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JASON HOLLAND
ParticipantHi William,
I would recommend looking for apartments on american-european.net and Craigslist. You should be able to find something for rent – maybe even a small house – at a reasonable price in Escazu, Grecia, or elsewhere in the Central Valley.
October 24, 2013 at 9:45 am in reply to: Welcome to All New Members – What's Your Top Question about Moving to Costa Rica #539432ParticipantI’d say that’s a pretty good idea. The only hitch being your move gets delayed and you need any of those items still in Costa Rica.
I can’t personally recommend a particular storage facility – I haven’t had the opportunity to use any. But you will find such establishments throughout the country. Often they cater to expats. When you arrive in Costa Rica, I’d recommend talking to some local expats or real estate folks about storage places they recommend in that area.
October 21, 2013 at 8:00 pm in reply to: Welcome to All New Members – What's Your Top Question about Moving to Costa Rica #538971ParticipantHi Kathleen,
I can’t recommend any particular residency service – usually created by expats to help others through the process for a fee. If you decide to go this route take to the person extensively before you hire them, ask for references, and look online for reviews and comments by past customers.
I recommend hiring an attorney to guide you through residency: they know the laws, the officials, and they have special access at immigration. The firm of Petersen and Philps has spoken at many IL events. You can reach them here: plawcr.com.
Registering with the U.S. embassy is part of the residency application process. But there is no need to go there first thing. It’s really just a place to pick and fill out paperwork and you need an appointment to even get in the gates. Whoever is helping you with your residency can help you navigate that.
But it is a good idea to register with the State Department’s Safe Traveler program: http://step.state.gov/step/.
October 21, 2013 at 5:58 pm in reply to: Welcome to All New Members – What's Your Top Question about Moving to Costa Rica #538969ParticipantHi Mary,
It kind of depends on how much paper mail you plan to receive. In Costa Rica at least, you can receive mail at the local post office addressed to you with or you could even set up a PO box. You can also set it up with the mailman to have stuff delivered to your rental.
A service like EarthClassMail.com will receive mail for you, scan it and send you images so you can pick and choose which items will be mailed to you in Central America wherever you happen to be.
FedEx, UPS, and DHL are all active in Costa Rica as well.
You should definitely try to go online as much as possible with bank and credit card statements and stuff like that. Paying bills from the U.S. and banking online is the way to go.
Jason
ParticipantHi James,
As far as I know, this law was proposed but wasn’t passed and is not in effect. As far as the taxes on foreign income, if that part of the law was ever passed from what I understand there are provisions that Americans (who already pay the IRS) would be exempt because otherwise it would be double-taxation.
October 19, 2013 at 1:18 pm in reply to: Welcome to All New Members – What's Your Top Question about Moving to Costa Rica #538890ParticipantHi Linda,
Thanks for posting. As far as asking questions here or emailing me… it’s up to you. By posting here, other people can read and learn from our discussion. But if you want to stay private just send an email to: costarica@internationalliving.com
As far as wanting to be near the ocean and still have access to shopping, there are two regions you should more into.
The Central Valley – this is the inland region surrounding the capital, San Jose. This is where you’ll find the best shopping in the country, including malls. And it’s only an hour to an hour and a half from the Pacific coast.
The Central Pacific coast – this is a well-established expat destination, so you have some large grocery stores, nice restaurants, boutiques, etc. Plus, you’re only a couple hours or less from the Central Valley – so you an enjoy the shopping there in day or weekend trip.
ParticipantHi Leonard,
You have a couple of options. From the airport you have to get to downtown where all the major bus stations are. You can catch a cab ($20 approx.) or a bus ($2) to get downtown. Once you’re near the La Sabana park or on Paseo Colon get off the bus and hail a cab to take you to the San Carlos bus station on street 12, avenue 7-9. From there you’ll take a bus to La Fortuna de San Carlos from here there are buses going to La Fortuna de San Carlos, which is the major tourist town/transit hub in Arenal. The town itself is about 30 minutes from the lake. The phone number for the station is: 2255-4300.
Alternately, you could catch a public bus to Tilaran, which is on the opposite side of the lake than La Fortuna and about 20 minutes from the lakeshore. That station is on street 20, avenue 3 in downtown San Jose. The phone is 2695-5611. Taxi drivers will know where both these stations are. The trip to Arenal is about 4 hours.
Which town you go to really depends on where you’re staying. I would contact your hotel in Arenal and ask them which is closer to their location.
Third option is a private shuttle, which will cost about $40 one way. There are two main companies: interbusonline.com and graylinecostarica.com. They can pick you up at the airport and take you directly to your hotel in Arenal.
Of course, since the last public bus leaves in the afternoon usually, if you’re flight arrives after that you should get a hotel for the night and catch a bus in the morning. There are several nice hotels right by the airport, with more budget hostels in Alajuela (the town where the airport is) and downtown San Jose. Check TripAdvisor.com for recommendations.
ParticipantHi Elizabeth,
A house rental can be a good way to go, especially with the number of people in your party. It’s what I usually do if I have family in Costa Rica visiting. You should be able to find a place for a week in the CV and another week in the SZ no problem.
As far as safety – don’t worry about it too much. There aren’t armed bandits on the highways. But don’t leave anything visible in the car – keep it in the trunk if you’re leaving the car. And do park in guarded lots (most are). Tip the guy with the reflective vest or whoever is watching the lot a dollar or 500 colones (local currency). It’s not that he’ll do something to the car if you don’t, it’s just standard practice in Costa Rica.
ParticipantGreat to hear about your visit, Elizabeth. There really aren’t any all inclusive resorts in the Central Valley or Southern Zone.
In the CV you have mostly small hotels and B&Bs. The closest thing to an all inclusive would be in and around San Jose but that’s not an ideal homebase for scouting the Valley. The other option would be to stay at a hotel near the airport. The Holiday Inn Express and Courtyard Marriott are right near the airport, right off the highway, so you’d have quick access to check out Atenas, Grecia, San Ramon, and other west Valley towns. For something other than an American chain, you could stay in one of the B&Bs but keep in mind they’ll be homey but very simple. Check out TripAdvisor for some highly rated places in the towns I just listed. There’s also this one: hotelmartino.com.
As far as real estate, check out american-european.net – they cover the whole country, it’s kind of a group of agencies that got together. Also call the folks in the Rolodex.
Arriving in May you’ll arrive at the start of the rainy season, so it won’t be too bad. Rental cars are available from multiple agencies at the airport. 4WD isn’t strictly necessary but will come in handy if you’re checking out property in the hills/mountains of the Southern Zone and some of the more rural areas of the CV. More than anything you want to have an SUV for the high ground clearance.
The best ziplining is in Arenal and Monteverde. So if you end up in Arenal, do it there. There’s also a place a short day trip from the CV called Lands in Love, actually on the road to Arenal: http://landsinlove.com/Canopy.htm
About Arenal – no sulfur smell. And it’s definitely one of the quietist areas of the country. The CV is quiet too, outside of the cities, but you have quick access to shopping and other big city stuff.
As far as the Southern, it’s all small hotels and eco-lodges. Check out TripAdvisor for places in Dominical, Uvita, and Ojochal. That’ll put you in the heart of the action. Josh Kanter is a good resource, tell him I sent you: http://www.dominicalproperty.com/About/page_2523308.html
ParticipantHi Linda,
Desafio is well-respected tour company in Costa Rica. http://www.desafiocostarica.com
You might also try Xplore Costa Rica, they have an office in Tamarindo: http://www.xplorecostarica.com
Jason
ParticipantHi Sue,
Right around the lake itself there are only small clinics and doctors office. If you are close to the volcano side of the lake there is a public hospital in Ciudad Quesada about an hour away. If you’re where most expats are, further north/west on the lake, there is a clinic in Nuevo Arenal, a larger one in Tilaran, and then another hospital in Canas. Those last two well off the lake shore, so a bit of a drive. For major issues or specialist care you’d probably go to Liberia, about two hours from Arenal. Or to San Jose, about three hours away.
ParticipantThere are several dentists in this area that perform all those procedures. I don’t have personal experience with any so I’d recommend asking around the expat community when you arrive for a recommendation. As far as insurance, that will vary from office to office. You should also check with your insurance provider about whether your coverage extends overseas. Remember though that even if you pay cash, the price will be much lower than in the U.S.
This is one clinic I’ve seen in Liberia: http://enriqueparradentalcare.com/en/
ParticipantHi Terry,
CIMA Guanacaste currently has an ER and is also equipped with diagnostic testing equipment like X-rays, CT scans, and ultrasound. You can also see a GP there.
The eventual plan is to have several specialists and be able to perform major surgeries there. A big target market will be medical tourists who come down to CR for surgery and stay at an on-site hotel during recovery.
Clinica Biblica has a small clinic across the street. But really all they do is lab testing and doctor visits with a GP.
The largest hospital in this area is the public hospital in Liberia. They treat quite a bit but very serious cases they send to San Jose.
You can find contact info here: https://internationalliving.com/country_clubs/costa-rica/healthcare/
For the Guanacaste branches of CIMA and Biblica you can call their main line in San Jose and talk to somebody there.
ParticipantHi Daniel,
Funny you should mention San Jose. I have an article coming out in the IL Magazine in a few months about living in San Jose.
It’s where I live, in a suburb called Escazu, which is about 10 minutes by car from downtown. There are actually quite a few expats who live in and around the city. Some popular neighborhoods include Pavas, Rohrmoser, Cariari, San Pedro, and La Sabana. Some of the popular suburbs are Escazu, Santa Ana, Ciudad Colon, and Heredia.
The biggest attraction is the access to services, great shopping, the best medical care, and ease of travel to other destinations in the country.
The drawbacks are the traffic, noise, and hectic nature of big city life. Of course, some people thrive in that environment and are willing to deal with those inconveniences to have the services and amenities the big city offers.
Of course, you can live in the countryside and come in to the city for the services. That’s why Central Valley towns like Grecia, Atenas, and San Ramon (from 30 to 60 minutes from San Jose) are so popular with expats as well.
October 4, 2013 at 7:10 am in reply to: Welcome to All New Members – What's Your Top Question about Moving to Costa Rica #537415ParticipantHi Bill,
I can certainly sympathize about the roads. Costa Rica is so mountainous that most roads tend to wind around a lot more than we’re used to in most of the U.S. The most mild climate (around 75 year-round) is the Central Valley. As far as cost of living, it really depends on your lifestyle. If you shop local anywhere in the country, you’ll do well. That said, the Central Valley gets barely any tourists, so that keeps costs down. Plus, you won’t have to use AC, so that keeps your electric bill down too.
But the Central Valley does have winding roads, except on the major highways. The only places I can think of where at least some of main roads might be straighter would be the northern, central, and southern Pacific coasts. Of course, a lot of the secondary roads – which you would use on a daily basis – would be winding. And the coast tends to be hotter and more humid.
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