🇪🇸 Spain or 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Which one, honestly
Spain leads on cities, food and value for money. Costa Rica leads on nature.
A normal day costs about $145 in Spain and $130 in Costa Rica.
Side by side
- 🇪🇸 Spain🇨🇷 Costa Rica
- Apr, May, Sep, OctBest monthsJan, Feb, Mar, Dec
- $145A normal day$130
- 7h 45m to MadridNonstop from New York5h 15m to San Jose
- Very goodBeaches and seaVery good
- ExceptionalCities and cultureNot the draw
- ExceptionalFoodGood
- Very goodNature and hikingExceptional
- Very goodValue for moneyNot the draw
- Very goodEasy to get aroundGood
- Fast trains between the big cities, a car for the northGetting aroundA hire car with clearance, the distances are short but the roads are slow
- The southern cities in July and AugustWhen to avoidSeptember and October on the Caribbean side, the wettest weeks of the year
Pick by what you want
🇪🇸 Choose Spain if
you want cities, food and beaches in the same trip without choosing between them.
🇨🇷 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.
Full Spain guide →Full Costa Rica 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.