About Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica is Central America 's jewel. It's an oasis of calm among its turbulent neighbours and an ecotourism heaven, making it one of the best places to experience the tropics with minimal impact. It's also mostly coastline, which means great surfing, beaches galore and a climate built for laziness.
Costa Rica 's enlightened approach to conservation has ensured that lush jungles are home to playful monkeys, languid sloths, crocodiles, countless lizards, poison-dart frogs and a mind-boggling assortment of exotic birds, insects and butterflies. Meanwhile, endangered sea turtles nest on both coasts and cloud forests protect elusive birds and jungle cats.
Thrill seekers can fly through forests on zip lines, peer into boiling volcanoes, surf oversized waves and dive with dolphins and whales – all in the course of a normal day. Then again, if you have some serious chilling to do, you can always lounge in a hammock and enjoy the pure life, or pura vida – a national expression that sums up the desire to live the best, most hassle-free existence.
The country is famous for its biological diversity and varying geography with two coasts that provide a significant amount of tourist orientated or remote beaches. Additionally, you will encounter everything from exuberant rainforest to active volcanoes and windswept mountaintops. Costa Rica has the best developed conservation program in Latin America, one fourth of the country is protected by the government and 12% of the total area lies within one of the 25 National Parks that are found in Costa Rica . The protected areas are open to public and by visiting them you will have a good opportunity to see lazy sloths, fascinating caimans, magnificent sea turtles, beautiful butterflies, exotic birds, impressive reptiles and monkeys swinging in the trees. Apart from wildlife watching you can also take part in various more or less adventurous activities, such as white water rafting, fishing, diving, snorkeling and surfing.
Costa Rica is one of the safest countries in Central America since the political situation is stable and the army was abolished already in 1948. The people is peace loving, friendly and happy to share their beautiful country with visitors from all over the world.
Add a pleasant climate all year round and you can be sure that your trip to Costa Rica will be an unforgettable and enjoyable experience.
Costa Rica General Info
Location
Costa Rica is one of the small nations that together comprise the isthmus of Central America . The country's borders are defined by Nicaragua to the North and Panama to the South. Because it is between two continents, and two oceans, this convergence of land and water makes the region a great bottleneck, rich in ecological diversity.
Area
51,100 sq km (19,929 square miles)
Geographic Division
Costa Rica is divided into seven provinces (States) which are: Alajuela, Cartago, Guanacaste, Heredia, Limón, Puntarenas, & San José ( Capital City )
Climate
Tropical, average temperature around 27º C / 80º F.
Time
GMT / UTC minus 6 hours
Language
The most widely spoken language in Costa Rica is Spanish (97% of the population); although there are other native languages used mostly within the indigenous reserves. Many businesses, in and around San Jóse , and resorts throughout the country have employees who also speak english.
Currency & Exchange rate
The Colón (¢1,00) is the national currency of Costa Rica .
The exchange rate against the US dollar can vary day by day, but as of April 2004, it is ¢478 colones per dollar.
Credit Cards
Automated Teller Machines (ATM's), can be easly found in most populated areas of Costa Rica . Most international credit cards are accepted throughout the country:
Visa :: Master Card :: American Express :: Diners Club
Tipping
Most restaurants will include a 10% service charge at the bill . Taxi drivers generally do not receive a tip. If you are satisfied with the service you receive, hotel maids, tour guides and drivers would appreciate a tip.
Departure Tax
As of March 2004 it is $26
Visa Requirements
Visitors from the following countries are allowed to stay for 90 days without a visa:
Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Israel, Japan, Panama, Paraguay, Uruguay, United States and all European countries except from Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Czech Republics, Iceland, Ireland, Lithuania, Malta, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Visitors from these countries are allowed to stay for 30 days without a visa:
Australia, Belice, China, Guatemala, Honduras, Iceland, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, The Philippines and Venezuela.
Suggested items to bring
Pants, Shorts, T-shirts, Hiking Shoes, Socks and extra socks, Bathing suit, Sandals, Waterproof sunscreen, sunglasses, Light-weight hat, Day Pack, Light rain jacket, Flashlight, Insect Repellent, Umbrella, Casual Attire for nights, Binoculars, Camera and film.
Costa Rica Pictures
Costa Rica History
The first European explorer to encounter Costa Rica was the Great Navigator himself, Christopher Columbus. The day was September 18, 1502, and Columbus was making his fourth and final voyage to the New World. As he was setting anchor off shore, a crowd of local Carib Indians paddled out in canoes and greeted his crew warmly. Later, the golden bands that the region's inhabitants wore in their noses and ears would inspire the Spaniard Gil Gonzalez Davila to name the country Costa Rica, or Rich Coast.
Archaeologists now know that civilization existed in Costa Rica for thousands of years before the arrival of Columbus, and evidence of human occupation in the region dates back 10,000 years. Among the cultural mysteries left behind by the area's pre-Columbian inhabitants are thousands of perfectly spherical granite bolas that have been found near the west coast. The sizes of these inimitable relics range from that of a baseball to that of a Volkswagen bus. Ruins of a large, ancient city complete with aqueducts were recently found east of San José, and some marvelously sophisticated gold and jade work was being wrought in the southwest as far back as 1,000 years ago. Some archeological sites in the central highlands and Nicoya peninsula have shown evidence of influence from the Mexican Olmec and Nahuatl civilizations.
By the time the Columbus arrived, there were four major indigenous tribes living in Costa Rica. The east coast was the realm of the Caribs, while the Borucas, Chibchas, and Diquis resided in the southwest. Only a few hundred thousand strong to begin with, none of these peoples lasted long after the dawn of Spanish colonialism. Some fled, while many others perished from the deadly smallpox brought by the Spaniards. Having decimated the indigenous labor force, the Spanish followed a common policy and brought in African slaves to work the land. Seventy thousand of their descendants live in Costa Rica today, and the country is known for good relations among races. Regrettably, only 1 percent of Costa's Rica's 3 million people are of indigenous heritage. An overwhelming 98 percent of the country is white, and those of Spanish descent call themselves Ticos.
Of all the Spanish colonies, Costa Rica enjoyed the least influence as a colony. It was initially a tough and unpopular place to settle, with few valuable or easily exploited resources. The Spanish were far more interested in developing their holdings in Mexico and Peru, where vast amounts of silver and gold were being obtained. The early hapless settlers who came to Costa Rica were left largely to their own devices, and the first successful establishment of a colonial city was not until 1562, when Juan Vasquez de Coronado founded Cartago.
When Mexico rebelled against Spain in 1821, Costa Rica and the rest of Central America followed suit. Two years later, a faction in Costa Rica even opted to become part of Mexico, sparking a civil war in the country's center between four neighboring cities. After the republican cities of San José and Alajuela soundly defeated the pro-Mexican Heredia and Cartago, sovereignty was established.
The first head of state was Juan Mora Fernandez, elected in 1824. Best remembered for his land reforms, Fernandez followed a progressive course but inadvertantly created an elite class of powerful coffee barons. The barons later overthrew the nation's first president, Jose Maria Castro, who was succeeded by Juan Rafael Mora. It was under Mora's leadership that Costa Rican volunteers managed to repulse a would-be conqueror, the North American William Walker.
Walker was a disgruntled southerner who thought that the United States should annex Central America and turn it into a slave state. He was a lunatic, and a dangerous rather than charming one. With a piecemeal army of about 50 men, Walker had earlier invaded Mexico, where he had been captured and then released back to the States. Not to be discouraged, he next invaded Panama, where he briefly seized control before being forced to flee--into Costa Rica. After his bid for despotic rule there was defeated by Mora's forces, the indomitable Walker turned his attentions to Honduras. The Hondurans, unlike their predecessors on Walker's list, captured him, and Walker was finally and summarily executed.
Military rule has reared its head in Costa Rica from time to time, though it has not been marked by the sort of violent extremism that has occurred elsewhere in Central America. In 1870, when General Tomas Guardia seized control of the government, he made some of the country's most progressive reforms in education, military policy, and taxation.
The Costa Rican civil war erupted in 1948, after incumbent Dr. Rafael Angel Calderon and the United Social Christian Party refused to relinquish power after losing the presidential election. An exile named Jose Maria (Don Pepe) Figueres Ferrer managed to defeat Calderon in about a month, and he later proved to be one of Costa Rica's most influential leaders, as head of the Founding Junta of the Second Republic of Costa Rica.
Under Ferrer's leadership, the Junta made vast reforms in policy and civil rights. Women and blacks gained the vote, the communist party was banned, banks were nationalized, and presidential term limits established. Ferrer was immensely popular, creating a political legacy that lives on in his son, who leads the country today.
In 1987, Costa Rican President Oscar Arias Sanchez garnered world recognition when he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in ending the Nicaraguan civil war. During that conflict, both the Sandanistas and the Contras set up military bases in the northern area of Costa Rica , and Arias was elected under the promise that he would work to put an end to this situation. He was able to get all five Central American presidents to sign his peace plan, and Nicaragua is now experiencing relative stability.