As one of the leading medical tourism destinations in the world, Costa Rica attracts thousands of health travelers each year, and many of them arrive in our country seeking dental care. Dental tourism in Costa Rica is attractive not only because it is more affordable in comparison to North America and Europe; in fact, other Latin American destinations may offer cheaper services, but these are places where dentistry is not as advanced or specialized as it is in Costa Rica.

Most dental tourists come to Costa Rica in search of advanced dental procedures; they rarely come just for cleanings, fillings or tooth extractions. Dental tourists usually seek procedures such as full mouth restorations, oral surgery, dental implants, crowns, bridges, veneers, and treatments related to endodontia. In other words, dental tourists come to Costa Rica in search of dental professionals with comprehensive education credentials as well as specialized training in experience.

In Latin America, Costa Rica stands out as a nation of quality dental care, and this can be attributed to the education and formation of dentists. The first dental school in Costa Rica dates back to 1906, and it started off with great difficulty. Of the three enrolled students, two dropped out. The embattled young dental school was able to obtain a scholarship to send its sole graduate to England for specialty training; alas, the British school unexpectedly closed.

In 1915, a legal decree mandated the creation of a formal dental school financed by the state, which was fully realized in 1940 with the opening of the University of Costa Rica (UCR). From the start, the dental faculty at UCR sought to establish a tradition of excellence, which entailed hiring educators in several disciplines, including: English language training, microbiology, physiology, and oral surgery.

By the 1980s, dental education in Costa Rica had attained prestige thanks to academic and research agreements with other nations such as Chile, Spain, Mexico, the United Kingdom, the United States, and a few others. Millions of dollars were dedicated to funding scholarships, and a significant focus was given to specialization in orthodontics, endodontics, periodontics, and implantology.

By the 1990s, admission to dental schools at UCR and other state institutions was reserved to students with excellent academic records and exceptional abilities, and demand for quality dental education increased, which prompted the opening of private dental schools affiliated with foreign institutions in the U.S.

The extensive professional formation of dentists in Costa Rica is evident at the New Smile Dental Center in San Jose, a clinic dedicated to dental tourism. The specialists at New Smile have studied and practiced in Costa Rica and abroad, and their continuing education record is impressive; a couple of them have academic experience teaching dentistry, and others have been invited as lecturers at international dental symposiums.