BEFORE YOU TRAVEL TO COSTA RICAAll right! You’re almost ready for to travel to Costa Rica. Beautiful Costa Rica beaches, lots of volcanoes to see. You’re excited. There's always so much to do before a Costa Rica vacation, so little time.
To make your travel to Costa Rica more enjoyable, here are a few tips before you come.
You Need a Passport
Until 2007, you didn’t need a passport for a Costa Rica vacation. Now, you’ll need one to get into Costa Rica and back home again. Be sure its expiration date is more than 90 days away. If not, renew immediately because you could be denied entry if the expiration date is coming up. Costa Rica travel can be really short if you can't get in! Tip: When you get to Costa Rica, make at least two copies of your passport’s inside cover to show your signature and photo and stamped date of entry. Carry one in your wallet or purse and put the other somewhere else. If you can, leave your passport in a safe place (like a hotel safe, etc.) when you go to the beach or shopping for the day. You’ll find that the copy is acceptable to most merchants (but probably not to banks). Your Ticket Must Have A Return Within 90 DaysIt should be obvious that you’ll need a round-trip air ticket when you travel to Costa Rica but also be sure you have a return reservation within 90 days of original departure. A one-way ticket may not get you out of the States (an airline may not let you onto the flight)! Costa Rica Medical Or Dental CareCosta Rica has excellent medical and dental care and your health carrier may provide coverage. Many doctors and dentists are American trained and speak excellent English so don’t worry if you get sick here.People in Costa Rica have a longer average lifespan than Americans. This should tell you something. Medical tourism is booming in Costa Rica. 20,000 Americans come here for medical or dental care each year while enjoying their Costa Rica vacation. Why? Many lack insurance and can't afford care in the U.S. but can here because prices are often just a third of those in the States! Click for more about
Costa Rica medical tourism.
Of course, when you travel to Costa Rica, there is always the possibility you'll need to see a doctor or dentist for one reason or another. Travel with confidence but understand things are done a bit differently here than in the States and Canada. First, if you get ill go to a nearby pharmacy (farmacia). Many, maybe most, Costa Rica pharmacies have a doctor on site. You can also typically get non-narcotic medicines without a prescription and, unlike the United States, you'll probably only have to buy a few days' worth of meds---not a whole bottle. Second, if you have prescriptions, bring them with you. Third, expect to pay about a third of what you'd be charged in America. Once, I had four cavities repaired, painlessly (except for the novocaine injection) for $75. On another occasion, I had a fever and just generally felt bad. The pharmacist gave me enough antibiotics for four days and charged me less than $5.00.
Now, if you have medical or dental insurance, it's a good idea to check with your carrier to see the extent of coverage before leaving for Costa Rica. More and more health carriers provide coverage for travelers to Costa Rica. Some plans have a list of pre-qualified or “preferred doctors" and dentists in Costa Rica so contact your carrier before your Costa Rica travel to learn your options.
Thinking about Scuba Diving? Think Dive InsuranceCosta Rica scuba diving might be the highlight of your trip but. . .accidents happen and you'll be a LONG WAY from home. Diver's insurance is available and reasonably priced. It's something easily overlooked in the excitement of planning your trip to Costa Rica unless you take a moment now to check out
Divers' Alert Network, click.
Take a List of Important Telephone NumbersYou're going to be in a foreign country with few phone books and most people speaking Spanish. When you travel to Costa Rica it's a good idea to take along a list of important Costa Rica telephone numbers in case you have a problem or emergency. I've made one for you. Click for important Costa Rica telephone numbers.Bring Pretty (Not Petty) CashThough nearly everybody accepts (and indeed, prefers) American currency, Ticos can be very, very picky about accepting your bills.Be sure they're not torn, defaced or written on (even with the telephone number of that girl or guy you met on the plane). I've had perfectly good $100 bills rejected simply because they were not pristine enough for the recipient.
An unscrupulous merchant who accepts one of these has a choice: take the loss or pass it on. Guess which choice he makes. This is what happened to me. Once, I gave a merchant a good $100 bill (that I had gotten directly from my bank) in payment and left the store. An hour or so later, while I was shopping somewhere close, the merchant chased me down and said my bill was a forgery that had been confiscated by his bank. He demanded a replacement $100 bill.
The moral of the story: Get new or crisp bills ($20s and $50s are best with only a few $100s) from your bank before you travel to Costa Rica. Change them into colones (Costa Rica currency) at a bank before shopping. IF YOU CHOOSE TO PAY A MERCHANT IN DOLLARS, USE THE SMALLEST CURRENCY. And, I'm serious when I say bring "Pretty Money." It's important, particularly with a $100 bill, that there be no writing or defacing of any kind. I've had a merchant reject a $100 bill that was perfect in every respect except for a tiny (I mean teeny) tear on one edge. CASH IS KING IN COSTA RICA! Ticos love cash. Many merchants will gladly give you a discount (usually about 3%) if you offer to pay in cash (the Costa Rican word for cash is “efectivo”) instead of with a credit card in return for a discount. Don’t be shy. Remember this when you travel to Costa Rica: ask and ye shall receive.
A reminder. . . Customs requires a declaration when you take more than $10,000 out of the U.S. Like Traveler’s Cheques?
The reason? The government puts a 30 day hold on these instruments. Some banks and hotels can live with that but not most Ticos. Is THAT Your Signature? If you’re like me, one day your signature looks like it did in fourth grade (neat) and the next there is a remarkable similarity to that of your doctor's prescription (totally unrecognizable). In Costa Rica, Traveler’s Cheques must be signed while the recipient or cashier watches and the endorsement must closely resemble the signature in your passport. This is no time to make it look like a prescription. Confessions of a prescription-signer. One time I went to a San Jose bank to cash 10 Traveler’s Cheques. One-by-one I endorsed each check, taking special care that the cashier watch me sign. When I handed them to him, he examined each endorsement as if his life depended on it and accepted 9 of them, returning one because my signature didn't look real! Don’t Take All Your Credit and Debit CardsReally think you’re going to need all 16 credit and debit cards when you travel to Costa Rica? No? Then, take only those you are likely to need and make a list of their numbers (you’ll need it to cancel a lost or stolen card).And, don’t forget to call your credit card company before you go so it knows you will use your card when you travel to Costa Rica. There are lots of ATMS but if your credit or debit card issuer doesn't know you're in Costa Rica you might not get your money. Things To Leave BehindAll right, now you know what to bring when you travel Costa Rica. But, what should you leave at home?Always leave behind a copy of the following things: 1. Passport (first two inside pages) 2. Driver's license 3. Credit and debit cards taken on your Costa Rica vacation 4. Airplane ticket 5. Insurance cards 6. Itinerary
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And, pay attention to my sorry story so something like this doesn't happen to you: there are a lot of phony $100 bills that get passed in Costa Rica. 
