Driving from San José to Monteverde
Road construction in progress
Driving the gravel mountain road to Monteverde has been an adventure in itself for decades. Access to this popular destination was only possible using a narrow, windy, gravel road, suitable for 4WD vehicles only.
Locals from Monteverde, Santa Elena and other nearby villages have been protesting and putting pressure on the government for a long time. The most meaningful protest happened last year when almost 100 farmers, who own the land on the side of the road, moved their own fences to make room for a wider two lane road.
Well, finally the road construction is in progress!
While this is very good news, it means we’ll have to deal with the delays caused by the construction for many months.
To prevent unexpected delays and to allow travelers to efficiently plan their itineraries, traffic is being regulated in a schedule: the road is closed for two hours, and immediately opened for 20 to 40 minutes. The chart below shows the times when the road is open:
This schedule goes on and on all day from 5 am to 6 pm, and will continue in effect every day, in the upcoming weeks. The road is open during the night.
Here at Morpho Vans we are timing all our private transfers to/from Monteverde and Santa Elena according to the schedule. This might mean you’ll need to start your trip to the airport a bit earlier, or wait for a while before going up the mountain. In either case, we are happy to see the construction progress and look forward to using a better road in the future.
Keep in mind that the road closures are on Route 606 only, and specifically for the section between Guacimal and Santa Elena. The other roads to Monteverde, from Las Juntas and from Rio Chiquito (jeep-boat-jeep), are open normally.
Please contact us by phone or email if you have any questions regarding your transportation to Monteverde
