TXgalinGA

I know everyone says to be at the airport 2 hours before international departure, especially at SJO.
My parents and brother have a 7:30 am flight from Quepos to San Jose (I believe on Nature Air) Christmas morning that arrives San Jose at 8:05. The airport they land at is 9 miles away from SJO. Their flight back to the USA is at 10:08 that morning. So they will have exactly 2 hours to collect their luggage from Nature Air, get a taxi and get to SJO before their plane leaves for DFW.
I have spoken with a travel agent many times, and he swears they will make their flight. I just need to be reassured bc my mom will kill me if anything goes wrong.

I know it will be Christmas morning, so the airpost might not be as busy. They are also flying first class, which will make check-in easier.

Thanks!!!!!

Jeff_Costa_Rica

Personally, I wouldn't chance this, but I'm the type who checks in for flights out of San Jose three hours in advance. (That's the official requirement.) I've checked in on, say, a Tuesday in October (you'd think the lowest of the low season) and spent a couple of hours in line and another 30 minutes in the security line. And I've checked in a few days before Christmas and breezed right through both lines in just a few minutes. After years of flying to and from Costa Rica dozens of times, I've never been able to see any correlation with time of day and time of year and how busy or slow the airport is. You also have to be prepared in case the Nature Air flight from Quepos does not leave on time. Nature Air is good, but in-country flights are occasionally delayed.

Bottom line, I'd say this is a risk. If they do it, I think they should have alternate plans if they miss their flight.

faithie

I think it's cutting it close as well .... I mean , could turn out just fine , BUT .....

TXgalinGA

Hmmm- I'm the kind that takes chances and things usually work out for me But, this isn't me I'm talking about, it's my parents. There is only 1 flight to DFW, so if they missed it, they would probably have to stay another night.
Or, they could leave MA a day earlier and stay close to the airpost... *but* I don't know if we could get a room refund from Makanda.
The travel agent from travelcity swears they'll be fine.... arrg! This is stressing me out! Keep the opinions coming!

dfarmer

Have you considered flying Sansa instead of Nature Air? At least with Sansa they would not have that drive from the Nature Air terminal.

TXgalinGA

dfarmer- the Sansa flights are full That is what my husband and I are flying later that day.... Thanks for the thought though!

shillmac

TXgal, I completely agree with Jeff. There doesn't seem to be a pattern to when the lines are long and when they are not. Longest line I was ever in was also in October--on a Monday.

Personally, I think the odds are in favor of your parents and brother NOT making their SJO departure time. Also, I think it highly irresponsible for a travel agent to assure you that they will. Those of us who have traveled to and in Costa Rica are shaking our heads! It is way too close!

We used to never arrive earlier than 2 hours before departure. These days with all the increased tourism, that is just cutting it too close. And they won't even have that. There's a good chance the flight out of Quepos won't take off on schedule. I haven't flown NatureAir, but I believe the transfer from airport to airport is 20 if not 30 minutes? Very risky! But it would be exciting (if I could afford it) to miss that flight and have more time in country!!!

Jeff_Costa_Rica

I'd talk to the travel agent again and just lay it on the line and say: Okay, what happens if we don't make this connection? And if he "swears they'll make the flight," be persistent and say, "Fine, but that's not my question. What are our alternatives if we can't make the connection?"

I've found it usually takes about 15 minutes after a Nature Air flight lands at its airport for the luggage to be delivered. The trip to the international airport is 20-30 minutes as Shillmac says.

While you wouldn't think that Christmas morning would be a popular time to travel, I think the holiday falling on a weekend this year might throw that theory out of whack. Two years ago I did an early-December story for The Tico Times on where to go to get away for the holidays, in other words, where to go if you live in Costa Rica and are looking for a holiday trip abroad. Most of the travel-industry experts here told me that since Christmas Eve is the big time for family celebrations here in Costa Rica, most local people here travel starting December 25 and later. So it isn't just foreign tourists you compete with for space in the airport. It's Costa Ricans who are traveling at holiday time too.

TXgalinGA

Just wanted to give an update and thank you all for your advice. I just got off the phone with American. There is a flight via Miami that leaves SJO around noon. The travel time is an additional 3 hours, but there are plenty of seats on all legs of the flight (SJO-Miami-DFW-SAT) If my parents and brother DO miss their 10am flight, they can take this flight at no additional charge.
So no more stress for me Thanks again!
TX