Do you really need 3 hours?
 

I keep reading about getting to SJO 3 hours before your flight - is that really necessary?

I like to get to the airport with two or two and a half hours to spare. You just don't know how many flights will be leaving around the same time as yours.

If you like to take the risk of missing your flight, leave less time.

Yes, I am afraid you do.

There are times that I have waltzed in to the terminal, breezed through check in and been in the departure area in less than thirty minutes. I have also shown up the full three hours ahead of time, and almost missed my flight.

There are two major things that can slow you down:

If a jumbo jet or two are boarding at the same time you are boarding, the line at the security checkpoints can be painfully slow.

If there is a high level of security called for, they search every single bag by hand. This can take forever. So bite the bullet, and get there early.

But here is one tip. If you have an early morning departure, check with the staff in San Jose (not the 800 number in the States), when you arrive in the country. Find out what time the ticket counter opens for that particular airline. Some of the airlines don't open until 5:00 AM. There is nothing more frustrating than arriving at 4:00 AM for your 7:00 AM flight, only to stand around for an hour until the staff comes strolling in.

Hope this helps! Let me know if I can offer more advice.

Warm Regards,
Pat Hewitt
(Travel professional)

If our experience last week was any indication, I'd say yes. We arrived 3 hrs before our flight and had less than 30 minutes to spare at our gate. 30 minutes is not insignificant, but at times we weren't sure we'd make it. Despite the fact we had checked-in online, we had to wait in line 1) to check bags, 2) get cash for the departure tax (they ONLY take cash - no credit cards) and 3) go through security - the line was out the door of the airport and down the ramp about a block. When we arrived the week before, we noticed the lines weren't any better. You might get by with 2.5 hrs, but I wouldn't suggest making it any less.

FWIW, we arrived and departed on a Sat afternoon, so it may be better during the week. I don't know.

jen - I should've have clarified that even after we got cash for the departure tax, we still had to wait in line for over 20 minutes to pay it.

We found in July that they do, indeed, take credit cards for departure tax, but ONLY VISA. We have Mastercard. There are ATM's right NEXT to the departure tax counter (literally 3 feet away) that will accept your Mastercard if you need to pick up some cash to pay.

Also, we found it a huge relief to stop by the airport the night before (or you could do it upon arriving) and paid our tax ahead of time. We had the details filled out (on the tax forms) when we arrived the next day, and we were able to march right up to the ticket counter and proceed with check in. It really is a nice help, and could allow you to arrive 2 or 2.5 hours ahead instead of 3.

Please, please do not be one of "those people" who purposely come to the airport with minimum time knowing full well they will be pulled out of the line and given a free bump to the front. It's rude and incredibly arrogant but I see it all the time.

jette - I agree with you totally. FWIW we saw a number of "those people" last weekend that were in that position and they were NOT allowed to bump to the front.

Agreed. 3 hours seems like a long time, but having an hour to spare is better than sprinting to your flight, or missing it entirely. Oversees flights are adamant about check-in time and in fact my friends got denied boarding in Paris because they arrived 55 minutes before flight time, instead of 1 hour, at the check-in desk after waiting in line. They had to pay $200 change fees each to get on the next available flight.

I arrived early, volunteered to be bumped and was awarded an $800 travel voucher, meal vouchers and hotel for an extra night in Paris! :) Yahoo!

4848; WooHoo There IS a god after all!

I arrive at the airport 3 hours before any international flight, anywhere.

I agree with everyone here. Get there three hours in advance. Sometimes I've needed almost all that time. Other times I've breezed through the whole process in 15 minutes. After years of flying out of Costa Rica, I've never been able to correlate fast and slow check-ins with any factors (time of day, day of week, season of year). It has always seemed kind of a fickle, capricious airport to me. You just never know.

Maybe my memory is fading, but I recall paying the departure tax BEFORE leaving the airport upon arrival, as was recommended by our driver, Oscar. Can you still do that? It was a great relief to have it done. Just have to keep your papers, we tucked them our passports.

Just in case you still need convincing, we departed San Jose this past Saturday afternoon and arrived 3 hours early.We stood in a 20-30min line to pay our departure tax (so paying it upon arrival will save you some time),then the line to check in to the flight to Houston was outside the building. I would guess we waited in that line 45 mins.- 1 hr. I don't know how long the security line took most people but it was LONG! Thanks to a heads-up from a Fodorite I knew to look for the security line for people traveling with minors. Yeah! That was us! There was no line there. We ended up being at the gate 45 mins before we boarded but used that time to eat lunch before we boarded the plane. Get there early!

Beyond security you'll find a food court and several nice shops for last-minute souvenir shopping. You can make use of any extra time you have before boarding.

As was stated above, you can pay the departure tax by credit card, but it gets processed as a cash advance rather than a purchase, and your bank or credit card company will assess you a fee for paying that way. I always make sure to set aside $26 in cash, or to get it at the ATM in the airport.

I always have spare time (the better to blow it at Cafe Britt!) but still get there early; last time at 5am for a 7am flight, not sure if AA even opens before 5am.

Yep, Jeff, that's right. Our cc charged us an extra $10 on top of the $26 a couple of years ago. And I forgot to pay for our granddaughter (don't ask me why--couldn't tell you), and had to do it again. Another $10.

For some reason, my husband was in another line and he had the cash. Anyway, not worth it to use the credit card, my opinion. . .it is also a good way to get rid of colones if you have that much left.

AA opens about 4, or sometime soon after, for check-in for their 7 a.m. flight to Miami.

Shillmac mentions "another line." If you're concerned about the tax-payment line taking too long, go to the desk across from the American Airlines counters. It's like nobody knows about them. Everyone walks in and immediately goes to the desks across from the TACA counters on the other side of the terminal.

Oh-oh. I just gave away Shillmac's and my secret. :)

Yep, you're right, Jeff! That's exactly where I was--always less crowded. AND it helps to know that only one person has to get in line for departure tax--as long as that person has all the passports.

I think the only inside ATM's are at the other end, however. . .

Not to butt in here, but agswimmer were you on CO 1447, the 2:55 from SJO to IAH? If so, we were on that flight! Yea, we were in that line that stretched outside the building, but had no shortcuts since the kids are teenagers. I'm just glad my OCD kicked in that morning and we got there 3 hrs early.

It is funny about that other stamp line. I have been telling people about it for a long time now and I guess they just see that sign at the entrance and go right.

Are the shops open at 5-6am? Gotta at least get a cup of coffee at that hour.

dfr4848--Yep, we were on that flight! If you had teenagers you could have gotten in the "minors" line. We had been told on Fodors that the shorter line was for people traveling with children 14 & under. Our daughter is 14 so that's why we looked for the other line. But the sign for the line actually says "18 & under".

Yeah, I don't know why everyone goes right either, the one to the left is often empty but sometimes they have a billboard thing there so maybe people don't see it. Yes the shops are open at 5am, I usually go downstairs to the smokers bar and hang there after I'm done with shopping.

A bank of monitors showing flight times partially blocks the tax counters across from the American Airlines check-in area. I think people just don't see it.

The "minors" line is not just a convenience for people traveling with kids. You are supposed to use that line if anyone in your party is under 18. They are doing one last check to make sure nothing untoward is going on with adults leaving the country with children. (I did a piece on this for The Tico Times.)

Good to know I can get my coffee that early. There is an 8am flight that I can take to get home earlier but I have been hesitant to take it. I NEED my coffee. I don't think Denny's would work for me.

A couple of times when the line looked a little long my husband went to get the stamps and I got in line. I wouldn't hold people up to fill the form in if I couldn't get it done before I needed it though.