Hi all- We've (2 of us) been to CR a few times and have always rented a RAV 4 and it's fit us, our luggage and a surfboard (inside the car, have had bad luck with surf racks) comfortably. We are heading down there this spring with another couple and their 11 year old son. Any recommendations on a rental car to fit all of us, luggage and multiple surfboards??? We saw that Mapache (who we've always used in the past and really liked) has a Suzuki Vitara, Nissan Pathfinder II, Nissan Terrano and a Toyota Land Cruiser that all say they fit 7 passengers. This makes me think 5 of us and our stuff could fit, fairly comfortably. Anyone have any experience with any of these cars? or have any other recommendations? We're trying to save $ and share one car, but might not be possible. Thanks in advance for your help.

ardie514, last summer, we had 6 person and a baby (in a car seat) plus luggage traveling down to San Gerardo de Dota. We originally rented an XL-7 (or maybe it was a Gran Vitara), but soom realized it wasn't going to work. Ended up with a little mini-van type vehicle called a Suzuki APV. There was a LOT of room between the front seats and the middle bench. We were able to store luggage right there in front of our feet as well as behind the back bench. Worked pretty well, and was about $100 cheaper for the week than the Gran Vitara. I think we paid about $260 for a week! Tricolor--

www.tricolorcarrental.com

Thanks Shillmac. We'll look into it. Sounds perfect!

We are just two and a surfboard and always get a real full size. This time we had a Nissan Pathfinder from Dollar that broke down and left us stranded. Worked out ok, but could have been disastrous.

I'd go bigger for 5 and stuff. Perhaps the Landcruiser would be the largest you named.

We had a good vehicle with Alamo, and our hotel reco'd National.

Shillmac, In relation to the APV vs. the Suzuki XL-7.
How significantly decreased is the4x4 capability of the APV? Could it handle the roads? I know of the new road to Tamarindo from Liberia, but can it handle other, more treacherous ones? Thanks!

You bet. We took it on the Dominical to Quepos road (doesn't get much worse than that) and had to cross a river with it. It did fine.

shillmac et. al- thanks for this info- I was trying to decide if a Suzuki APV would work for 7 of us, and if it could handle the roads. (We are driving SJO-Arenal-Monteverde-Manual Antonio.) Sounds like your answer to both these questions is yes. I think I'll go ahead and reserve the SUzuki APV with tricolor!

You'll appreciate the room!

I just had a bad experience with Tricolor Car Rental near the main airport (SJO) in Costa Rica. We rented a SUV and the next day after a morning of driving to Poas Volcano, the brakes started to fail! I've been driving for over thirty years, and I don't believe I've ever had this happen before--believe me, it was scary. The first time I pressed them to the floor and the vehicle kept on moving was the worst, but I found that the brakes sometimes worked, although as I kept using them they became more and more worthless.

It took most of the day, but I managed to make it back to Tricolor (after putting my wife, baby, and grandparents on a bus back to my house), and told the Tricolor representative what happened. They said they would explain the situation to their boss, Claus Schutz, and that I should call him the next day.

I tried to get through to him the next day but the line was busy, and I tried again the following day, and finally spoke to him.

His manner was smug, and he didn't even apologize for the vehicle. On the contrary, he said the brakes overheated because I don't know how to drive in Costa Rica (by the way, I've been living here for 5 years, and have been driven in all kinds of terrain over the many years I've had a license), and that he was charging me a day rate of $80 for the one day I had the car.

This was $15 higher than the daily rate he'd orginally rented me the car for! (We had planned to have it for a week.) I also had given him a receipt for $40 of gas I'd put in the car--I'd rented it half full and returned it full--and he wouldn't refund my gas money!

In conclusion: no apology, no refund, no discount, no gas reimbursement. Just a smug attitude that seemed to suggest: we've already charged your credit card and you have no recourse. And it's true: this isn't worth spending hours on the phone with American Express about.

BUT I WANT OTHER PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT THEY SHOULD AVOID TRICOLOR!

By the way, avoid Economy Car Rental in Costa Rica also. My friend had a similar bad experience with them when he agreed to extra insurance but then realized a few days later that he didn't need it because his credit card already covered it. He went back there to remove the insurance, and they did so, but they wound up charging him for it anyway. Six months later, after countless calls, AMEX disputes, etc., he still hasn't gotten his full refund, which should have been substantial because he rented the car for a month.

I don't know if there are ANY good car rental companies in Costa Rica, but I can speak from personal experience that Tricolor and Economy are to be avoided.

This reminded me that's important to have a complete "return" before leaving for home. By that, I mean, get back the blank credit card authorization form and ask for a receipt. Don't trust anybody's saying that "you are all set".