QUICK LINK to PIN and MAP
If you’re driving, this is the entrance gate to La Joya del Sol. Map and more details below.
Entrance Gate 3 Giant Rocks, Bamboo Growing Over Arched Gate
AIRLINES – Fly to San Jose, Costa Rica (SJO). If you arrive before noon, you can get to La Joya del Sol by taxi door-to-door 4 hours later yet arrive in daylight to settle in. There’s also MUSOC bus service that’s cheaper than a direct taxi (see Bus option below) but requires another 1 hour of ground transportation to La Joya del Sol from the San Isidro MUSOC terminal. Car rental at the airport is an option. Many prefer the scenic coastal ride in our recommended taxi. If you arrive SJO after noon, it’s recommended you stay one overnight at the Toucan Hostel near the airport (or hotel of your choice), where its easy to coordinate a taxi to pick you up the next morning. Details for each option is below.
OVERNIGHT IN SAN JOSE – If you exit customs at SJO airport after noon, you can stay overnight close to the airport at the Toucan Hostel. Early the next day (8 am suggested), our recommended taxi driver will take you to La Joya del Sol for about $200 (2023) in 4 hours. If door-to-door taxi is your choice, we’ll book and confirm the driver for you.
DIRECT TAXI from SJO AIRPORT to LA JOYA DEL SOL – If you arrive at SJO before noon, you can be at La Joya del Sol door-to-door in about 4 hours after you leave customs. We’ll book the taxi to take you to La Joya del Sol for about $200, traveling along the scenic coastal route, stop to see the crocodiles near Jaco, and fruit /coconut stands, or stop; by an ATM. If this is your choice, we’ll book and confirm the taxi for you when you provide your flight no., arrival time and airline. The taxi driver will have a sign with your name as you leave customs. You save money with up to 2 more people as the fare is shared, and the ride is more comfortable and scenic than a bus. A bus ride can be dizzying on the curvy mountain roads. If you have more than 3 people or lots of luggage, a bigger taxi van can be arranged.
ARRIVAL TIME and DAYS – Ideally, arrive here by 3 pm so there’s enough daylight (sun sets at 6:00 every day) to find it and settle in. In rainy season from June to November, you may get caught in a late afternoon rain. Saturdays, Tuesdays and Thursdays are market days, so it’s possible to cut transportation costs and arrive by bus or taxi to Tinamastes (Tuesdays) or San Isidro (Thursdays). We’ll coordinate with you ahead of time to meet and take you the rest of the way to the farm if the time works out, from these two destinations.
FROM SAN JOSE BY BUS: (Let us know by email so we can confirm taxi pickups)
STEP 1: Take a taxi from the airport or your hotel to the MUSOC bus terminal and buy a ticket to San Isidro del General. Buses run each hour from 5:30 am to 5:30 pm. The ride to San Isidro is 3 hours, with 45 more minutes to the farm from the MUSOC terminal, depending on further transportation by either taxi or local bus to Tinamastes. MUSOC bus runs every day, including holidays. Online ticket sales at the MUSOC website.
STEP 2: Option 1 – If you arrive by MUSOC bus on a Thursday market day in San Isidro, someone from here can pick you up at the terminal. On other days, you can take a 4WD taxi to the farm (as little as $45), about a 35 minute trip. Contact us for taxi recommendations.
STEP 2: Option 2 – Bus from San Isidro or Uvita – Quepos – Dominical: Go to the regional Transporte Blanco bus terminal, and tell the bus driver to let you off in Tinamastes (pronounced Tea-Namaste). There are 5 buses daily . Text us by Whatsapp to 506-8886-6802 the time of your bus departure and we’ll meet you at a Tinamastes bus stop. If you arrive Tinamastes on a Tuesday morning, visit us selling at the farmers market and get a ride to the farm.
FROM SAN ISIDRO OR DOMINICAL BY CAR – About halfway on the paved winding road Hwy. 243 from San Isidro to Dominical, you come to Tinamastes. About 200 meters downhill from the big white church on the south side, or 200 meters uphill from the pulperia Abastecedor Elizabeth, turn south onto a major gravel road into the Diamante valley where there’s a bus stop and some billboards. Go 7 km to the village of San Salvador (through Las Tumbas at 4 km)
San Salvador Cemetery Turn left here
At the cemetery in San Salvador at the first “T” intersection on the left, you will see the signs above,”Camino a La Florida”. Turn left here and go 2.9 km uphill to La Joya del Sol’s entrance with an arched bamboo covered gate and distinct 3 giant rocks on the right. This natural entrance is very unique and ensures more privacy than a sign.
Entrance Gate 3 Giant Rocks, Bamboo Growing Over Arched Gate
CLICK HERE for GPS Co-ordinates from SJO airport to the public road entrance, suitable for a preferred WAZE map to the entrance. Use any portion of this route to the entrance PIN.
If you book your own taxi, a 2WD is sufficient on the public road up to the farm gate, where someone can come get you at the entrance gate. 4WD is necessary if you enter the driveway. If the gate is locked, call when you arrive and someone will let you in. Please close the gate going in or out.
CAR RENTAL – A 4WD is essential to drive onto the farm and tour the mountainous regions of Costa Rica, especially if you’re looking for land or want to tour the most beautiful parts of the countryside. A drive up to the gate does not require 4WD, as someone can come to get you if you get dropped off if you arrange it ahead and call to announce your arrival. But there are parking areas inside about 1/2 km where you can park a 2WD car and somone can come get you.
TRAVEL TO LOCAL SITES and GATHERINGS – If you want to go to San Isidro, the beach, Nauyaca falls, or visit somewhere locally, a car rental is recommended since we are quite remote.
ROAD MAPS TO LA JOYA DEL SOL
Click here for a map from Tinamastes to La Joya Del Sol
Click here for a map from San Isidro to La Joya Del Sol
