🇯🇵 Japan or 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Which one, honestly
Japan leads on cities, food and getting around. Costa Rica leads on the sea.
A normal day costs about $165 in Japan and $130 in Costa Rica.
Side by side
- 🇯🇵 Japan🇨🇷 Costa Rica
- Mar, Apr, May, Oct, NovBest monthsJan, Feb, Mar, Dec
- $165A normal day$130
- 14h to TokyoNonstop from New York5h 15m to San Jose
- Not the drawBeaches and seaVery good
- ExceptionalCities and cultureNot the draw
- ExceptionalFoodGood
- ExceptionalNature and hikingExceptional
- GoodValue for moneyNot the draw
- ExceptionalEasy to get aroundGood
- The best rail network in the world, buy the pass before you arriveGetting aroundA hire car with clearance, the distances are short but the roads are slow
- Golden Week in early May, when the whole country travels at onceWhen to avoidSeptember and October on the Caribbean side, the wettest weeks of the year
Pick by what you want
🇯🇵 Choose Japan if
you want somewhere that feels genuinely different, you like cities and food, and you want everything to work perfectly.
🇨🇷 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 Japan 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.