Orotina Airport: Enhancing Tourism and Creating Incredible Business Opportunities

This past May, the Costa Rica government signed off on a design contract for a new international airport to be developed in Orotina. Located to the west of San Jose, this new airport will provide easier transportation and create incredible business opportunities.

Having an airport in Orotina will certainly give agriculture and tourism a much-needed boost, not to mention the abundance of new business opportunities that it will create in the area west of San Jose. Once the project gets underway, there will be a significant need for workers to expand the infrastructure on the surrounding road. Jobs will open for construction, operation, and more, as well.

With an estimated cost of $5 billion in U.S. dollars, the new Orotina airport will have a positive impact on tourism. With Orotina being so close to beautiful Pacific beaches, the airport will take tourism to a new level.

However, the Orotina International Airport will also affect the agriculture industry. With this airport complete, producers will have the ability to increase exports due to a greater number of direct flights to European countries and because of the larger aircraft.

As part of the project, the Ruta 27 has to be expanded. Between Orotina and San Jose, the road must have a minimum of three lanes in each direction. In addition, the airport will need to be connected to the train. For creating a corridor between Orotina and San Jose, this will be the responsibility of Incofer, the national railway system.

Some aspects of the project remain unclear. One thing has been determined: Expanding the Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO) is not a viable option due to space constraints. The Costa Rican government stated that Mott MacDonald, a British international consulting firm, will handle the preliminary study of the Orotina airport. The cost for the analysis is $1.6 million U.S., and it will cover meteorologist, financial, operational, construction, social, technical, and environmental aspects.

Once the new Orotina International Airport project is complete, it will easily accommodate 10 million travelers every year. The airport will be constructed on 3,000 acres to include three runways capable of handling aircraft as large as a Boeing 747-800 and A380.