Tourism is the main economic activity for Costa Rica, we are in the middle of the high season and having a lot of traffic in the airports is a good thing, or at least one would think that, except that for the past few months many tourists have entered or left the country with the bad experience of having to wait in line for a very long time at the Juan Santamaria Airport.

The posts on different social networks are constant, frustrated passengers posting photos or videos of the long lines they’ve encountered. Costa Rican journalist and former anchor for Spanish CNN, Glenda Umañam was one of these countless travelers that have shared their bad experience on social media, so was former US Ambassador to Costa Rica Stafford Fitzgerald Haney, who reported standing in line for over 1 hour.

“An example of the challenges that Costa Rica faces, resources for Migration and Customs; I have been in line for customs for an hour. Those of us who live here know that this is not the case every day, but for tourists who are arriving for the first time this is a shame. (And yes, I have waited in line for 1.5 hours in the US but never in Costa Rica)”, commented Haney through Twitter.

Costa Rican singer Tapón also shared his experience: “Many people come with kids as do I, and they don’t take measures knowing that several flights arrive at the same time, and they have very few people working here, I am very upset, I am embarrassed with the tourists that arrive at this time (…), there are four desks and only one is working”.

The problem is seen in the migration lines, customs, and of in the baggage carrousels. The explanation on the long lines, is usually the same, several flights arriving at the same time, causing as many as 1,143 passengers to crowd the terminal.

In the past few months, the new digital migration service was causing problems for passengers leaving the country, but the issues have now been controlled by opening new counters to satisfy the demand.

Heavy traffic hours are: 9 a.m. through 10 a.m., from 11 a.m. through 1 p.m. and from 3:50 p.m. to 4:40 p.m.
An increase on the number of direct flights to the country, is also contributing to higher traffic.

In an interview with national newspaper La Nacion, Roy Chacon, customs manager, said that they have made an effort to provide an efficient service, but they only have 10 people working in this area which makes it difficult to maintain 4 counters open all the time during the three existing shifts, they are seeking approval to hire five more people.

The Juan Santamaria Airport has made an important investment in expanding the waiting rooms, new ramps and a domestic terminal.