🇨🇷 Costa Rica or 🇮🇹 Italy
Which one, honestly
Costa Rica leads on nature and the sea. Italy leads on cities, food and getting around.
A normal day costs about $130 in Costa Rica and $165 in Italy.
Side by side
- 🇨🇷 Costa Rica🇮🇹 Italy
- Jan, Feb, Mar, DecBest monthsApr, May, Sep, Oct
- $130A normal day$165
- 5h 15m to San JoseNonstop from New York8h 45m to Rome
- Very goodBeaches and seaGood
- Not the drawCities and cultureExceptional
- GoodFoodExceptional
- ExceptionalNature and hikingVery good
- Not the drawValue for moneyGood
- GoodEasy to get aroundVery good
- A hire car with clearance, the distances are short but the roads are slowGetting aroundFast trains, genuinely excellent, book in advance
- September and October on the Caribbean side, the wettest weeks of the yearWhen to avoidThe middle of August, when the cities empty and half the good places shut
Pick by what you want
🇨🇷 Choose Costa Rica if
you want wildlife above everything else, cloud forest and two oceans in one small country, and you accept it costs more than its neighbours.
🇮🇹 Choose Italy if
you want three cities in ten days, you care about food and museums, and you would rather take a train than a ferry.
Full Costa Rica guide →Full Italy guide →
And what the world thinks
Dead even. The next vote breaks the tie.
Compare something else
Written and checked by hand. Nothing here about visas or entry rules: those change often and depend on your passport, so check an official source.