The Ministry of Education of Costa Rica (MEP) registers more than 500 private education institutions in the country; the large number of options can make picking the right school for your kids quite a challenge, that’s why today (Saturday,June 17) EKA Business Magazine is presenting the Private Schools Fair at the National Stadium. The entrance to the fair has a cost of only ¢1,000 (under $2), ...

As of this weekend the Parque de Diversiones, Costa Rica’s amusement park will be implementing a fast pass for its most popular attractions. The “fast pass” popular in most US amusement parks will allow the holders to cut down the waiting time in some of the attractions. The park explained they will sell a limited amount of fast passes every day but the decision on how many will be available wi...

A decision this afternoon relating to Uber, Wednesday, June 14, by the Public Transport Council (CTP, its initials in Spanish) and the Public Services Regulatory Authority (Aresep, its initials in Spanish) has taxi drivers planning protests yet again. The authorities said they, "Have no legal competence to block the operation of private transportation ... in the country and that, therefore, the...

The ADEN Competitiveness Institute places Chile, Costa Rica and Panama in the top three positions when it comes to competitiveness in Latin America. This ranking is done every year since 2010 with the purpose of establishing how the countries in Latin America rank considering ten aspects: 1. Coverage of basic needs 2. Institutional aspects 3. Infrastructure 4. Macroeconomic stability 5. ...

This documentary by writer and traveler Gaia Vince takes viewers to explore this wonderful country. Vince and her family settled in the Pacific of Costa Rica for three months to find out why it is considered one of the happiest and most sustainable countries. The show consists of three episodes each close to 46 minutes; the show is available in Channel 4 in the UK and available online. ...

When we hear that Costa Rica is rich in biodiversity we usually think about birds, monkeys, felines, even snakes; spiders, however, are probably the last thing to come to mind, yet Costa Rica has more than 1,800 species of spiders, including, one of the most dangerous in the world. The Brazilian Wandering Spider (Genus: Phoneutria) considered one of the most dangerous spiders in the world is mo...

The British Embassy in Costa Rica has released an updated list of lawyers and law offices in Costa Rica whose staff speak English. The list includes only lawyers who are affiliated with the Costa Rican Lawyers Professional Association (Colegio de Abogados). While the list is by no means intended as a recommendation of any lawyer or law office, the professionals on the list have expressed an ...

Building a home is a substantial investment, which is why it is very important to find a good home builder that will guarantee the final result will be exactly what you expected. If you bought land within a residential project, the developers usually already have a selected builder which is great considering that they have already done all the hard work of going over their profile, experience, ...

Costa Rica is a country that holds amazing and unique characteristics, here is a short list of some of these: 1. In Costa Rica you get 12 hours of day light year round, the sun comes out between 5 -6 a.m. and it goes down at 5-6 p.m. 2. It has a rock and sand formation that has the shape of a whale’s tail, located in the Pacific Coast where hundreds of humpback whales are seen every year. (Mar...

One of the most important aspects to consider when buying a vacation home in Costa Rica is tax payments. Ideally the details and information regarding tax payments for the property you are buying should be provided by the property developer or seller prior to the completion of the purchase; consulting a real estate attorney or tax expert is recommended in order to get a clear picture of the exa...

The month of May in Costa Rica closed with a surplus of rainfall, exceeding the predictions of the National Meteorology Institute, the number of lighting strikes doubled the number of 2016. In the past weeks the country has registered seven tropical waves which generated heavy rainfall and thunder storms that caused floods and landslides in different areas of the country. May registered a reco...

Investing in real estate in Costa Rica is a good idea as long as you are careful about picking the right property. As expected, many foreigners who choose to buy property in Costa Rica are looking to escape the harsh winter and the stress of their current life, and therefore look for places near the beach, a vacation or retirement home, but then of course, there are always some that moved to the c...

Starting this Saturday, June 3, urban passenger train service will be available Saturdays between Cartago and San José, announced the Costa Rican Railways Institute (INCOFER) this week. Saturdays, trains depart starting at 6:30 a.m from the Atlantic station in downtown San José and from the Cartago station, and from then on every hour on the half hour until 1:30 p.m. Tickets are ¢550 - less ...

The consular section at U.S. Embassy in San José announces a consular outreach event in San Ramón on Wednesday, May 31. "Embassy staff will be available to accept adult passport renewals, perform notarial services, and take your inquiries on federal benefits and voting," said the consular section in a statement. "Got questions? ACS Chief Ben Peracchio and representatives of the con...

Costa Rican authorities announced they would reinforce security, including streamlining procedures to expel foreigners linked to criminal activities, following a series of recent crimes that have shocked the country. "Acts of violence in recent days have raised a justified alarm in the population and motivated new calls for attention to all authorities to intensify the fight against drug traffi...

According to the United States Embassy, there are currently 100,000 U.S. Citizens living in Costa Rica, 4,000 of them collecting their Social Security checks here – Baby Boomers in paradise. The Canadian Embassy reports 10,000 of their countrymen are currently residing in Costa Rica. Add to that the 1.5 million or so Anglophone tourists who visit Costa Rica annually, and you have one healthy po...

Believed to have been written in 1599 “As You Like It” is one of William Shakespeare’s most famous romantic comedies and the Georgian theater group Marjanishvili will be presenting its version at the Costa Rica’s National Theater in association with Teatro Espressivo. This show is part of “The Best of the World 2017” series of presentations, organized by Espressivo Theater. This rendition of "...

American actor, Kalpen Suresh Modi, known for his role as Lawrence Kutner on the television show House, and for his portraying of Kumar Patel in the film series Harold & Kumar, is currently in Costa Rica. Known for his stage name Kal Penn, the actor, who also served as an Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement during the Obama administration, has been in Costa Rica s...

More than 800 properties in Costa Rica including houses, commercial spaces and land will be offered at the Properties for Sale Expo that will take place May 19-21 at the City Mall in Alajuela. Banco de Costa Rica, Banco Nacional, Banco Popular and BanCrédito, all public banks in the country, informed that important discounts and financing will be available for those interested. Banco Popular...

"The Festival of Media Global Awards is dedicated to the evolution of media, celebrating the best in media thinking and communications across the planet. Judged by an innovative, respected and diverse panel of global and regional brand marketers, the program is a prestigious event rewarding the very best work. Hosted at the Rome Cavalieri in Rome, the winners for the Festival of Media Global Award...

The coffee industry in Costa Rica can be a good alternative for the young in search of a job in Costa Rica. The Technical-Professional High-School of Santa María de Dota knows this, and therefore “Coffee Industrialization” is a subject included as a subarea within the specialty of Alimentary Agro-Industry with agricultural technology. The area of Santa María de Dota is located in the Zona de Lo...

Many in Costa Rica are groaning at the specter of the newly approved ‘tax on legal entities,” better known as the corporate tax law, which is soon to go into effect. If you have a car, house or other personal property held in an inactive or “shelf” company, you will be required to pay a yearly tax on the company, though inactive companies pay the lowest rate. However, the government is givin...

One Entertaiment Group, the company in charge of the Ariana Grande concert in Costa Rica, has confirmed the ticket prices for the presentation of the famous young singer that will take place July 9th at the Coca-Cola Amphitheater in Parque Viva. This event is part of the singer’s Dangerous Woman Tour that has stops in several states of the US; countries in Europe, South America, Mexico and Asia...

If the purpose of life is "to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experiences," (Eleanor Roosevelt), then choosing the Pura Vida in Costa Rica is the way to get there. Pura Vida is a Costa Rican colloquial phrase that translates to "pure life," but means so much more. It's a lifestyle in which you choose to live to the fullest, ...

Costa Rica’s Telecommunications Superintendence (Sutel)  announced this week they are moving forward with the Connected Public Spaces program. The program envisions creating 985 wireless access points in 360 districts of the country's 82 counties or “cantones”. They began the bidding process to find a contractor to implement systems for free Wi-Fi in parks, plazas, libraries, train stations and...

Great Place to Work© Institute Central America & Caribbean recognizes the efforts of companies that work under a model of high-trust culture in the region, the 2017 edition includes several companies in Costa Rica. “Decades of research show workplaces with high-trust cultures see higher levels of innovation, customer and patient satisfaction, employee engagement, organizational agility and ...

Costa Rica’s President Luis Guillermo Solís Rivera, gave his third state of the nation report yesterday, May 3, at the Costa Rican congress. The President emphasized on the efforts of his government to promote the process of change for Costa Rica, with the purpose of “building democracy and ruling with honesty”. Solís stated his government has found complex external circumstances and limitatio...

TransPerfect, the world's largest privately held provider of translation services and technology solutions for global business, today announced the opening of a new contact center in Costa Rica. The facility will seat 120 new employees, most of whom are expected to be new hires from the greater San José area. Located in the Greater Metropolitan Area (GAM), specifically in Alajuela, it is the co...

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as part of their PISA evaluation (Program for International Student Assessment) 2015, in their report “Students’ Well Being”, which was released at the end of April and includes a chapter on bullying, Costa Rica is the second country in Latin America with more bullying cases among the countries that are part of the OECD....

San Francisco de Heredia will soon be home to Oxígeno, a unique recreational and commercial space that combines nature and human relaxation in a development that “will be unique in the world," said Cuestamoras board president Manuel Zuñiga. Cuestamoras, owners of the Fischel pharmacy chain in Costa Rica, “is committed to becoming a multibusiness leader in the Americas across a range of industri...

Maybe you are planning to travel to Costa Rica for your vacation and at the same time get some dental work done since you know that it is much more affordable in Costa Rica ?. Perhaps you are already on vacation and you are suddenly tormented by a toothache or other dental emergency, but how do you go about choosing the right dentist in Costa Rica? There are a lot of dentists in Costa Rica, clo...

Theater in Costa Rica started about 130 years ago, and today there are many small theaters, the majority distributed in San José; however, and as it can be expected, the majority of the theater plays presented in Costa Rica are in Spanish, which means the growing English speaking population rarely gets to enjoy this form of entertainment in the country, many are also unaware that there is one thea...

Realty Group International (RGI) is pleased to announce their new partnership with Costa Rican luxury developer Kalia Living. Providing the ultimate discovery tour experience for interested investors and home buyers, RGI is offering clients an exclusive opportunity to explore Costa Rica and experience the Bellazo properties first hand. Bellazo is a modern luxury, gated community on the Pacific ...

The Central Volcanic Mountain Range Conservation Area (ACCVC, its initials in Spanish) invites residents in the western Central Valley towns of Zarcero, Naranjo, Grecia, Sarchí, and Bajos del Toro to participate in a participatory process to create a management plan for El Chayote and Río Toro protected areas, said Costa Rican conservation officials. The plan will specify measures to be taken o...

Shopping for the right house in Costa Rica is something that requires time, especially if you are the kind that believes that if you look carefully you can find the perfect balance between luxury, comfort and price, and you are right; just like with almost anything else in life if you do your fair amount of research and take your time to look and compare you will find the perfect house for you at ...

Many foreigners choose Costa Rica to invest in real estate, many pick this country as the perfect location to have a second home, whether for use as a second residence, a retiring home, vacation home or simply as an investment, houses and land near the beach or in popular expat communities are the most common election. But is real estate investing in Costa Rica safe? Costa Rica is a stable c...

48 hours of continuous eruptive activity at Poás Volcano were marked this Saturday at 10:12 p.m. with a strong explosion that was captured by the cameras of the National Seismology Network, this explosion only lasted one minute and threw rocks at high temperatures in the areas close to the crater: This is the view from the thermal cameras located near the crater: The peak of activity...

On the morning of this Friday, April 21, the community of Golfito in Puntarenas, inaugurated the first stage of the Golfito Marina Village & Resort, a project of tourism attraction that hopes to increase the number of visitors to the Southern region of Costa Rica. The official inauguration had the presence of Costa Rica’s President, Luis Guillermo Solís, the Minister of Tourism, Mauricio Vent...

One of the first questions that comes up when a foreigner is looking to buy a property in Costa Rica has to do with financing options. Let’s start by saying that buying real estate in Costa Rica can be considerably more affordable than purchasing a home in the United States, vacation homes are not an exception, a beautiful vacation home with a beach view in one of Costa Rica’s most popular area...

Choosing a realtor to work with is difficult anywhere you go, Costa Rica is no exception, if you are in the process of moving to Costa Rica or you already live here but you need to find a new house or property to buy or rent, read along as we give you some advice on how to choose a real estate agent that will really help you and not make you waste your time and money. The Costa Rican Chamber of...