When the La Cruz elementary school director decided to allow Nicaragua students to join her Costa Rican classes, things started to change. La Cruz, Upala, at Alajuela province's northernmost point, is on the border with Nicaragua. Under the guidance of creative designers and communicators from J. Walter Thompson and with the commitment of Costa Rica's leading TV station, Teletica, the children ...

The Balmoral Hotel is offering a new flexible, furnished lodging option in downtown San José for short or long stays. Preferential rates are available in a number of different room sizes and types for stays ranging from 3 days up to a year. The remodeled “micro apartments" range in size from 32m2 to 86m2, and are newly fitted with Italian porcelain floors, fine locally crafted wood furniture...

A teen idol, that’s what Justin Bieber is according to many… but in reality, the audience at the National Stadium in Costa Rica included not just teens but women (mainly) of different age groups. The show was not sold out, Move Concerts, producer of the show, was still encouraging the followers through social media to buy the tickets at the stadium booth just hours prior to the concert, high pr...

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...

The novel 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher, is a trending topic these days among teenagers and concerned parents, especially after Netflix released the drama series based on the book. For those that are not familiar with this novel, it basically tells the story of a teenage girl, Hannah Baker, who kills herself and left behind a series of tapes for the people she blames for her suicide, explaining h...

Poás Volcano had another eruption that reached an altitude of over 1 kilometer this Friday morning and could be easily seen from many spots of the metropolitan area. Since 11 p.m. on Thursday night the National University’s Volcanology and Seismology Research Institute (OVSICORI) reported an increase in the tremor which fluctuates in intensity; the majority of the events expel only water vapor ...

https://vimeo.com/212205242   Music by Wangel with the track "Freedom" ft Terry Edward. Performance from Terry Edward, Fabiola Loria & Paula Alfaro Directed by Neftali. Produced by lostnfree Locations - San Jose, Alajuela & Escazu - Costa Rica...

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.  By Britt Nelson The entire world’s attention has been drawn to the rogue country of North Korea and its young leader Kim Jong-Un, but who is this man, why is he so determined to have nuclear weapons, and why is he threatening the entire Pacific Ocean ...

$400 million will be the initial investment that Sun Latin America will make for the construction of Discovery Costa Rica, a theme park that will be developed in Liberia, Guanacaste. The construction is scheduled to begin in 2018 and during this stage it could generate close to 2000 jobs, the park is expected to begin operations in 2020. The President of Costa Rica Luis Guillermo Solís along wi...

The Poás Volcano in Alajuela, Costa Rica continued with high activity this Sunday, small phreatic eruptions are reported every hour, but the biggest eruptions took place at 1:46 p.m. and a larger one at 1:55 p.m. local time. The second eruption was visible from different points of the metropolitan area, extending one thousand meters in altitude. The blast once again expelled rocks of large s...

Ortega de Balsón is a small town in Santa Cruz de Guanacaste, it is famous in Costa Rica because they have a tradition that has been celebrated every year on Good Friday ( Easter) for at least 200 years called “la lagarteada”; this phrase cannot be properly translated, but the activity consists on a group of people jumping into a croc infested river  capturing a live crocodile, preferably the larg...

This time we are not going to talk about the different beaches and already popular National Parks you can visit in Costa Rica; if you love the outdoor experiences this country offers you, we leave you three awesome places that not too many foreigners or expats know about: Cerro Yarcazú: This mountain peak in Puriscal is an awesome option to enjoy nature and wonderful scenic and panoramic views....

The Costa Rican nonprofit group, Asociación Mar a Mar (The Sea to Sea Association), is developing a unique outdoor experience that will allow hikers to traverse the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific Coast in two weeks. The trail is called El Camino de Costa Rica. “Our aim is to have every hiker in the world want to walk El Camino de Costa Rica, or part of it, at least once in their lifet...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_3NMgUBsPI...

Police in Montes de Oca, otherwise known as San Pedro, the eastern San José district where the main University of Costa Rica campus is situated, responded to a call yesterday morning after witnesses saw a group of young men acting strangely outside of Venue Bar. The Public Security Ministry reported that police officers assisted 15 youth who were apparently under the influence of a strong drug....

https://youtu.be/uEAKQmPYzWg One thing that can be said about the cities in Costa Rica is that they have grown in a very disorganized fashion, especially in the capital, San José, where the lack of planning has taken its toll and makes for traffic problems, flooding, and visual contamination among many other issues. Many developers coincide that one of the solutions is opting for vertical bu...

This article originally appeared in Earth Island Journal . The retail giant is sourcing its Suli brand tuna from Mexican fishing fleets that harass and kill marine mammals, says nonprofit. Investigations by the nonprofit International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) have revealed that Walmart Costa Rica stores are selling Walmart's brand of canned tuna that has been caught using fishing methods tha...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=jX6pita1jKU...

A petition challenging restrictions on Internet usage approved by Sutel was brought before the Costa Rican Constitutional Court by the National Ombudsman’s Office (Defensoría de los Habitantes) earlier this month. The court has asked for further clarifications before reaching a decision as to whether to suspend or uphold the new policy, called "uso justo" or "just use", approved by the telecomm...

Costa Rica’s Ministry of Environment (MINAE) and the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC) formally filed the legal complaint for the confiscation of sharks that was done in March 20 by the park rangers of the Isla del Coco National Park to the ship Jose Pablo II, plates PW-4893 which was found fishing in protected areas. During the inspection, authorities seized 58 dead sharks located ...

A 59.6 carat pink diamond could become the most expensive precious stone of its class on Apr. 4 at an auction organized by Sotheby's Hong Kong, the company said Wednesday. The "Pink Star" diamond was presented in Hong Kong on Wednesday, six days before it was to go on sale, and the final bid could exceed $60 million, according to expectations of the auction house. It was the biggest pink dia...

The Internet Service Provider Speed ​​Index (ISP) recently released data on which Internet providers offer the best performance when using the Netflix series and movies platform. Five companies in Costa Rica were evaluated for their speed using prime time bit rates reported by users. The best Netflix performance was with Telecable users, who had an average of 2.95 Megabit per second (Mbps) s...

Costa Rican Alvarez & Marin Corporation had confirmed the acquiring of the franchise Chuck E. Cheese’s some years back, a restaurant and entertainment center for children between the ages of 2-12, now the firm has confirmed that the first location is scheduled to open in October this year in Plaza Bratsi, Heredia. A total of three sites will open between 2017 and 2019 in the metropolitan ar...

Costa Rica’s northwestern county of La Cruz in the province of Guanacaste inaugurated a new road connecting various coastal communities which is the result of a novel cooperation between local businesses and government institutions. The project is expected to open further economic development in the remote, underdeveloped region. The National Roadways Council (Conavi) teamed up with Hotel Dream...

The Four Seasons Costa Rica Resort, located on the Papagayo Peninsula in the province of Guanacaste, was awarded Best Hotel in Central and South America in the 2016 Gallivanter’s Guide. Four Seasons Costa Rica is co-owned by Saudi businessman, Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, through his company Kingdom Holding Company (47.5 percent); Cascade Investments (47.5 percent) which is controlled by Bill Ga...

The Financial Control Police (PCF) of the Costa Rica Treasury (Ministerio de Hacienda) carried out an important operation today in which they seized over 20 million cigarettes valued in one million dollars, they also confiscated cash and weapons. This action had the support of the National Security and Intelligence Office and it is part of a joint investigation both offices had been working on for...

https://vimeo.com/126796735...

The first stage of the real estate project Jacó Walk in the beach-town of Jacó, Puntarenas was inaugurated this past March 19, and it involves 50 commercial spots. $8 million USD was the investment involved in this first stage which has 10,000 square meters of construction which are occupied by brands like: Bac San José-Credomatic, Subway, Rip Curl, Pharmacy don Gerardo, Movistar, Claro, Tsunam...

21-year-old Canadian Kayla Reid has decided to return to Newfoundland to avoid causing any problems for Natureboy and his community in Costa Rica. She described being stunned at the immense amount of negative media coverage of her move to Costa Rica earlier this month which she says was to be closer to nature. The CBC quoted from the Facebook she posted today in which she explained her decis...

Costa Rica’s Short Film Festival invites local producers to submit their works from now until Saturday, March 25. Costa Rican nationals and residents alike are invited to submit their short films to the event which is quickly growing in popularity. The festival’s second edition will hold screenings from June 23-25 at the Costa Rican Journalists Association office across from Parque La Sabana an...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQVAgINzT6w...

A total of six Salvadorans have been arrested for their involvement in a shootout that left six people dead in downtown San Salvador, the head of the National Civil Police (PNC), Howard Cotto, confirmed at a press conference on Thursday. Cotto said that private security guard Hector Antonio Morales, 52, was murdered by three members of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS13) gang, one of whom was captured ...

German power metal bound Helloween will perform a concert in Costa Rica next October 23 as part of their tour Pumpkins United. This event has the particularity of bringing together the current members of the band and the founders of the same. The concert will take place at the BN Arena in Hatillo and it is the only stop in Central America. The production company Black Line Productions explai...

The best Costa Rica has to offer is probably not in San José, instead it’s the coasts and the different natural attractions what most want to see; yet, some tourists choose to stay in San José for a few days to get familiar with the capital city and the urban lifestyle, others come in for business and they need a good lodging option. There are many hotels in San José, it is important to conside...

A week ago today, Canadian tourist Bruce McCallum was mugged and stabbed to death in Puerto Viejo, Limón, when he was taking photographs of the sunrise. 51-year-old McCallum was a math teacher who apparently was on a sabbatical from his job at Albert Campbell Collegiate Institute; according to the Toronto Sun, McCallum loved traveling, nature and photography. Yesterday, close to 200 people f...

Many are not familiar with the term glamping; glamping refers to “glamorous camping”, and is a new trend that has been extending throughout the world, and Costa Rica is no exception. Glamping provides the possibility of enjoying an outdoors experience without sacrificing on comfort; which is the reason many do not like regular camping. Glamping includes tents, huts, villas, cabins, treehouses o...

https://vimeo.com/155307134...

When is the last time you texted while driving or answered an urgent call before pulling over? Living in Costa Rica, without the ease of finding shoulders on main roads, maneuvering overcrowded streets, and dealing with harried schedules, we are all guilty of texting while driving on occasion. It is no secret that taking your eyes off the road while driving, even for a fraction of a second, ...

Contamination and a dirty, unhealthy, environment are making children sick and causing their death worldwide; in Costa Rica, close to one thousand children under 5 years of age die as a consequence of this, the majority are due to respiratory infections. Yet, Costa Rica has better conditions than most countries in the world. According to a report released by the World Health Organization (WHO) ...

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.  Presidential politics these days is getting as surreal as a Salvador Dali painting. Truth and reason have been thrown to the wind. Accusations and counter-accusations of political wrong-doing involving the Russians, possible wiretapping of President Donald ...