Important Facts For Your Costa Rica Vacation
When you choose to travel to any foreign country, there are several things that it’s best to know. With Costa Rica being one of the fastest growing vacation destinations of today, how about some important facts. Just remember that laws do change so it’s best to recheck before you leave.
When traveling to all countries in Central America, you must present your passport to cross the boarders. When you are out and about doing your daily activities however, it’s only necessary to have a copy of the face page and current stamp page on your person. Leave your passport back at the hotel for safekeeping.
If you choose to rent a car in Costa Rica, be sure that you bring your current driver’s license and carry your passport copy with you at all times. Expect to pay high deposits for renting a car, which is fully refundable; meaning you better examine the car thoroughly before leaving the car lot. Additionally, gas stations can be hard to find in remote locations, so gas up in the bigger cities.
When driving in Costa Rica, it’s very important to know that if you are involved in an accident, you are required by law to leave the car where the accident happened. You must wait for the local police to arrive on the scene as well as the insurance adjuster. This can take a while so my advice, drive carefully!
Another driving fact you should know is that that in Costa Rica, like many other Central American countries, there are not typical number and names as street addresses. Addressed can be something like 250 metros este y Fabrica de Queso so keep your eyes open when driving.
In Costa Rica, the currency is called colones or colon in the singular. The denominations range from c1,000 to c10,000. Twenty US dollars is about c10,000, depending on the exchange rate. They also have coins ranging from c5 to c500; c500 is about $1.00 US and US dollars are accepted in most places.
The last time I was in Costa Rica, the exchange rate was 570 colones to one US dollar. If you have a price listed in colones, you divide that price by the exchange rate to get the US dollars price. If the price is in dollars and you want to pay in colones, you multiply the dollar price by the exchange rate to get the price in colones.
Spanish is the language of Costa Rica. Due to the rise in tourism, there are many local Tico’s, the common name for a Costa Rican, who have learned to speak English. Also, it’s a good to familiarize yourself with the road signs before your trip if you are planning on driving in Costa Rica because all the road signs are in Spanish!
Costa Rica abolished its army back in 1947 and is still a peaceful and magical place. Costa Rica is the smallest and still the safest country in Central American for traveling. While there are reports of petty theft in some areas, it is suggested that you continue to keep an eye on your belongings while traveling through this beautiful and peaceful country.
Coming to Costa Rica? Leslie J. Riannen invites you to visit in style while staying Eco Friendly by choosing the only Green Costa Rica Car Rental Company. Mapache offers Costa Rica San Jose Car Rental for its total fleet of low emission vehicles. Visit their site to reserve safely and securely before your next trip.
categories: costa rica car rental,costa rica,car rental,central america,travel,outdoors,travel and leisure