About Costa Rica

A country full of beaches, active volcanoes and tropical jungles with a great variety of animals and vegetation, invites you to enjoy the adventures combined with activities like whitewater rafting, horseback riding, swimming in the Pacific Ocean as well as in the Caribbean Sea.

Bring your spirit of discovery and let yourself experience the warmth of Costa Rican hospitality, the spontaneous smiles of our people and our genuine desire to make you feel welcome wherever you go. Costa Rica is the country of peace that had the vision to preserve its rich natural heritage in a system of national parks, wildlife refuges and private reserves that covers more than a quarter of its territory.

Costa Rica has a national territory half the size of the state of Virginia and more than a dozen volcanoes, millions protected acres of National Parks, Biological Reserves and sanctuaries, countless streams and rivers and 755 miles of coastline stretched along the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean.

A symbiosis of adequate facilities, immersed in the city or surrounded by beaches and natural wonders, will make it easier for you and your work team to carry out your meetings with a surprising performance. You may also consider it as a destination for congresses, seminars and lectures. The comfortable access by air to the main convention centers, lodging service adapted to every budget, and the political stability and security that distinguish it, are factors when considering alternatives.

Add to this the tropical environment, and this destination will become more attractive. Your guests or relatives may join you, and enjoy the rain forests, volcanoes, rivers, beaches and endless natural beauties full of adventures.

Necessary elements for today’s business are telecommunications and technological equipment. In this sense, Costa Rica counts with one of the most advanced telecommunications’ systems in Latin America, and cutting edge technology. You will always have at hand the necessary facilities to see that business ends successfully, giving your negotiations that sense of ease that only counting with the adequate tools for development of your affairs will bring.

Profit from the options offered within the city. These come along with “tico” cordiality and fraternity, as well as the richness of a country cultivating high social and cultural values.

Tourist information

Costa Rica Dream Travel Corporation has organized since 1998 adventure and ecological trips for individuals, couples, groups, families and seniors. Combining their interests with our elements of biodiversity and culture, making each trip an authentic Costa Rican first class experience.

As a DMC, Costa Rica Dream Travel Corporation can organize special offers for the participants of the event as pre and post event activities.   These offers can include lodging at different sites in Costa Rica, as well as tours operate from San Jose.   During your tour, a bilingual English Speaking tour guide will assist you with the information of the program.

Airports

Costa Rica has two international airports. Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) is the country's main airport. It's about 24 km (15 mi), or 30 minutes by car, north of downtown San José, just outside the city of Alajuela.  Daniel Oduber International Airport (LIR) is the second airport in importance in Costa Rica, and is the main hub for all the destinations in the North Pacific Coast.  Please note that all the flights for your program are arriving and departing from Juan Santamaria International Airport.

Electricity

North American appliances are compatible with Costa Rica's electrical system (110 volts) and outlets (parallel two-prong). Most laptops operate equally well on 110 and 220 volts and so require only an adapter, but you should bring a surge protector for your computer. Never use an outlet that specifically warns against using higher-voltage appliances without a transformer. Dual-voltage appliances (which are usually designed especially for travel) need only a two-prong adapter.

Health

Malaria is not a problem in Costa Rica.
Government facilities -- the so-called "Caja" hospitals (short for Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social, or Costa Rican Social Security System) -- and clinics are of acceptable quality. Private hospitals are more accustomed to serving foreigners. They include Hospital CIMA, Clínica Bíblica, and Clínica Católica, which all have 24-hour pharmacies. The long-established and ubiquitous Fischel pharmacies are great places for your prescription needs. Antibiotics and psychotropic medications (for sleep, anxiety, or pain) require prescriptions in Costa Rica.

Food & Drink

Most food and water is sanitary in Costa Rica.  Although it may not be necessary, you can stay on the safe side by avoiding uncooked food, unpasteurized milk (including milk products), and ice -- ask for drinks sin hielo (without ice) -- and by drinking bottled water. Drink plenty of purified water or tea; chamomile (manzanilla in Spanish) is a good folk remedy.
Vegetarian meals are available if requested, but other specialty meal requests may be able to be provided if it is informed previously, however it will be guarantee according to availability.  Specialty meals will be available according to the facilities of each destination and may be not always available.  
Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages are not included on the program.

Shots & Medications

Most travelers to Costa Rica do not get any vaccinations or take any special medications. Check with the CDC for detailed health advisories and recommended vaccinations

Internet

Internet services are available almost everywhere in the Country.  Some hotels offers wireless internet access as complimentary, and other hotels will have an extra charge for it.

Currency

In general, Costa Rica is cheaper than North America or Europe. The Costa Rican currency is called Colon (¢). US dollars and major credit cards are widely accepted.  Actually, the currency Exchange value is $ 1.- (one US dollar) for ¢ 570.- (five hundred and eighty colones).

Taxes

All Costa Rican businesses charge a 13% sales tax. Restaurants add 13% tax and 10% service fee to meals. Tourists are not refunded for taxes paid in Costa Rica. Departure tax is $26, can be paid in US Dollars, Colones or with a credit card.

Tipping

Costa Rica doesn't have a tipping culture, but positive reinforcement goes a long way to fostering a culture of good service, which is hit and miss. Tip only for good service. Taxi drivers aren't tipped, but it's common courtesy to leave an extra 200-300 colones if they've helped you navigate a complicated set of directions. Do not use U.S. coins to tip, because there is no way for locals to exchange them.

Chambermaids get 1,000-1,500 colones per day; for great service try to leave up to 10% of your room bill. Concierges are usually not tipped. Room-service waiters should be tipped about 500 colones, as should bellhops (more in the most expensive hotels).

Restaurant bills include a 13% tax and 10% service charge -- sometimes these amounts are included in prices on the menu, and sometimes they aren't. If the menu doesn't indicate whether service is included, ask. An additional gratuity is not expected, especially in cheap restaurants, but people often leave something extra when service is good. Leave a tip of about 200 colones per drink for bartenders, too.

Telephones

Local telephone numbers have seven digits. The Costa Rican phone system is very good by the standards of other developing countries.

All domestic and international calls from public phones (aside from calls to an operator) require phone cards.

Calling Outside Costa Rica

The cheapest way to call internationally is to either call from a pay phone using an international phone card; call from a pay phone using your own long-distance calling card; or call from a telephone office. Dialing directly from a hotel room is very expensive, as is recruiting an international operator to connect you. Watch out for pay phones marked Call USA/Canada with a credit card. They are wildly expensive.
To call overseas directly, dial 00, then the country code, the area code, and the number. You can make international calls from almost any phone with an international calling card purchased in Costa Rica. First dial 199, then the PIN on the back of your card (revealed after scratching off a protective coating), then dial the phone number as you would a direct call.

When requesting a calling card from your phone provider, ask specifically about calls from Costa Rica. Most 800-number cards don't work in Costa Rica. Callingcards.com is a great resource for prepaid international calling cards. At this writing, it lists at least one calling-card company with rates of 1¢ per minute for calls to the U.S.

You may find the local access number blocked in many hotel rooms. First ask the hotel operator to connect you. If the hotel operator balks, ask for an international operator, or dial the international operator yourself. To reach an English-speaking operator, you'll have more luck dialing the international operator (tel. 175 or 116). One way to improve your odds of getting connected to your long-distance carrier is to sign up with more than one company: a hotel may block Sprint, for example, but not MCI. If all else fails, call from a pay phone.

AT&T, MCI, and Sprint access codes make calling long-distance relatively convenient but can be very expensive.

To make a collect call from any phone, dial 09 (instead of 00 for a regular call), the country code for the country you're calling, and then the number.

Cell Phones

If your cell phone or pager company has service to Costa Rica, you theoretically can use it here, but expect reception to be impossible in many areas of this mountainous country.   Companies such as T-Mobile, AT & T, Cincinnati Bells Wireless, Suncom Wireless and Sprint offers roaming services in Costa Rica.

Phone Cards

Most public phones require phone cards (for local or international calls), but phone cards can also be used from any non-rotary telephone in Costa Rica, including residential phones, cell phones, and hotel phones. It's rare to be charged a per-minute rate for the mere use of the phone in a hotel.

Phone cards are sold in an array of shops, including supermarkets, post offices, offices of the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE), and at any business displaying the gold-and-blue tarjetas telefónicas sign. International cards tend to be easier to find in downtown San José and in tourism areas.

With tarjetas para llamadas nacionales (domestic calling cards), cards are available in denominations of 500 colones and 1,000 colones. Phone- card rates are standard throughout the country, about 2¢ per minute; a 500-colón card provides about 50 minutes of landline calls. This decreases sharply if calling a cell phone; rates vary. Tarjetas para llamadas internacionales (international calling cards) are sold in $10, $20, 3,000-colón, and 10,000-colón amounts (denominations are inexplicably split between dollars and colones). It's harder to find the 10,000-colón cards; your best bet is to try a Fischel pharmacy or an ICE office.

Some public phones accept tarjetas chip ("chip" cards), which record what you spend, though they're a dying breed. Avoid buying chip cards: they malfunction, you can use them only at the few-and-far-between chip phones, and they are sold in small denominations that are not sufficient for international calls.

Entry Requirements to Costa Rica

Citizens holding valid passports from the following countries are permitted to stay in Costa Rica for 90 days without a visa:
Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France and Germany dependencies, Greece, Holland and dependencies, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad & Tobago, United Kingdom, United States of America, Czech Republic and Uruguay.

Citizens holding valid passports from the following countries are exempt from all visa requirements for stays of 30 days in Costa Rica, though once inside the country, they can apply for extension from the Immigration office, for an authorized period of stay of 90 days:
Antigua & Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Chile, Dominica,              El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico,      New Zealand, Philippines, Russia, Saint Kitts/Nevis, San Marino, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, Suriname, Taiwan, Turkey, The Vatican, Venezuela, Estonia and Monaco.

Citizens of all countries not listed above are required a visa from a Costa Rican embassy or consulate before traveling.

As in most of the countries, in order to visit Costa Rica, the traveler must show his or her passport.  The passport must be valid during the following 6 months from the entry date to Costa Rica.