SJO - ZRH

$563 Find Cheap Flights from San José to Zurich - Compare and Save

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from San José to Zurich departing on 8/11. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel. Click the price to replicate the search for this deal.
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1 adult, Economy, 0 bags

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Everything you should know

Cheapest round-trip
$871
Typical prices: $843-$1,018
SWISS
Sat 11/7Sat 11/21
SJO - ZRH • Non-stop
Cheapest one-way
$563
Typical prices: $898-$1,138
Multiple Airlines
Tue 8/11
SJO - ZRH • 3 stops
Nonstop flights
Wed, Fri
You can fly direct with Edelweiss Air. Average duration is 10h 55m
Direct flights
Direct flights
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Direct flights
Direct flights
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Top airlines
Cheapest • from $871 (round-trip)
Best reviews • 7.8 score
Airline reviews
Airline reviews
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Airline reviews
Airline reviews
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Top layover airports
Cheapest • Avg $951 (round-trip)
Shortest trip • 14h 22m (one-way)
Insights
Insights
Insights
Insights
Avoid delays
Most punctual • 86% on-time
Best time • Fewest delays
Insights
Insights
Insights
Insights
When to book
in advance
Our data shows that travelers who book at least 5 weeks in advance save around 14% compared to booking last minute.
Insights
Insights
Insights
Insights
When to travel
Cheapest • 12% price drop
Most popular
Good to know
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Flight Deals

Cheap Flights from San José to Zurich (SJO-ZRH)

 
Here are some of the best deals found on KAYAK recently from the most popular airlines for round-trip flights from San José to Zurich that are departing in the next months. While these flights were available on KAYAK in the last 72 hours, prices and availability are subject to change and deals may expire.
Discover the best prices for you by selecting your travel dates on KAYAK.

Recent round-trip flight deals from San José to Zurich

Sat, Nov 7 - Sat, Nov 21
SWISS Logo
5:00 pm - 10:35 am
SJO
-
ZRH
10h 35mnonstop
SWISS Logo
9:55 am - 3:15 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
12h 20mnonstop
$871SWISS
Mon, Nov 2 - Thu, Nov 12
Air France Logo
7:30 pm - 10:30 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
20h 00m
2 stops
Air France Logo
6:30 am - 4:10 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
16h 40m
1 stop
$873Air France
Thu, Oct 15 - Fri, Nov 6
Multiple Airlines Logo
1:23 pm - 4:45 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
19h 22m
2 stops
Multiple Airlines Logo
6:30 am - 4:10 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
16h 40m
1 stop
$875Multiple Airlines
Fri, Sep 18 - Fri, Sep 25
SWISS Logo
3:50 pm - 10:40 am
SJO
-
ZRH
10h 50mnonstop
SWISS Logo
10:10 am - 2:05 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
11h 55mnonstop
$876SWISS
Fri, Oct 30 - Sat, Nov 7
Air France Logo
6:20 pm - 10:30 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
21h 10m
1 stop
Air France Logo
6:50 pm - 4:10 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
28h 20m
1 stop
$878Air France
Mon, Nov 2 - Thu, Nov 12
Air France Logo
7:30 pm - 10:30 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
20h 00m
2 stops
Air France Logo
6:30 am - 4:10 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
16h 40m
1 stop
$879Air France
Fri, Oct 30 - Sat, Nov 7
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:40 pm - 10:25 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
19h 45m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
6:50 pm - 4:10 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
28h 20m
1 stop
$882Multiple Airlines
Tue, Oct 13 - Tue, Oct 27
Multiple Airlines Logo
1:23 pm - 4:45 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
19h 22m
2 stops
Multiple Airlines Logo
6:30 am - 5:30 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
18h 00m
2 stops
$883Multiple Airlines
Sun, Nov 1 - Sun, Nov 15
Multiple Airlines Logo
7:30 pm - 6:25 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
15h 55m
1 stop
Multiple Airlines Logo
6:30 am - 4:10 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
16h 40m
1 stop
$889Multiple Airlines
Sat, Oct 17 - Sat, Oct 24
Air France Logo
7:05 pm - 10:25 pm
SJO
-
ZRH
19h 20m
1 stop
Air France Logo
7:40 am - 5:00 pm
ZRH
-
SJO
17h 20m
1 stop
$890Air France
Booking Insights

KAYAK's insights & trends for San José to Zurich flights

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from San José to Zurich to help you find the cheapest flights, the best time to fly and much more.

How much is a round-trip flight from San José to Zurich?

This analysis is based on the cheapest round-trip price found on KAYAK in the last 12 months by searching for a flight from San José to Zurich departing in November.

What’s the cheapest day of the week to fly from San José to Zurich?

The average price of all round-trip flights from San José to Zurich clicked on KAYAK for each day over the last 12 months.

Your flight ticket price will generally be cheaper if you fly to Zurich on a Wednesday and more expensive on a Saturday. On your return trip to San José, you should consider flying back on a Friday, and avoid Sundays for better deals.

What is the cheapest month to fly from San José to Zurich?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for round-trip flights from San José to Zurich, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the median of all values for each month.

The cheapest month for flights from San José to Zurich is October, where tickets cost $904 (return) on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are December and August, where the average cost of round-trip tickets is $1,184 and $1,146 respectively.

Can I save money by flying with a layover from San José to Zurich?

The average round-trip price for all non-stop flights, flights with one layover, and flights with two layovers for the route found by users searching on KAYAK in the last 2 weeks.

Yes, flying with a layover may cost you more time, but you can also save money on the route, with a 2 stops layover the cheapest option at $992 on average.

How far in advance should I book a flight from San José to Zurich?

To calculate weekly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each week before departure over the last year for round-trip flights from San José to Zurich, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the average of all the values for each week.

To get a below average price on the flight from San José to Zurich, you should book around 5 weeks before departure, which saves you about 14% compared to booking last minute. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 8 weeks before departure.

Expert advice

Expert advice for your flight from San José to Zurich

 
AI-powered summary based on content written by travel experts. AI can make mistakes.
KAYAK teamed up with top travel experts to share the best tips for your journey.
Our travel experts
Emily Zemler

Emily Zemler

Expert on ZRH

Emily is a freelance writer and book author based in London covering entertainment and travel. Her work has appeared in Los Angeles Times, Observer, and Conde Nast Traveler She has ventured to more than 40 countries and all seven continents, always in search of a great art museum. She has written extensively about hotels, luxury travel, and aviation.

Mark Chesnut

Mark Chesnut

Expert on SJO

Mark Chesnut is a travel writer and public speaker with more than 30 years of experience. The 2019 winner of the NLGJA Excellence in Travel Writing Award, Mark is the author of the book “Prepare for Departure” and has covered air travel for multiple top consumer and trade media outlets.

Good to know

Low season

January

Cheapest flight

$563
Best time to beat the crowds but there is an average 4% increase in price.
Most popular time to fly and prices are also 3% lower on average.
Flight from San José to Zurich

When to book flights from San José to Zurich

Are your dates flexible? Find out the best times to travel from San José to Zurich based on our flight data from the last year. Discover the cheapest month and even day to fly.
Estimated round-trip price
KAYAK looks at all historical flight data for each date to provide a predicted price for one-way trips or round-trips with a duration up to 40 days. While we try to provide actual minimum prices for each date, some prices are predictions and actual prices may differ.

FAQs for booking flights from San José to Zurich

  • How many flights are there between San José and Zurich per day?

    There is a maximum of 1 nonstop flight a day that takes off from San José and lands in Zurich, with an average flight time of 10h 55m. The most common departure time is 3:00 pm and most flights take off in the afternoon. Each week, there are 2 flights.

  • What is the cheapest flight from San José to Zurich?

    In the last 5 days, the lowest price for a flight from San José to Zurich was $563 for a one-way ticket and $871 for a round-trip.

  • Do I need a passport to fly between San José and Zurich?

    A passport is required to fly from San José to Zurich.

  • Which airports will I be using when flying from San José to Zurich?

    On your way to Zurich, you’ll fly out from San José Juan Santamaria Intl. You’ll be landing at Zurich.

  • Which airlines offer Wi-Fi service onboard planes from San José to Zurich?

    Iberia, SWISS, United Airlines, Lufthansa, and Air France offer inflight Wi-Fi service on the San José to Zurich flight route.

  • Which aircraft models fly most regularly from San José to Zurich?

    The Airbus A350-900 is the aircraft model that flies most regularly on the San José to Zurich flight route.

  • Which airline alliances offer flights from San José to Zurich?

    SkyTeam, and Star Alliance are the airline alliances operating flights between San José and Zurich, with SkyTeam being the most commonly used for this route.

  • On which days can I fly direct from San José to Zurich?

    You can catch a nonstop flight from San José to Zurich on on Wednesday, and Friday.

  • Which is the best airline for flights from San José to Zurich, KLM or SWISS?

    The two airlines most popular with KAYAK users for flights from San José to Zurich are KLM and SWISS. With an average price for the route of $853 and an overall rating of 7.8, KLM is the most popular choice. SWISS is also a great choice for the route, with an average price of $1,016 and an overall rating of 7.5.

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from San José to Zurich?

    KAYAK is a travel search engine. That means we look across the web to find the best prices we can find for our users. With over 2 billion flight queries processed yearly, we are able to display a variety of prices and options on flights from San José to Zurich.

  • How does KAYAK's flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy my flight ticket from San José to Zurich?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to Zurich from San José is likely to change within 7 days, so travelers know whether to wait or book now.

  • What is the Hacker Fare option on flights from San José to Zurich?

    Hacker Fares allow you to combine one-way tickets in order to save you money over a traditional round-trip ticket. You could then fly to Zurich with an airline and back to San José with another airline. Booking your flights between San José and ZRH can sometimes prove cheaper using this method.

  • What is KAYAK's "flexible dates" feature and why should I care when looking for a flight from San José to Zurich?

    Sometimes travel dates aren't set in stone. If your preferred travel dates have some wiggle room, flexible dates will show you all the options when flying to Zurich from San José up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

KAYAK’s top tips for finding a cheap flight from San José to Zurich

  • Looking for a cheap flight? 25% of our users found flights on this route for $992 or less round-trip.

Prefer to fly direct from San José to Zurich?

 
Direct data is based off flight results for the next 60 days. Find direct flights from all airlines flying direct from San José Juan Santamaria Intl to Zurich.
Find which airlines fly direct from San José Juan Santamaria Intl Airport to Zurich Airport, which days they fly and book direct flights.

Direct departures

San José Juan Santamaria Intl to Zurich

Wednesday

Edelweiss Air

Edelweiss Air

Friday

Edelweiss Air

Edelweiss Air

See more direct flights

Direct returns

Zurich to San José Juan Santamaria Intl

Wednesday

Edelweiss Air

Edelweiss Air

Friday

Edelweiss Air

Edelweiss Air

Sunday

Edelweiss Air

Edelweiss Air

See more direct flights

Reviews of the top 5 airlines serving from San José to Zurich

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from San José to Zurich. Airline scores are aggregated from all reviews left by passengers on KAYAK after flying with an airline. KAYAK doesn’t show reviews that are older than 5 years. Learn how KAYAK collects reviews.
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from San José to Zurich? KAYAK airline reviews give an overall score for each airline based on loads of factors, including comfort, boarding, in-flight entertainment and more, to make your decision easier. See airline scores according to verified KAYAK customer reviews.
7.8
KLMOverall score based on 1544 reviews
7.3Food
7.8Boarding
7.7Comfort
8.4Crew
7.2Entertainment
Airline reviews

The flight was 45 mins late leaving, we sat without a/c for some of this, 2nd Meal was a slice of pizza. Movies were good.

8.0 ExcellentAnonymous, Jun 2026
LHR - AMS
Read more KLM reviews

The flight was 45 mins late leaving, we sat without a/c for some of this, 2nd Meal was a slice of pizza. Movies were good.

Crew is not the cheerful type. very slow meal service (this is their style as have flown this many times)

Our first flight was delayed so we missed our connecting flight. However it was easy to book a later flight on their app.

My flight was delayed by 6 hours then I missed BOTH of my connecting flights, I then had to stay in the AIRPORT at JFK because soooooo many people also suffered from missing flights and there was no hotels available. I would like to be compensated for this experience! I had to stay in the airport for over 16 hours!

This fight left ahead of time which meant it arrived early which was great. Staff were very professional, but as with all these Short hop Flights the food was a disappointing snack There was no entertainment on this flight, but I did not expect any

I tried to upgrade to premium economy anis seat online during the checkin process. The payment didn’t work due to a technical glitch on KLM’s website. I wasn’t able to change my seat unless I called Amsterdam. Since I was in Canada and there’s a time difference this wasn’t practical. So when I arrived early to Ottawa airport my seat wasn’t available and I could only get a middle seat in premium economy which isn’t great. These middle seats are priced at the same rate as an aisle seat which makes no sense.

It was nice to be on a legacy airline, people try at least.

I requested wheel chair assistance , it was confirmed via email that inwoood get it but I didn’t get it . The last leg of my trip to Nigeria was the worst.

The boarding was one of the worst I’ve ever experienced. The fault lays on Ohare Airport and not so much the airline. The waiting area by the gate was the size to accommodate a regional flight for 20-30 people and right next to a busy walkway. When you cramped nearly 300 passengers into that space is was unbearable.

All and all pretty good. It’s crowded but that is what flying is all about. But no complaints otherwise.

Swiss messed up a Geneva-Zurich flight on a day with perfect weather. Then they didn’t even let people with almost no time to catch connections disembark first. Finally, luggage missed the connection of course and it took almost 24 hours for it to be delivered. We lost a whole day of vacation stuck in the hotel waiting for it.

I am submitting this complaint regarding the way our reservation was handled and the significant financial and personal hardship it caused. The airline changed the departure time of our original flight, making it impossible for us to make our connecting flight. This was not caused by any action on our part. After the schedule change, we spent considerable time working with both the airline and the travel company to find a reasonable alternative itinerary. Unfortunately, no meaningful assistance was provided. Instead of accommodating us on another suitable routing, we were repeatedly told that our only option was to accept a refund. This was not a reasonable solution. We had purchased these tickets months in advance, and by the time the airline canceled our itinerary, airfare had increased dramatically. Because we had no workable alternative, we were forced to purchase completely new tickets with a different airline on a different route. The replacement tickets cost us approximately $2,000 more than our original reservation. In addition to the unexpected expense, the new itinerary was longer, less convenient, and caused us to lose an entire week of planned family visits. The financial loss, disruption to our travel plans, and countless hours spent trying to resolve this matter created an extremely stressful and disappointing experience. Throughout the process, we felt that the airline simply tried to push us toward accepting a refund rather than taking responsibility for the consequences of the schedule change or making a genuine effort to accommodate us. We respectfully request that this matter be reviewed and that the airline provide appropriate compensation for the substantial additional costs and losses we incurred as a direct result of the schedule change and the lack of reasonable assistance.

The food could have been better but everything else was superb.

The premium economy seat was the wurst one I have ever experienced

Terrible airline both Swiss and Lufthansa that are part of the same corp. stay away if you can

Super friendly crew, good communication. I wasn’t expecting food on a short flight but they handed out a cheese sandwich on pretzel bun, very nice!

3hr delay and then missed connecting flight with another 6hr wait at the airport before getting a continuation to my trip, worst trip ever in my 50+years of flight travel

Without a doubt, my “customer service” experience with SWISS was the worst of my life. Multiple disconnections in conversations, very cold and indifferent staff, failure to follow up with promised status updates — simply put, T. H. E. W. O. R. S. T. A full week later, and I am STILL waiting to hear from them. Never again for me with SWISS. Disgraceful.

One would expect far better service and quality of seats from Swiss. The crew was super cold at best. My wife and I are both Star Alliance gold members and none of them even bothered to come and acknowledge our status and make us feel special. Seat is in need of a major overhaul. It’s simply outdated and the TV screen is far too small. Food and drinks selection was very sub par.

The flight and all amenities were good to excellent. SWISS was awful to deal with. Every step of the way they nickel and dime you. Chose your seats? $14. Change your seats… No accounting for the prior payment. You get billed again. 17 pound restriction on overhead luggage, nonsense. It’s a weight in the plane whether it’s in the overhead or in check baggage. They just milk you for every cent they can and I resent it. The flight was excellent.

Air France removed our luggage from the plane before it took off, seemingly intentionally, didn't notify us until after we reported it missing at SFO, and is giving us no updates on when, or whether, they will deliver it.

Not consistent with the food quality (I mean taste not freshness)

Our flight crew were terrific. And they handle a difficult passenger with finesse.

Wasted a lot of time trying to find the CDG lounge - it was not next to the connecting flight gate like the Air France staff said.

A disaster. Air France is a real joke. They overcharge us customers for absolutely nothing. Service was very poor, food was mediocre, entertainment non existent, etc. We paid thousands of dollars for our business class tickets and then we were told in Paris we could not access its lounge. Really Air France ? Congratulations on irritating your customers to the sky high level and ensuring we will do everything in our power to discourage others to travel with you.

My only issue was my meal was inedible except for the sides.

worst experience ever i choose my seat in advance and also have my seat selected in my boarding and the they told me that my seat has been changed without notify me

We transited through Chad and what was supposed to be a 1hr 20 minutes transit time lasted over 4hrs. We didn't get regular updates until we complained. After a 10hr flight from Paris no form of refreshment given and finally arrived Abuja over 6hrs later and none of my bags came

The crew was great and handled our unexpected detour with proactive communication.

The hard product, food, and service are far superior to their North American counterparts

Very Bad experience with Swiss, they robbed me for additional baggage and misguided. The flight was delayed for 2hr 55 minutes, screens were not functional and food was also bad.

Great entertainment choices. The crew was extremely kind and accommodating. My remote control did not work. Too little space between seats. Arm rests only go up a few inches making less comfortable.

Flight was delayed 24 hours, then delayed again first was mechanical and second was weather.

Regarding the onboard entertainment system: the dual audio jack plug is not compatible with a standard jack. I had to listen to the audio in one ear for the whole flight. The airline should hand out adapters. The touchscreen was flaky, sometimes it reacted to touching it, sometimes it didn't.

The flight was cancelled and the flight they booked me on in lieu of was repeatedly delayed, meaning my arrival time was delayed from about 8:30 pm until after midnight. The airline offered little explanation and no recompense for this 4-hour delay.

Baggage transfer process was not done properly between Air Canada flight and Swiss Airlines.

There was a problem with air condition during flight to Toronto. We together with other passengers complained abou it, but crew werent able to solve that. My wife got sick after this flight…..

For some reason I along with a few other passengers were not assigned seat at the time of check-in. They kept us waiting for long time until the plane was boarded. Besides the check-in agent wasn't aware of carry on baggage policy of Air Canada and forced me to reduce the weight of carry on bag by throwing away some of my stuff even though the carry on bag size was within limits of the Air Canada specifications.

The check in to receive my pass in Vancouver was a breeze very pleased The flight crew on the other hand I think half of them wished they were somewhere else

It took 2.5 hrs wait time to get wheelchair, even then had to walk to the gate due to bad planning. The flight was delayed 2 hrs making me miss the connecting flight in Zurich. Was told I’d fly to Frankfurt to catch another connection but ultimately was sent to London and then on to Delhi because YYZ was just disorganized. Never flying air canada again. The crew was unhelpful, irritated, just bad hospitality.

Good and they are leaving at time and arriving on time

Cancelled - booked on train; and then flights started running! I spent 5 hours with 2 changes on train while flights started and is 50 min

Boarding arrangement at Frankfurt was terribly managed with no proper guidance and the flight was parked far away from the gate. In flight entertainment device (touch screen) was not working at all throughout the flight. And on top of all this two of the checked in bags were found to be missing when we landed at Chennai. All this mismanagement at a very high fare of about $2300 per ticket is unacceptable.

I’m glad the bus waited for me to connect me to my next flight since we were delayed. Flight was good.

For such long flight we were expecting more comfortable seat , which were to close to each other , the backrest we could only lean a few inches to the back and you really couldn't stretch your legs.

More legroom (I am 6’4”) and my knees were in the back of the seat in front of me. Food was laughable

The flight was cancel and then changed the gate 3 times and nobody communicated to that change I don’t take any trips whit that company

More than 40 minutes of delay, the crew even didn’t apologize or explain the reason why we are late, no service for a short flight

The layover in Frankfurt is not enough time to make it to the connection. Frankfurt security is understaffed and despite Lufthansa being aware of this, they offer the connecting flight, which is impossible to make. Lufthansa did not pay for hotel or food despite booking me with an unreasonable amount of time between a flight that wasn’t even delayed.

The chairs are terrible on the plane, even though they are economy class the chair cushion should still be there, its a long flight its like sitting on a piece of wood.

Everything you need to know for your flight from San José to Zurich

Information on your arrival and departure airports