I am heading to a BNB in Manuel Antonio. I was hoping to get a few tips on carrying cash, personal safety and entry exit info using my passport.
Is it safe, can I carry USDs around?
I am on various medications and a CPAP that will have to go with me, will this be a problem at customs ? do they have to be in approved containers ?

just tips and tricks and advice please.

If hiking in the jungle, remain vigilant where placing your hands/feet and sitting, CR is habitat for multiple species of snakes including fer-de-lance. Ditto checking your shoes for scorpions. Enjoy the beaches. Semper Fi

quote:

Originally posted by Kurtz:
If hiking in the jungle, remain vigilant where placing your hands/feet and sitting, CR is habitat for multiple species of snakes including fer-de-lance. Ditto checking your shoes for scorpions. Enjoy the beaches. Semper Fi

Semper Fi back at ya ! will def use that info, will be going in a about 3 weeks, will i need sunscreen or mosquito repellent ?

Quadrupal check your luggage for any ammo or brass just in case by some wild assed occurance, your flight gets diverted to Turks & Caicos...

We’ve been numerous times. As you probably know English is widely spoken and the Dollar is the official currency.

We have found the people, especially once you’re out of the metro areas, to be very friendly and welcoming. We’ve usually gone to the Pacific side and found the hiking and fishing to be some of the best in the Americas. I caught my first Blue Marlin there!

Not in answer to you opening questions, but....
Enjoy this and bring home a supply!

thanks fellas, I will bring some back and will def be trying to eat/cook some local fresh fish

As to carrying cash and passport, I have a money belt that tucks inside my pants that I've always used when travelling overseas. It's discreet, and a good place to keep the things that you don't want to lose (passport, credit card, DL, etc). I also carry a wallet with $20-$50 in it and some useless cards for easy access to cash and also to serve as a loss-limiting sacrifice should I get mugged or pickpocketed. I grew up in a place with rampant pickpocketing, and I've seen them get into pockets, fanny packs, backpacks, and even neck pouches under a shirt. I've yet to see them get into a money belt. If they do get into that thing inside my pants, I guess I have bigger things to worry about than the contents.

Don't take any documents/cards with you that you don't actually need. Take pictures or photocopies of anything you do take and leave them at home or somewhere secure online so you can reference them should you end up needing to replace something.

Definitely don't whip out a huge wad of cash anywhere. Try to dress like a local (leave the white tennis shoes at home! I don't know why, but those always seems to be a thing with American tourists, lol) and try not to draw attention to yourself and blend in as much as you can. Stay in the better areas and don't be out wondering around after dark and you'll almost certainly be fine.

As to medications, make sure they're in the original prescription container with proper labels and documentation. I have a buddy who got detained by German customs back in the 80s for a day because of a bulk bag of Vitamin C supplement tablets that he unwisely re-packaged in a plastic bag to save room in his suitcase.

just checked voltage and plugs used in CR for your CPAP, same as here except you might want to take a 2 prong adapter if yours is a 3 prong, it says some parts still only have 2 prong outlets, i take mine as carry on and have never had a problem, states or europe

I went to that park about 2 years ago, about 1/2 a day. First off, it’s rather safe in Costa Rica, unless one were almost looking for trouble.

Flying into San Jose? Do you plan to rent a car or have a driver/ride?

There are businesses, restaurants & such right at the park entrance. The park itself is setup for walking & hiking. One can do a reasonable loop, or branch out further, as desired and able.

Not much to hurt, but I did see a supposedly poisonous snake in leaves off the trail. If driving, it’s kinda a fair distance from San Jose. We stopped in Jaco for a while, they have pretty much everything there. That’s for another thread.

Best to not be in a hurry anywhere, if driving yourself, drive defensively. To me Costa Rica is the best & easiest country to visit in the area.

I stayed a few days in Quepos back in March and it was my favorite of the places we stayed. Manuel Antonio NP was beautiful, but a large portion was closed off, not sure if it still is or not. We did a sunset cruise on a wooden sailboat out of the marina and I highly recommend it. Very relaxing, great food and drink. not the party barge, don’t do that. I’d also recommend one of the zip line tours. While we saw plenty of Monkeys and a few sloths in Manuel Antonio NP, I saw far more on the zip line.

There are lots of good restaurants. Several on the drive to the NP have amazing views overlooking the ocean. I wouldn’t leave anything be careful eating. Since Quespos is pretty touristy, you’ll probably be safe but I wouldn’t leave a drink any tap water. I never had any issues from food or drink in Quepos, but all 4 of us got something that tore us up pretty bad at a little restaurant at a small town on the way down to the Osa Peninsula. We were pretty sure it was from condiments since that’s the only things we all had.

If you’re driving, the speed limits are sooooo slow. Locals did not observe them at all, so I got passed all the time. I wasn’t about to give local police a reason to meet me, so I stuck to them. It sucked. Also, if you have manual transmission, you better be comfortable on hills in and around Quepos.

The beaches are beautiful. If you want a beach day, it’s worth admission to go to Manuel Antonio NP just to avoid the crowds and vendors.

We got cash locally before we headed to CR. But most places we paid with a credit card. We did use cash at tolls, for the local street vendors to purchase souvenirs, and for things like parking.

I never felt unsafe, but we also did not go out late and wonder around so it the nightlife may have a different vibe to it.

There will be "guides" everywhere around the entrance to the Park trying to hound you to hire them. Drive right past them and do not stop for anything. The park is very easy to walk around and you'll see deer, monkeys, sloths, and various birds. There will be guided groups inside the park with an actual guide. You'll see them looking at things in the trees. Give them their space and then you can move in and catch whatever it is they were looking at.

If you're renting a car in San Jose and driving down, keep the head on a swivel. They will make 6 lanes of traffic when there's only 4 lanes.

I stayed at Los Suenos, near Jaco, and we drove down to Manuel Antonio. Costa Rica was very safe and US cash works just fine. Try to go to El Avion for lunch one day to take in the awesome view there. Another place for an awesome sunset view is the Villa Caletas Hotel, but that's going to be about 90 mins to the north. You don't have to be a guest of the hotel. You can just go there for drinks and the sunset.

Check yourself over for bot flies thoroughly when you get back.

When I go to Central America I tend to bring a lot of $1 bills, like usually $100. I pass them out like candy as tips. Also a good amount of $5's, some $10's and a couple of $20's. I pay for most stuff with a credit card. USD will be accepted everywhere.

We usually stay at all inclusive resorts though, so I go through a lot of tips. If you're staying at an Air BnB, probably not so much.

San Jose has gotten a little rough the past few years.
Everywhere else is safe.

You’re going to a country where suntan lotion is more expensive than a good bottle of rum. That should tell you something, Gringo! (bring more than you’d expect to use!)

You'll be OK with USD’s there, but hitting a bank and grabbing some local currency is an option. No need to go crazy with the local currency.

I’ve eaten in town and in resorts- the food is great all over! Black beans and rice, plantains… Im drooling just thinking about it.

There’s a handful of Jungle tours and river boat rides that are well worth it if you get into wilderness & wildlife. The volcanoes are beautiful, as well as both coastlines!

Enjoy and take a ton of pictures.

Following... I'm headed there end of February.
We're going to the Andaz Peninsula Papagayo Resort on a work-sponsored reward trip.

I have been down 5 times. Including shooting for the Tourist Board. We did a 2.5 week mountain bike trip from San Jose to Managua,Nicarauga.

Cauhita, on the Caribbean coast was my favorite stop. We had zero problems on any of the trips.

The 87 y.o. very well traveled , neighbor lady just got back from there.

She was there with 40 other people, 7 of which were good friends.


She said all went well, good flight and hotel experiences as well as good food and tour experiences.

But she told me she wouldn't do it again as there many good places here in the U S. To see for a lot less expense.

She has run races in 12 states and visited nine countries, ( climbed Kilimanjaro with five other 70 year olds.

THANK YOU SO MUCH GUYS, WHAT GREAT INFO !

We have a small BnB and we will be gone for about 4 days..

bot flies ??????

Overview
Botflies, also known as warble flies, are bee-like flies that lay eggs on blood-sucking insects, like mosquitos, which then spread the eggs to mammals. The eggs hatch into larvae that burrow into the host, where they develop into adult flies. Botflies have several adaptations to their internal parasitic lifestyle, including a primitive lung, the ability to produce hemoglobin, and anaerobic energy metabolism.

A youtube video about botflies.