Costa Rica information, activities and news
Here are my top ten rules and travel tips for anyone planning a trip to Costa Rica. I have listed them in order of importance. The tips are invaluable to you having a safe and fun time in this wonderful country. Please don’t let this scare or dissuade you from traveling to Costa Rica. If you follow these simple rules; I am sure you will have the time of your life and a safe trip. (more…)
Remember to fill the gas tank before midnight tonight as the latest round of gasoline price hikes takes effect at 12:01am.
The price of a liter of super gasoline will ¢732 colones; regular will cost ¢721; and diesel ¢726.
The price increase was approved last month by the Autoridad Reguladora de Servicios Publicos (Aresep), however, it takes effect tomorrow, one day after it is published in the official government publication, La Gaceta.
What seems to be more of a joke, the Refinadora Costarricense de Petróleo (RECOPE) on Friday made a request for a decrease in the price of gasoline by ¢1 colon for a litre of super, ¢5 for regular and ¢3 for diesel.
The request is due to the drop of the price of crude oil on international markets. Recope said that the decrease woudl have been greater, blaming the small increase on the increase in the dollar exchange rate.
However, don’t hold your breath for too long, as the Aresp still has to deal with two price increase requests before dealing the the decrease.
Every day it seems like Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast attracts more visitors—not just tourists from other countries, but also Costa Ricans themselves. Restaurants, hotels, nightclubs, and beaches are all surprisingly busy at a time of year when the pace usually slows down. Other parts of Costa Rica are certainly getting their fair share of visitors, but the Caribbean coast—especially the southern part of it—is more popular than ever.
Real estate prices already reflect that optimism. The property market on the Pacific has taken a slight hit from the downturn in the U.S. economy. Prices on the Caribbean coast, however, are rising at around 5% a year.
For the time being, bargains are easy to find around the Caribbean. In an upscale neighborhood of Cahuita, just north of Puerto Viejo, a two-bedroom house was recently for sale for $125,000. The residence is a five-minute walk from the beach. Closer to Puerto Viejo, a larger two-bedroom house on property with a tropical garden was listed at $168,000. Not far away, in the beachfront town of Cocles, a new one-bedroom house had a list price of $142,000. The house is a 10-minute walk to the beach and close to restaurants and grocery stores. (more…)
The haul was made public by police today, and it involves 15 million pills which were found in tomato cans. There have been 15 arrests so far during raids across the nation. Supposedly, the 4.4 ton shipment of ecstasy was imported into Melbourne from Italy in June last year.
The report adds that buildings linked to the Calabrian mafia, which is known in Italy as “‘Ndrangheta” and in Australia as the “honored society” or “the family” were raided by the AFP this morning. Nine Victorians, two South Australians, a Tasmanian and three people from New South Wales Territory, or NSW, were arrested. (more…)
Costa Rica, the land of the rain forest, volcanoes and “Pura Vida” is a hot spot for affordable cosmetic surgery. Hundreds and hundreds of foreigners visit the country to transform their bodies in paradise.
Approximately 15% of all visitors travel to this beautiful country to get medical procedures done, mostly cosmetic. Why? You may ask. There are two very good reasons: money and quality. Most operations and procedures cost less than half the price. For example, while in the United States of America an eye surgery costs about US$5,000; it only costs US $1,800 in Costa Rica. Also, the quality of the doctors, in general, is amongst the best in the world as many have studied and practice in Europe and the U.S. (more…)
Stewart Title Costa Rica (STCR) opened the doors to its new office in Tamarindo, Guanacaste. The opening was celebrated June 20, 2008 at an event organized for clients and business partners.
Stewart Title Costa Rica is a wholly owned subsidiary of Stewart Title Latin America (STLA) and an agent of Stewart Title Guaranty Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Stewart Information Services Corp
The area has experienced amazing growth and the large number of requests from the region prompted Stewart Title Costa Rica to open this new office. Tamarindo, the newest Stewart Title Costa Rica operation, joins a growing network of Latin American and Caribbean operations providing both international and local purchasers and lenders with cutting-edge title and real estate information services.
“Our region has historically been a cash-driven market,” said Christopher Hill, CEO of Stewart Title Latin America. “That is changing, and our mortgage services division is a key component to facilitating the needs of both the borrower and lender in the transaction process.” (more…)
