FAQ English

FAQ

Our FAQ is here… to answer any questions you may have about planning your trip to Costa Rica.

FAQ: Practicalities

An up-to-date passport valid 24 hours after your return is the only document required to enter Costa Rica if you are a national of one of the following Group 1 countries: European Union and all associated territories, United States, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, San Marino, South Africa, United Kingdom, South Korea, Singapore, Switzerland, Trinidad & Tobago and Uruguay.

For other nationalities please contact us.

VACCINATION:

If you have recently traveled to or transited through one of the following countries, you will need to present a yellow fever vaccination certificate at least 10 days old: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Peru, Venezuela for South America and Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan for African countries.

For further information, click here.

Licenses held by Group 1 nationals – USA, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada… (see previous question) – are sufficient to drive in Costa Rica. However, to rent a car, you must be at least 21 years old.

For other licenses, please contact us.

Most customers pay online with a Visa or Mastercard (free of charge at Costa Rica Découverte), which includes travel insurance.
In the case of payment by bank transfer, we recommend taking out cancellation and repatriation insurance such as Global Rescue, Mondiale Assistance or Chapka.

Based in Costa Rica, we don’t offer international flight booking services. However, we can help you find the best deals on the market. Please see our flight search tips and information page.

The further in advance you plan (3/4 months) for classic periods, the more choice of accommodation you’ll have. For special periods like Christmas and Holy Week, it’s best to plan 8 or 10 months in advance.

In April, for example, it’s already difficult to choose accommodation services.

But don’t panic: we can organize a beautiful trip for you just a few days (or even hours!) before your arrival!

You will find all information on the country’s seasons in this link.

BAGGAGE WEIGHT LIMIT: 30 LBS /PERS + 1 CABIN BAG OF 11 LBS. Excess hold baggage will be charged at around $1/LBS (price varies by airline).

Costa Rica’s currency is the Costa Rican Colon. However, the US dollar is accepted everywhere.
Small change is exclusively in colones.
You won’t be able to change colones outside Costa Rica.

We recommend that you use US dollars.

If you wish, you can exchange them on the spot, or pay directly with this currency. Cash dispensers frequently offer both currencies. Please note that you won’t be able to exchange your colons when you return home.

It is advisable to have 200/300 US dollars on you before arriving in Costa Rica.

You cannot exchange colones outside Costa Rica.

The exchange offices at the airport are always open. When you arrive, you can change money there.
Once you’re in Costa Rica, you can withdraw cash from ATH and ATM cash dispensers throughout the country.
Ask your bank about fees and charges.

CURRENCY EXCHANGE IN COSTA RICA

To make life easier, we recommend that you download an application onto your smartphone. On Iphone, you have the DEVISES application – On ANDROID, the Google currency converter.

The standard in Costa Rica is 120 volts, and plugs are pin A/B (Plates) like in the USA or Canada. 220-volt appliances will work, but with less power. Charging times will be longer.

FAQ : THE AGENCY

A travel consultant will contact you to get to know you better and determine your requirements. You’ll receive an initial project proposal by email.

Does it suit you? Just let us know you approve and we’ll start booking. Once confirmed, we send you an invoice. You’ll be asked to make an initial payment of 30%, and around 45 days before your arrival, you’ll receive an email requesting payment of the balance.

Not completely satisfied? We’ll be happy to make any adjustments you may require.

It’s perfectly normal to have requests by choice or obligation.
In all cases, it’s best to let us know as soon as possible if you have any special requirements: room types, disabilities, special diets, etc. The more precise your request, the more likely we’ll be able to satisfy you.

You can consult the section where our customers regularly post their opinions on the trip. Everything is published without restriction.

Tour operators in the USA and elsewhere NEVER manage local service providers directly, and use local agencies instead. They are simply intermediaries. This means higher prices for the same services.

We are based in Costa Rica and have in-depth knowledge of the country. This enables us to tailor your tour to your wishes, your budget and local events.

We prefer direct contact to improve responsiveness, quality and respect for your wishes.

We value dialogue and tailor-made solutions to ensure total customer satisfaction.

All the money we earn is spent in Costa Rica, and that’s fair enough.

We’re there for you 24 hours a day during your stay, whatever happens.

We welcome you in person on arrival, without going through a subcontractor who barely knows your file or the country.

We give you a well-documented travel diary, a SIM card to keep in touch with us and a WIFI terminal with your car rental. We’ll share with you all the little secrets that Costa Rica hides in all its nooks and crannies.

There are also reviews on travel sites/forums such as Trip Advisor, Le Routard and Voyage Forum.

We prefer small hotels, B&Bs and homestays, so that you can enjoy the whole environment.

It would be a shame to come to Costa Rica and wake up not knowing where you are, because the hotel will be too international.

However, our focus is always on comfort, location and service. We list hotel categories as diverse as 5-star hotels to simple bed & breakfasts, but the experience is well worth the detour.

All year round, we revisit hotels and check their quality.

As mentioned above, we have a perfect knowledge of the whole country, and if you haven’t seen an activity or a region on our site, we can suggest that area to you, if that’s what you want. We’ll be happy to advise you.

We don’t offer international flights, so you can book your stay with us once you’ve bought your plane tickets.

However, for quality reasons, we don’t offer partial service, i.e. 2 days at Corcovado Park or just car rental.

A few days before your arrival, we’ll send you a summary of your trip, but all documents (vouchers and travel guide) will be given to you in person on your arrival by a Costa Rica Découverte staff member. This is to avoid any unfortunate oversights.

You can consult the section where our customers regularly post their reviews of the trips they have made. Everything is published without restriction.

There are also reviews on travel sites/forums such as Trip Advisor, Le Routard and Voyage Forum.

FAQ : CANCELLATIONS / CHANGES

Travel insurance generally covers: cancellation, missed flight, theft or loss of luggage, hospital fees abroad, return to country if necessary, civil liability, death following an accident…

No one is immune to the unexpected.
Bank cards offer certain types of insurance, depending on the type of contract and card.
Check with your bank before you leave 😉

In the event of modifications, simply contact your travel consultant, who will study your request and inform you of any costs involved. You are free to accept or refuse. In all cases, we will do our utmost to satisfy you.

Depending on the reasons for your cancellation and the date of your stay, we will do everything in our power to ensure that your cancellation costs you as little as possible, and that your insurance company reimburses what it owes you.

However, each service provider has its own rules in the event of cancellation, and it may happen that we do not receive the full amount paid.

Each cancellation is dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

We are committed to having a member of our team available 24 hours a day to answer your calls, especially in an emergency. If necessary, we will transfer you to the nearest hospital and/or put you in touch with a doctor.
We provide telephone or physical assistance if necessary, particularly in the event of hospitalization.
We take care of any cancellations linked to your state of health and try to obtain reimbursements on your behalf.
We do our utmost to simplify administrative procedures with insurance companies and others.

Before your arrival, we can add or modify services subject to certain special conditions or periods (Christmas, Holy Week).

We can also add services to your initial booking, even during your stay. Contact us directly and we’ll take care of booking and providing you with the necessary information.

FAQ : HOW CAN I PAY FOR MY TRIP?

We accept international bank transfers in US Dollars, online payments by Visa, Mastercard, American Express and 30% of your trip in cash on arrival with our prior agreement.

For the sake of fairness, we have no specific pricing policy.

You choose which of the above solutions (bank transfer, credit card, cash) you prefer for each of your payments. (deposit and balance).

The deposit is payable on receipt of your invoice once all bookings have been confirmed.

Payment by credit card is subject to a payment authorization limit. If you have made purchases in the last 6 days, or if your limit is too low, please contact your bank to temporarily increase your payment limit.

45 days before your arrival, we send you an email to pay the balance of your trip.

Payment by credit card is totally secure via the 3-D Secure protocol, which guarantees that transactions are fully encrypted. The system is managed by the National Bank of Costa Rica – BNCR.

FAQ : OUR JARGON

An autotour is one in which you define your stops in advance, book your hotels and drive your own rental car. Costa Rica is particularly well suited to self-drive tours.

A shuttle is a vehicle with a capacity ranging from 10 to 30 seats, which groups together customers travelling to the same destination.

Customers are dropped off at their respective hotels.

A private transfer uses a driver and a vehicle just for you and your traveling companions. You can leave at any time you like, unlike shuttles, which have a set schedule.

Tailor-made tours are organized according to your wishes, your desires and your physical condition. Nothing is fixed in advance, and everything can be adapted to suit you.

With Costa Rica Découverte, the price is not affected if you opt for this type of tour.

An all-inclusive tour or stay means that all accommodation, activities, meals and transfers are included.
In short, all you have to do is let yourself go.

Combined tours allow you to visit 2 or more countries in a single trip.

At Costa Rica Découverte, we can combine the following destinations: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama…

FAQ : MOVING AROUND

There are no long-distance trains in Costa Rica. The only train in the country serves the capital from east to west.

As we mentioned in the Autotour section, a self-drive tour is the best way to discover Costa Rica, allowing you to visit inaccessible areas in complete safety.
There are many secondary roads, and without a car, you’ll miss out on many discoveries.

Indeed, there is an airline in Costa Rica – Sansa – and even if the country isn’t big, it saves precious time and sometimes pointless connecting flights. Combined with a rental car, this can quickly become very interesting.

Costa Rica’s bus network is well-developed, but mainly serves the major tourist resorts and towns. Safety and comfort leave a lot to be desired, and it’s hard to get off the beaten track. What’s more, robberies are frequent, and you need to keep an eye out for them. Stops are not always in charming places.

We don’t recommend this type of transport if you want to discover authentic Costa Rica.