The Road Book : VISA

Passport / Visa

Your passport must have a validity extending beyond 6 months after your departure date.

No visa for Belgian, French, Swiss and Canadian nationals.

Note: For the Belgian, Swiss and French travelers transiting through the United States, in addition to the passport, the US Department of Homeland Security has set up a new electronic travel authorization system called “ESTA”.

The ESTA form is to be completed on the US government website: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/. This mandatory form costs approximately $ 14, payable online on the site.

We advise you to make a photocopy of your passport or identity card and send it to you by mail. You can print it whenever you need it, wherever you want.

Climate

Tropical, generally humid and warm. The average temperature is 23° C in San José, 31° C on the coast and to the north, hardly cooler at night and all year. At high altitude, the temperature drops quickly: at 3000m, it is 5 to 15° C.

There are two distinct seasons in Costa Rica: winter, humid from May to November (short but torrential rains). Summer, from December to April (sun and clear sky).

You can travel to Costa Rica all year round because it never rains full day.

Each period of the year has its advantages:

• From January to April: sun, wind and drought on the Pacific slope. Be careful, the dry season is less marked on the Caribbean side.
• In April-May: Spring, the rainy season starts at the end of May.
• In June-July: it’s the “veranillo”, the little summer! Rains decrease throughout the country.
• From August to October: Beautiful sunny periods on the Caribbean coast.
• From October to December: sunny periods interrupted by showers. December, return of the dry season announced by trade winds on the pacific.

Holidays

• 1^st January – New Year
• 28 March – Holy Thursday
• 29 March – Good Friday
• 11 April – Day of the Battle of Rivas
• 1^st May – Labor Day
• 25 July – Annexation of Guanacaste
• 15 August – Assumption
• 15 September – Independence Day
• 12 October – Columbus Day
• 25 December – Christmas
• 31 December – New Year’s Eve

Budget and exchange

National currency: the colon (1 EUR = 585 colons). For your everyday purchases (e.g. drinks, food, souvenirs, etc.); we recommend paying in Colons. You can obtain the Colons upon arrival at the airport, at foreign exchange offices or at ATMs (Visa/MasterCard) in the main cities of the country.

The US Dollar remains a reference currency and we advise you to bring Dollars in small denominations before leaving.

When you leave the country, you will have to pay an airport tax (US $ 29).

For meals, expect between $ 5 and $ 15 per person for a typical hot meal.

Opening hours

Banks are generally open from Monday to Saturday from 8 a.m to 5 p.m., sometimes until late afternoon in the most important agencies in large cities.

Government offices are open from Monday to Friday from 8 a.m to 4 p.m., while private offices are normally open until 6 p.m.

The shops are mostly open from Monday to Saturday from 9 a.m to 7:30 p.m. and remain closed on Sundays.

Telephone

From France to Costa Rica: 00-506 + number of your correspondent.

Costa Rica to France: 00-33 + number of your correspondent.

The numbering is now to 8 digits. If you see a 7-digit number, just add 2 before if it is a fixed line, and 8 in the case of a mobile. The network is credible and covers the entire country. You can buy prepaid magnetic cards, tarjetas Telefonicas.

Internet

The internet works fine in Costa Rica. Many hotels and tourist sites have innovated and it is easy to communicate with them. Booking can even be done online. Cities and villages have Internet cafes with nice prices.