Costa Rica as your meeting & incentive destination
¡Costa Rica Pura vida!

Important to Know

Recommended Dress
San José is an informal and casual city. Formal attire is used only on special occasions like dine-outs or cultural activities. If your incentive travel group is planning on visiting the highlands, warm clothes are recommended since the weather can be chilly. For lowland regions, loose-fitting shirts and trousers or shorts are essential for you to feel comfortable.

Business hours
Depending on the type of service you are looking for, opening hours may vary. Government offices, professionals, and service-oriented businesses open from 8:00 to 17:00 hours. Shops are generally open from 9:00 to 19:00 hours. Most banks open from 9:00 to 15:00 hours Monday to Friday and do not close for lunch.

Communications & electricity
Costa Rica boasts one of the most sophisticated telecommunications systems in the Americas. Many international long distance services are available: cellular or satellite phones may be rented, and sending or receiving a fax is fairly straightforward. Direct-dial service is efficient and available at most hotels, as are facilities to access Internet and plug-in personal computers. There are Internet Cafés in San José and in other cities and small towns.

Costa Rica’s electricity supply is 110 Volt AC at 60 Hertz (same as the USA and Canada). A voltage converter is necessary in order to use 240/250-Volt AC-powered items.

Alcoholic beverages
Costa Rica’s national drink is called “guaro”, a clear spirit distilled from sugarcane. Domestic beers are of excellent quality, as is the coffee liquor “Café Rica”. The national liquor company produces a variety of inexpensive local brands that are quite good: vodka, gin, rum, and whiskey. Visitors can also enjoy a wide selection of imported liquors. Besides the liquor, excellent wine, mostly Chilean, is widely available.

National holidays
January 1st (New Year), April 11th (Juan Santamaría day; national hero), Easter Thursday and Good Friday, May 1st (Labour Day), July 25th (annexation of Guanacaste province), August 15th (Mother’s Day), September 15th (Independence Day), October 12th (Culture Day), and December 25th (Christmas Day).

Health & water
No inoculations or vaccinations are required for your visit to Costa Rica. Medical services are available throughout the country and many doctors speak English as well as other languages. For private medical care, arrangements can be made through most hotels or the Premio Incentives office. Certain drugstores in the major cities have longer opening hours. Tap water is fit for drinking; however, bottled water is available in most areas.

Currency & payments
The Colón is the official currency. The rate of exchange varies slightly depending on whether you are buying or selling US dollars.

On Oct 17, 2006, Costa Rica's Central Bank began a new "crawling band" system of regulation where the bank stipulates a range within which the various money institutions are free to set their buying and selling price against the US dollar. The Central Bank will publish a daily reference rate that will be the average of the previous day's public buying and selling rates at the various financial institutions.

If you want to check the exchange rate, check the website www.bccr.fi.cr for updated information. Scroll down to the box that says "Tipos de cambio del dólar anunciados en ventanilla." This link takes you to a page where the day's exchange rates from the various financial institutions are published. Please note that "Buying/Compra" is the exchange paid to you when you exchange US dollars for Costa Rican Colones, and "Selling/Venta" is the amount you would pay for US dollars. Visitors are advised to bring US dollars or travelers checks; major credit cards are accepted in most shops, restaurants, bars, hotels, car rental companies, etc.

Top