Costa Rica Tourism and Retirement Guide
Travel
Costa Rica is a great country to travel in. Most of the year you can get by without making reservations due to the abundance of hotel rooms. So, if you want to make up your travel plans as you go, this is the place. Travel times will usually be longer than you expect due to either bad roads or slow traffic on two-lane roads. Count on taking twice as long as it would take for a similar distance in the US. Avoid the Easter week. It is the week when most locals go on vacation. All the hotels and beaches will be packed. Also, check out the safety page.
before you go to Costa Rica
Send yourself an e-mail with all your important information such as: passport number, prescriptions, addresses and telephone numbers. This way, if you happen to lose your belongings, you won't be helpless. All you would need to do is go on-line and recover the data.
documents
If you can leave your passport in a hotel safe when making day trips I recommend only carrying copies of the relevant pages of the passport, including the page with the stamp. Make copies of other important documents that you carry and keep them separate from the original.
tipping
In Costa Rica tips are included in hotel and restaurant bills. Of course a little extra is still appreciated. Especially in touristy areas the employees are accustomed to receiving tips. Taxi drivers do not expect a tip. Skycaps should be tipped a 100 colons per bag (about $ 0.20). Remember that wages here are much lower than where you come from.
driving
You may use your driver's license from abroad as long as your visa is valid. You are allowed to park on either side of a road so you can park against traffic on the left side.
Also read the Safety Page!
street signs
adelante, go ahead
alto, stop
cede el paso, yield
curva peligrosa, dangerous curve
derrumbes en la vía, rocks in the road
despacio, go slowly
desvío, detour
mantenga la derecha, keep to the right
mantenga la izquierda, keep to the left
no adelantar, no passing
no estacionar, no parking
no hay paso, no through way
no virar a la derecha, no right turn
no virar a la izquierda, no left turn
puente, bridge
trabajos en vía, road work
velocidad máxima, maximum speed
taxis
All official taxis are red and they should have a meter. Unless you set a price before leaving you should insist on using the meter. Taxi fares are very low and they are a good way to get around the country if you decide not to drive yourself. If you have a reservation insist that the driver take you to that hotel even if he says it is full, he may be scamming you to try to take you to another hotel. Taxi fares start at 405 colons and then 380 colons per kilometer. The waiting rate is 2205 colons per hour. In slow traffic the rate is also 3800 colons per hour.
buses
Buses are plentiful and very cheap. For an hour travel you will pay about 500 colons or a dollar. There are no roundtrip tickets. Buy the return ticket after you finish the first leg. If you are at a bus station you buy the ticket and you get a seat assigned. In rural areas buses will stop for you almost anywhere and you usually pay when you get off. More...
rental cars
See the Car Rental Page.
safety
In case of an accident or a breakdown you need to first find the reflective safety triangles and set them up 40 yards back so nobody runs into you. At any time you are outside your car you should lock it. Call the Police at 222-9330. in case of an accident you are not allowed to move the vehicle until the police gives permission. You can also call 911. Afterwards you need to notify the INS (National Insurance) at 800-800-8000. More on the Safety Page.