Costa Rica is a very popular tourist destination, and I found it to be a bit of information overload during my planning! After visiting for a quick 6-day trip in early 2025, here are the top things to know before your trip to Costa Rica. Pura Vida!
Costa Rica isn’t a “cheap” destination
The first thing to know before your trip to Costa Rica is that it is not considered a “cheap” destination. The country is built for tourism and has pretty well-developed infrastructure. It’s also one of the safest countries in Central America. That all comes at a cost. While there were definitely moments where I thought to myself “hmm, that *item* was not that expensive”, I found prices to be pretty comparable to the US. At hotels and resorts, expect to pay inflated prices, as usual. Of course you will still find hostels and cheaper hotels for those looking to stretch their budget, but even those may be pricier than other Central American countries. Be prepared for this!
English is widely spoken in the tourist areas
Costa Rica is a country built on tourism, and most of those come from the US or other English-speaking countries. Therefore, in tourist hotspots like La Fortuna, Jacó, or the National Parks, you’ll find English widely spoken. Signs, menus, and even a lot of locals will understand and speak English. You may even find prices listed in USD at certain shops or restaurants. That being said, I always recommend learning the basics of the official language wherever you are going. Having a few phrases to say and understand in Spanish will go a long way and make things easier.
Credit cards and cash
Again, since this country is built on tourism, you’ll find that credit cards are accepted almost everywhere. They’re easy to use and, as long as you have a card with no foreign transaction fees, I’d recommend using them as much as possible. However, I do recommend having a small amount of Costa Rican Colón on hand for small purchases or tips. For my 6-day trip, I brought about ₡250,000, which is about $50 USD. I found it to be the perfect amount for grabbing snacks, a bottle of water, or small souvenirs during the trip. Click here to check the current exchange rate between USD and CRC!
Tipping culture
I love a culture that makes tipping easy- and Costa Rica is just that! At restaurants, most bills will include a 10% charge that is a gratuity for your server and the staff. This is added onto the bill automatically and there wasn’t an option to leave more on a credit card when they rang us up tableside. For tours or excursions, tips are often not included but giving 10% would be the standard. Of course tipping more is never expected, but if your guide or server goes above and beyond, it’s always appreciated. When being helped with your bags at an airport or hotel, try to give ₡1000 per bag (which is about USD $2 at time of writing).
There are many microclimates
Costa Rica is a very geographically diverse country, and with that comes microclimates. We were a bit shocked during our first night, when we stayed in Poás, about an hour outside of San Jose. The evenings and mornings were cold! When we visited the Poás Volcano, I wore shorts and a tee shirt and had goosebumps the whole time. However, once we made our way down to Jacó and the coast, the heat and humidity were out of control! If you’re planning a trip in different regions of the country, plan ahead and check the weather for the specific towns you’ll be in.
Read More: 5 Tips for Visiting Poás Volcano National Park
It gets dark early
While this originally shocked me, the logic made sense once I thought more about it. Given Costa Rica’s location close to the equator, the seasonal “swings” in sunrise and sunset are significantly less here. No matter when you visit, you can expect sunrise to be around 5:30 am, and sunset around 6:00 pm. And by 6:30 pm, it’s pitch black out. Rise with the sun and take advantage of doing activities in the early morning (before the heat kicks in, too!).
Renting a car is the easiest way to get around
Renting a car on your trip to Costa Rica is the most convenient way to see the country! If you’re flying into SJO, no rental cars are on-site and you’ll need to be shuttled to their lot. The ride was pretty quick and easy, only about 10-15 minutes (even in bumper-to-bumper traffic). If you’re planning on driving into the mountains to places like Poás or La Fortuna, I’d recommend a vehicle with higher clearance and 4WD. The roads were experienced were mostly paved, but it did break into gravel at some points. Plus, we encountered some pretty serious potholes along the way. If you ever need to pull over, we also found the road shoulders to be pretty steep and you’d likely bottom out in a typical sedan. We rented with Enterprise and got a Hyundai Tuscon and thought it was perfect!
Distances are short, but the drives are long
Costa Rica isn’t a large country (for scale, it’s about halfway the size between Maryland and West Virginia). Looking at a map and distances between cities may make you tempted to bop around a lot. However, while the distances on a map are short, the driving times are very long! For example, one morning we did the drive from La Fortuna down to Jacó. This is only about a 90 mile drive, but it took about 3.5 hours! Driving through the mountains requires slow speeds around hairpin turns (often with no guardrails), which will really make your drives long. Plan for this in advance!
Traveling soon? Check out my Travel Tips page to help you score good deals on flights, packing tips, tools to help you plan, and more!
No Comments