Archive for May 27th, 2008
Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
Costa Rica’s Health Ministry is working to push through laws that will ban smoking in restaurants and shopping centers. The set of laws include restrictions on cigarette advertising and the inclusion of more visible health warnings on cigarette packs. Another cigarette related law aims to block the entry of a package containing only 5 cigarettes into the market. These small packs are thought to be a strategy used by tobacco companies to target young people and those with low incomes.
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Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
The Banco de Costa Rica and Banco Nacional took the first steps Monday to form a single entity that could compete with private banks.
What the change means is that a cheque written on a Banco Nacional account can now be cashed at a Banco de Costa Rica branch, and vice versa, without having the need to got to the issuing bank or depositing the instrument and waiting for the clearing period of days. Tellers in either bank will have access to a customer’s account information and will accept deposits, payments or other transactions as if they were in the home bank. Automatic teller cards also will work in machines maintained by either bank.
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Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
Costa Rican tourism authorities have come together over the past years in order to promote the country’s tourism industry in Europe. This initiative has lately paid off and the results are a visibly higher number of European tourists who have chosen Costa Rica as their vacation spot.
In the first trimester alone of 2008, over 532, 000 European visitors to Costa Rica where counted. Looking back at the first three months of 2007, this number reflects a fourteen percent increase in European tourists looking to spend their vacations in Costa Rica.
This increase of approximately sixty five thousand tourists during the first trimester of 2008, where accounted for those arriving via air travel alone. Costa Rica’s hotel availability is very diverse and caters to all types of tourists. Tourists seeking for cheap Costa Rica hotels will find that the country offers plenty of options in the low budget range without compromising its cleanliness and safety.
For the more demanding of tourists, they will find that all major hotel chains and beach resorts have a strong presence in the country.
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Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
When many people hear about Costa Rica, they think, “Well isn’t it a third world country?” or “It’s probably pretty risky to live there.” Sure, it’s a fair assessment to say that Costa Rica isn’t as developed as the United States, or similar nations, but if you tell someone who’s been to Nicaragua or Honduras that Costa Rica is a third world country, they might look at you cross-eyed. There are many aspects of Costa Rica that differentiate it from other much less developed countries, but below are five reasons why “third world” appears to be incorrect categorization.
A relatively high economic standing, and is growing fast
At one point known only for its agriculture products and tourist attractions, Costa Rica is growing rapidly in the telecommunications and call center sectors. For example, Intel has made a substantial investment here and continues to create jobs for Costa Ricans. It also has the highest GDP per capita in Central America at $11,862 annually according to an IMF study. This is relatively high when you consider it’s not a highly industrialized nation and the cost of living is about half of what it is in the United States.
Given current economic woes in the United States, those looking to invest or retire here may wonder how this will affect Costa Rica’s economy. Of course, if companies in the U.S. import less from Costa Rica it will certainly have some impact, but Costa Rica is well prepared to fend off any possible recession because it currently has a surplus. Therefore, the government will have more flexibility in placing more capital in the marketplace short term to boost the local economy. Just the fact alone that Costa Rica has a surplus should be a solid indicator that “third world” just doesn’t fit. In addition, Costa Rica’s tourism sector, which employs a significant number of people, is expected to continue to be strong as historically in times of recession, people travel closer to home for their vacations.
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Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
If you’ve ever traveled though Costa Rica, you’ll know that this Central American paradise’s road system is far from perfect. The reality is a maze of winding mountain roads, potholes, and semi-paved paths that lead to breathtaking views and incredible natural attractions. Depending on your mood, these literal roadblocks can be either humorous or frustrating, but they must always be taken seriously, with personal safety in mind.
MOPT (the Public Works and Transportation Ministry) takes the public’s safety very seriously, and diligently monitors road conditions and public transportation companies. Improving Costa Rica’s roads will someday be a major — and very expensive — undertaking, so MOPT focuses much of its available energies on traffic safety.
On the week of May 19, MOPT revoked the transportation rights of two local bus companies, one which runs the San José – Quesada Durán route, and another that operates the San José – San Vicente (La Unión, Cargago) line. Unfortunately for both bus lines, they were taken off the roads for failure to comply with quality standards put in place by MOPT to ensure public safety on the country’s roads.
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