Airport guide
Juan Santamaria International AirportIATA code SJO
Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO/MROC) is the primary air passenger gateway serving San Jose, Costa Rica in North America. The airfield connects travelers with essential regional transit routes and operating carrier options.
- Serves
- San Jose, Costa Rica
- Codes
- SJO · MROC
- IATA · ICAO
- Time zone
- America/Costa_Rica
- Region
- North America
Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO/MROC) is the primary air passenger gateway serving San Jose, Costa Rica in North America. Operating on America/Costa_Rica local time at coordinates 10.000°, -84.200°, the airfield functions as an active commercial transit hub for scheduled regional and international flights. Travelers navigating Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO) are encouraged to confirm terminal layouts, ground transport connections into San Jose, and flight schedules with their operating carrier prior to travel.
Juan Santamaria International Airport details
- IATA code
- SJO
- ICAO code
- MROC
- City
- San Jose
- Country
- Costa Rica
- Region
- North America
- Time zone
- America/Costa_Rica
- Coordinates
- 9.994°, -84.209°
- From OurAirports
Codes, region and time zone come from the Originfacts airport record (last updated 10 Jul 2026). Fields marked otherwise come from the dataset named on them. None are verified by hand against Juan Santamaria International Airport’s own pages.
SJO airport facts
- Size class
- Large airport
- From OurAirports (5 Oct 2026); OurAirports’ own classification
- Elevation
- 921 m (3,021 ft)
- From OurAirports (5 Oct 2026)
- Passengers, 2021
- 3.06 million
- Per Wikidata (opens in a new tab) (retrieved 5 Oct 2026), citing sjoairport.com (opens in a new tab)
- Nearest airport with scheduled flights
- Tobías Bolaños International Airport SYQ · 9 km
- OurAirports scheduled-service flag; straight-line distance calculated
Runways at SJO
Source: OurAirports (opens in a new tab) runways data (public domain), retrieved 5 Oct 2026. Not an aeronautical source — not for navigation.
One open runway, lit. The runway 07/25: 3,012 m, asphalt.
| Runway | Length | Width | Surface | Lighting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 07/25 | 3,012 m9,882 ft | 46 m | asphalt | Lit |
Routes from SJO
Originfacts does not track any routes from SJO yet, so no route records are listed here. Check current schedules with the airlines or the airport’s own site.
Airlines with a hub at SJO
Per Wikidata (opens in a new tab) (retrieved 5 Oct 2026): airlines whose “airline hub” property names SJO, with no end date and not recorded as dissolved. Community-edited; hubs change.
Where SJO is
16 km west-northwest
Juan Santamaria International Airport lies 16 km west-northwest of San José city centre in a straight line. Road distance is longer; transport options are not yet verified (see terminals and transport below).
Calculated from the airport coordinates (OurAirports) and the Wikidata (opens in a new tab) city-centre point.
Terminals, transport and parking at SJO
Terminal assignments, ground transport into San Jose, parking, lounges and accessibility services have not been verified against Juan Santamaria International Airport’s own pages yet, so none are listed here.
Check directly:sjoairport.com (opens in a new tab)Map of the airport location (opens in a new tab)
Before you travel
- Confirm your terminal with the operating airline.
- Check the check-in and bag-drop cut-off times on your booking.
- Allow extra time if you need to change terminals or check bags in again.
- Check your flight status before you leave for the airport.
Airports near San Jose
Straight-line distances calculated from each airport’s coordinates in the Originfacts airport records. Road distances are longer.
- FortunaFortuna AirportFON54 km
- QueposQuepos AirportXQP63 km
- San Isidro de El GeneralPerez ZeledonIPZ90 km
- TamborTambor AirportTMU95 km
- LimonLimon International AirportLIO129 km
- Drake BayDrake BayDRK155 km
- Nosara BeachNosara BeachNOB159 km
- LiberiaLiberia AirportLIR161 km
- Puerto JimenezPuerto JimenezPJM185 km
Juan Santamaria International Airport: common questions
Where is Juan Santamaria International Airport?
Juan Santamaria International Airport serves San Jose, Costa Rica. Its coordinates in OurAirports are 9.994°, -84.209°.
What are the airport codes for Juan Santamaria International Airport?
The IATA code is SJO and the ICAO code is MROC.
What time zone is SJO in?
Juan Santamaria International Airport is in the America/Costa_Rica time zone.
What is the official website of Juan Santamaria International Airport?
The airport’s official website is sjoairport.com. For questions about a booking, contact the operating airline.
How many runways does Juan Santamaria International Airport have?
OurAirports lists one open runway at SJO: 07/25 (3,012 m (9,882 ft), asphalt).
When did Juan Santamaria International Airport open?
Wikidata gives 1958 as its official opening date.
How many passengers use Juan Santamaria International Airport?
Wikidata records 3.06 million passengers for 2021, the latest year it holds.
Which airlines have a hub at SJO?
Wikidata lists SJO as a hub of Avianca Costa Rica, Avianca El Salvador, Nature Air and SANSA.
How far is SJO from San José city centre?
Juan Santamaria International Airport is about 16 km west-northwest of San José city centre in a straight line, calculated from coordinates. The distance by road is longer.
What is the elevation of Juan Santamaria International Airport?
OurAirports gives SJO’s elevation as 921 m (3,021 ft) above sea level.
Sources
Nothing on this page is verified by hand yet. Each section comes from the dataset below, with its date where the dataset has one. Terminal, transport and parking details are left out until they can be read from Juan Santamaria International Airport’s own pages.
- Codes, location, time zoneOriginfacts airport record10 Jul 2026
- Official websiteWikidata record (official website property) (opens in a new tab)5 Oct 2026
- Coordinates, runways, type, elevationOurAirports (opens in a new tab) — public domain5 Oct 2026
- Opening, operator, passengers, hubsWikidata item Q555940 (opens in a new tab) — CC05 Oct 2026
- Distance to city centreCalculated from airport coordinates and the Wikidata (opens in a new tab) city-centre point—
- Nearby airportsCalculated from airport coordinates—
- Terminals and transportNot yet verified—
Background reading:Wikipedia (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)