By Car!

You can either drive Route 2 via Cartago over the old "Cerro de la Muerte" route, through the cloud forests of the Talamanca Mountains to San Isidro de General and down to Dominical. (about 4.5 hours) Take a sweatshirt, it gets chilly!
- or -
you can take the newly completed, speedier toll road, the Caldera Expressway to the coastal highway, through Jaco, Quepos and past the town of Hacienda Baru. Watch for the crocodiles under the bridge over the river Tarcoles! (about 3 hours)

Either way, an SUV is mandatory, and roads can be subject to closings, especially in the "green" or rainy season, so ask before you go. If you do not know your way around, a GPS is recommended because signage is virtually non-existent in areas --and it's usually the critical ones!

By Air!

If driving is not your thing, there are two regional airlines to choose from -

Sansa Airlines + (506) 2290-4100 www.flysansa.com

Nature Air Toll Free USA/Canada (800)235-9272 Reservations +(506) 2299-6000 www.natureair.com

Quepos is the closest regional airstrip, about 30 minutes north of Dominical, or else Palmar Sur to the south is about 1 hour away. Both are a straight shot to Dominical on a beautifully paved, flat road along the Pacific, highway 34, the Costanera Sur.

By Bus!

Roll with the Surf Bus! [schedules]

Route 1: Via San Isidro

Bus is available from downtown San Jose to San Isidro. Once in San Isidro del General you have to take another bus to Dominical (Transportes Blanco, Tel.: 771 2550). The terminal for Dominical is located 500 mts south of the MUSOC terminal in San Isidro. You must travel from San Jose to San Isidro on the morning bus in order to catch the afternoon bus to Dominical. Otherwise, you'd have to spend the night in San Isidro. This route is more comfortable than traveling the coast from San Jose to Dominical by bus. Another option is taking a taxi to Dominical from San Isidro ($40 U.S.).

Route 2: Jaco

This bus passes close to the following beaches: Playa Jaco, Playa Hermosa, Playa Esterillos, Playa Mata Palo and Quepos. It is a long trip over bad roads. Also you can go through San Isidro del General and from there take a bus to Dominical.