In this Daily: Renting the Mirai, Town’s Hydrogen Car from Toyota
A few weeks back, the first Toyota Mirai arrived in town, a hydrogen-powered car made possible in Las Catalinas through partnership with Ad Astra Aerospace, Relaxury, and Purdy Motor. It’s the first hydrogen car launched in all of Central America, and now it’s available to rent and drive directly from Central, which is a big step for electric mobility and sustainable transport in town.
More than just tapping into a new type of fuel, the advent of hydrogen cars in Costa Rica is a big step forward for the country’s aim to become carbon neutral by 2050. One of the world’s leaders in sustainable electric production, many stakeholders in Costa Rica have begun to tackle the next big challenge for carbon neutrality: transport. A large portion of the country’s hydrocarbons come from vehicles on the road, so a shift to electric mobility would represent a significant opportunity.
This is where Ad Astra Aerospace has begun to make strides. Originally working with hydrogen energy storage to help alleviate slow-downs in grid power (for when the sun is not out, or the wind is not blowing), Ad Astra saw the opportunity to help bring hydrogen transport to Costa Rica. First, they debuted a hydrogen powered bus as a test case, and over the next few years increased their infrastructure to handle consumer use. Now, with their hydrogen ecosystem and the Mirai, the state of the art hydrogen car from Toyota, consumer use of hydrogen cars is a reality.
To learn more about the Mirai, it’s development, and what that means for Las Catalinas, check out the launch page here.
For a project that represents the culmination of years of work from some of the top minds in sustainable transport, renting the Toyota Mirai in Las Catalinas is exceptionally simple. Every day of the week, homeowners, Santarena guests, and visitors to Las Catalinas can contact concierge and request availability for the car.
If the Mirai is available, all you have to do is pick a timeframe to rent, grab the keys from the front desk, and drive. The car is an automatic, travels smoothly and quietly like any electric car, and has an exceptional range.
Right now, the car can be rented in 6 hour periods for a $50 flat rate, perfect for a short trip anywhere in the surrounding areas. Next time you head down to Grande to surf, visit the mangroves of Las Baulas with ConnectOcean, or visit Tamarindo to stop by the farmer’s market, you can do it emission free.