get around Costa Rica without a rental car. They’re wrong! Even though there aren’t a lot of direct bus connections listed online, you can book direct overland transportation from place to place. Just wait until you arrive and let the folks at your hostel help you!

Note on 2025 Prices: Airfare is more affordable than ever! You can easily find flights to Costa Rica from the East Coast for $250 round-trip. Bus prices are comparable according to Rome2Rio.

Accommodations Budget for One Week in Costa Rica: $64

$25 three nights in 6-bed female dorm at Upe Hostel in San Jose

$19 two nights in 4-bed dorm at La Choza Inn in La Fortuna/Arenal

$20 two nights at Hostel La Suerte in Monteverde

Travel Tip: As a solo female traveler, I only stay in private rooms and female-only dorms. Get more tips on booking hostels here.

Note on 2025 Prices: Upe Hostel has closed since my stay, but there are plenty of other hostels in San Jose with prices in the $10-15 per night range. La Choza Inn is currently about $14 per night for a 10-bed female dorm. Hostel La Suerte is currently $8 per night for a 6-bed female dorm.

Dining Budget for One Week in Costa Rica: $76.07

$8 breakfast at Charlotte airport

$8.41 lunch at Nuestra Tierra

$2.95 coffee at Cafe Miel

$14.77 dinner at Lava Lounge

$1.97 helado at street stall

$8.20 dinner at The Corner

$14.44 groceries at Super Compro

$17.33 lunch at The Tree House

Travel Tip: The classic Costa Rica meal is gallo pinto, a simple and hearty mix of eggs, beans, and rice. You’ll see it at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and it makes dining on a budget in Costa Rica suuuuuper easy.

Note on 2025 Prices: Dining prices are the hardest to estimate, but a restaurant meal is likely to be in the $10-30 range. Local sodas are less expensive.

Attractions Budget for One Week in Costa Rica: $260.17

$9 National Museum of Costa Rica in San Jose

$9.85 Pre-Columbian Gold Museum in San Jose

$57 coffee tour from San Jose

$71 craft beer tour in San Jose

$12 Arenal 1968 Park volcano hike

$55 100% Aventura zip line in Monteverde

$35 hanging bridges at Selvatura Park in Monteverde cloud forest

$11.32 Monteverde Orchid Garden

Travel Tip: Costa Rica is home to the longest zip line in Latin America and it’s SO worth it! Just learn from my mistakes and don’t lose the CD they give you with all your photos on it. 🤦‍♀️

Note on 2025 Prices: Pretty much all of these have raised in cost significantly. Most museums are now $12-18. A day tour to a coffee farm is $75. I had to do some digging to find what I think was the craft beer tour I took, but that price is the same. The zip line is now $68 and the cloud forest hanging bridges are $49. Total budget for all these attractions in 2025 would be $325.

Special Costs Budget for One Week in Costa Rica: $99.48

$87 travel insurance

$1.48 water at bus station

$11 souvenirs

Travel Tip: Don’t ever skip travel insurance! I didn’t have to make a claim during my one week in Costa Rica, but it was a huge lifesaver on my round-the-world trip. 

Total Budget for One Week in Costa Rica: $1164.98 or $129.44 per day

This amount is a little steeper than I sometimes like to budget my travel, but that’s the difference between a week-long vacation and a round-the-world trip. If I had visited Costa Rica on my round-the-world trip as originally planned, I would have saved hundreds of dollars! Learn more by booking a call with me.

Note on 2025 prices: Attractions are the only category with a significant increase and accommodations have gone up slightly, but the good news is this is offset by how much cheaper flights are! I think you could take this exact same Costa Rica itinerary and spend even less than I did in 2018.

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