Rules for overlanding in Costa Rica

Our summary of the country advice published by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Viaggiare Sicuri) on 21 January 2026.

Which licence you need

All vehicles — An Italian licence is accepted. Check what applies to the licence you hold.

An International Driving Permit states the categories it covers: check yours covers what you will actually drive. A car licence does not cover a motorcycle, and a heavy camper or a truck can need a higher category.

At the wheel

Insurance — Third-party liability cover is compulsory.
Temporary import — A Carnet de Passage en Douane is required for a vehicle brought in temporarily.
Landslides in the rains — During the rainy season slips and landslides hit both the roads linking the central valley to the Pacific coast and the road to the Caribbean coast, which is sometimes closed to traffic at certain points. The road system is in a precarious state, and the official road-status page is the place to check before setting off.
Where you park — Do not park in isolated places, and leave no valuables or documents in the vehicle. Check the car is really locked: thieves use electronic devices that block the remote locking.
No lifts to strangers — Do not give lifts to people you do not know.
Asking directions — Ask at petrol stations or in shops for directions and information about places, rather than strangers met in the street.
Taxis — Use only authorised taxis, the red ones, or the orange ones serving the international airport. Unofficial taxis have been involved in violence against passengers driven out of town, sometimes with fatal results.

What catches travellers out

The punctured-tyre trick — Document theft has risen a lot and the methods are elaborate: thieves puncture a tourist's tyres, then offer roadside help and rob them. Pay particular attention in cheap local eateries (sodas), bars, shopping centres, on public buses and at the arrival areas of San José and Liberia airports.
Passport and entry — Leave the original in the hotel safe and carry a photocopy, which the authorities accept given how many originals are stolen. The passport needs at least 90 days' validity, and documents that are torn, stained, damaged or missing pages are often refused. No visa is needed for tourism up to 180 days, but you must hold a return ticket.
Card cloning — Cases of Italians hit by card cloning and bank fraud have risen sharply. Change currency only in banks, authorised agencies or hotels, where the rate may be poor.
Drugs — Holding, transporting, offering, buying or selling narcotics carries 8 to 20 years in prison, reduced only if a small quantity can be proved to be for strictly personal use. Almost every Italian held in Costa Rica was arrested for drug trafficking.

Before you rely on this

This is our summary of advice written by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Italian travellers, published on 21 January 2026. We summarise in good faith, but we cannot guarantee it is accurate, current or complete, and we take no responsibility for decisions made on the basis of it. Rules change without notice and are applied by officials at the border, not by websites. Always read the original source and the travel advice your own government publishes for Costa Rica before you travel. GuideMeet has no way of checking whether an individual guide meets any standard mentioned here — ask them directly.

Source: Viaggiare Sicuri — Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, updated 21 January 2026. Last checked by GuideMeet on 2026-09-20.