While business leaders clamor for expedited border crossings, the issue has been pulled from the legislative agenda for further consultation with indigenous groups living in the southern and northern border regions, according to reports in several Costa Rican national media. A border integration program established with the Inter-American Development Bank to provide Costa Rica with US$100 milli...

Copa Airlines announced they will offer the only nonstop direct airline service between Denver, Colorado and Panama, with convenient connections to more than 55 destinations in Central America, South America and the Caribbean through the airline’s Panama hub. The service will consist of four weekly flights between Denver and Panama beginning Dec. 11, 2017. Denver will be Copa's 13th U.S. de...

A technical failure in the communication systems at the Juan Santamaría Airport in Costa Rica, has forced the cancelation and suspension of several flights. The failure took place at 5 p.m. local time, when the communication between the control tower and the aircrafts was lost. Avianca, Volaris, Copa and two additional airlines have their scheduled flights in stand-by until the situation is ...

The 8th Edition of the Copa Summa, or Summa Cup, one of the region's most popular golf tournaments will be held Friday, April 28 at the Cariari Country Club, with a 7 a.m. tee time. The Cariari Country Club in Ciudad Cariari northwest of San José near the Juan Santamaría International airport, and situated on a former coffee plantation, was the first 18-hole golf course built in Costa Rica. ...

The Royal Dutch Airlines, KLM, annoucend today they will start flying directly to Costa Rica later this year. Two weekly direct flights connecting Amsterdam and San José, Costa Rica will be served by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, the most modern aircraft in the KLM fleet, said the airline. The flights will operate from October 31, 2017 until March, for the duration of Europe’s winter season. ...

A Utah man and his fiancée say they got the booted from a United flight Saturday out of Houston en route to their Costa Rica wedding after changing seats, reported local Utah media, the New York Daily News, and other national media outlets. The company has been spotlighted for a series of recent customer service disasters in recent weeks, including an incident where a 69-year-old doctor was dra...

More than often it is overlooked, perhaps because of the misconception that insecurity is higher in this province (San José is actually the province with highest crime rate); or maybe because there are no huge, luxury resorts; others don’t like the drive, as the road (Route 32) is considered dangerous; whatever the reasons may be, the fact is that Limón Province and the beaches in the Caribbean Co...

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...

The operators of the ferry service linking Puntarenas with Paquera on the Nicoya Peninsula, Naviera Tambor, S.A., has been granted a 10-year extension of their concession to run the service, said the Ministry of Transportation and Public Works (MOPT, in Spanish) this week. Paquera links tourists to the nearby beaches of Tambor, Mal País, Montezuma, Santa Teresa and others in the southern Nicoya...

The U.S. state of Hawaii filed a lawsuit requesting a federal judge issue a temporary restraining order on President Donald Trump's revised immigration executive order, becoming the first state to fight the order in court. On Monday, Trump signed the revised order suspending travel to the United States through a 90-day visa ban for people from six majority-Muslim countries: Iran, Syria, Libya, ...

The tourism industry in Costa Rica is the most dynamic sector of the country’s economy, and it continues to grow year after year, however, the different crimes committed against tourists, are hurting the image of the country, the most recent case took place last Sunday morning when Canadian tourist Bruce Craig McCalum was stabbed to death in Puerto Viejo, Limón when he was taking photos of the sun...

Tegucigalpa, Feb. 25 — Honduras, Central America's leading coffee producer, is transforming the scenic farms where that crop is grown into a domestic and international tourist attraction. The Coffee Tourist Route, an initiative centered on several farms in the western provinces of La Paz, Intibuca, Lempira, Santa Barbara, Ocotepeque and Copan, is offering prospective tourists coffee tasting, ad...

Costa Rica is one of the preferred destinations for family vacation, miles of beautiful beaches, warm weather and variety of wildlife provide the perfect playground for kids, leave behind their play station and electronic toys, there are a plenty of places where the whole family can practice adventure tourism, but if your kids are too young for zip lining and white water rafting, there are additio...

According to the advice from an experienced travel agent, the best time to buy airline tickets are Tuesday and Wednesday nights; that being said when it is high season in Costa Rica it is hard to find cheap airline tickets, but today might be your lucky day, if you are suffering with the harsh winter or you simply need to get away, this is the perfect time for you to escape to sunny paradise and ...

By Wendy Anders A flurry of concern by Costa Ricans, who thought visa requirements to the U.S. might have been changed in the wake of recent federal rulings on the 45th president’s immigration ban, were laid to rest by the U.S. Embassy in San José, Costa Rica. Visa requirements for Costa Ricans wishing to enter the U.S. remain the same, and are spelled out in detail on the U.S. State Departm...

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados; Feb. 8 -- The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), the region's tourism development agency, and Airbnb, whose community marketplace provides access to millions of unique accommodations, today signed a landmark agreement to develop a set of policy principles and recommendations on the sharing economy for Caribbean governments and other stakeholders. Under the agreement, si...

Hate to pack? A nude cruise might be for you. The Bare Necessities 2017 Big Nude Boat, equipped to hold up to 3,000 passengers set sail from Tampa Harbor February 5 with four gorgeous stops in the Caribbean. Director of Bare Necessities, Nancy Tiemann, says that on average cruises, “Over 70 per cent of the passengers have been on a Bare Necessities cruise before, which is extremely competiti...

The United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals scheduled a hearing for Tuesday, Feb. 7 to determine the immediate future of the immigration ban implemented by the U.S. president, which has been blocked by a federal judge. Government attorneys presented their arguments on Monday to the San Francisco-based tribunal, which will now decide whether to reinstate the travel ban on all refugees and on ...

Madrid, Feb 5 — A United States appeals court on Sunday, Feb. 5 rejected a request by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to reinstate a travel ban on entry to the U.S. for citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries. This means the nationwide halt on the ban continues to be in effect for all the affected countries. The Washington State Attorney General's Office said in a Twitter po...

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General said it will conduct a review of President Donald Trump's executive order that temporarily bans travel from seven countries made up of mostly Muslim populations. The agency late Wednesday said it would "review DHS' implementation" of Trump's recent executive order "in response to congressional requests and whistleblower and ...

By Wendy Anders The Costa Rican government announced this month plans to build a tourist reception area for travelers arriving on cruise ships at the southern Pacific port of Golfito on the Golfo Dulce, or Sweet Bay. The building project will begin February 1 and should be completed June 15, 2017, said government officials. The 40 million colón dockside investment (over US$73,000) will in...

Costa Rica was selected as a guest country by the organizers of the International Fair FESPO, the most important touristic fair in Switzerland. This is the first time that Costa Rica participates in this international event that is taking place January 26th -29th in Zürich, Switzerland. “The participation in this fair will allow us to position the country in the European market, which repres...

Rio de Janeiro, Jan. 17 — Brazilian health authorities are on alert after the outbreak of yellow fever, with 47 cases detected in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais and given the risk that it could spread to nearby areas where possible cases are starting to be detected.The Health Ministry confirmed Tuesday that 152 suspected cases of the disease have been detected in 26 municipalities in rural...

By Wendy Anders A 53-year-old German man, preliminarily identified with the last name of Schiloknecot, died yesterday in an accident at the El Tobogán waterfalls 30 kilometers from the northern Costa Rica city of Liberia, in the province of Guanacaste, reported the Spanish daily El Diario Extra. Apparently he and some other foreigner visitors went hiking in the forest near their hotel, which...

Many times, we hear complaints about the high cost of vacationing in Costa Rica, usually these complaints come from locals who affirm vacationing in our own country costs the same or more than vacationing abroad; and every so often we can hear the same complaint coming from foreign tourists, which makes you wonder if this is actually true or just a perception. Granted, many factors come into pl...

Several new self-named “low-cost” airlines began operations in Costa Rica this past year, and currently there is a total of eight offering their services in the country and covering different routes: Spirit, JetBlue, WestJet, Southwest, Volaris, Interjet, Wingo and Veca Airlines. Having options is a good thing, certainly, and when it comes to traveling many try to save as much as possible in ti...

The Jamaica Tourist Board has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with United States-based online company Airbnb Inc. for the promotion of the country’s tourism product, particularly in the area of accommodation. Airbnb is an online marketplace that connects people wanting to rent their homes and spaces with people needing affordable accommodations. Minister of Tourism Hon. Edmund Bartlett ...

By Wendy Anders Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solís signed a new law designed to fight tax fraud on December 19, 2016 that will affect owners who rent properties for less than a month at a time, said tax officials this week. Officials reminded owners of various residences, cabins and other lodgings offered on sites such as AirBnB for short-term rental that they are required to pay Cos...

Avianca Airlines is offering a promotion to Miami as of January 5th and through January 31, all passengers traveling from San Jose, Costa Rica will have the opportunity to purchase tickets at a preferential rate of $279 USD, taxes included. Tickets purchased with this promotion can be used between February 1st and June 15, 2017, and the limit date to complete the trip is June 30. This promotion...

“All Costa Rica helped those affected by hurricane Otto, but the second part of the rescue is just beginning. This summer, visit Golfito, Corcovado or Tortuguero. Admire the Celeste River, enjoy the hot springs or the Guanacaste beaches, take a tour of the Maleku territory; buy beans from Upala and cacao from Bagaces, travel, rest, eat, have fun, and while you enjoy, help them get back on their fe...

By Wendy Anders Delta Air Lines announced they are testing free meals on coach flights on a few selected routes, reported InvestorPlace earlier this month. If you're old enough to have flown before all the economizing started in the 1990s, you'll probably recall that flying coach was almost like flying first class today, although certainly the meals needed improvement. Delta is leading th...

Christopher Farmer and Peta Frampton left the coast of Belize on June 26, 1978, aboard a boat named the Justin B. Photo for illustrative purposes. The young British couple in their mid-20s had decided to spend a year traveling abroad. They traveled to Australia and then went to the Americas. They toured Guadalajara, Mexico, and later wound up in Belize City, where they met an American named...

Nekupe Sporting Resort and Retreat, a luxury countryside resort, has opened on a 1,300 acre (526 hectare) nature reserve in southwest Nicaragua, not far from the Costa Rica border. One of Nicaragua's many volcanoes. Boasting an intimate eight-room property, a luxury spa facility and a number of outdoor pursuits, the resort, located around 30 minutes north of the historic colonial town of Gr...

Contiki, the global tour operator specializing in once-in-a-lifetime experiences for young travelers, recently polled over 5,000 18-35 year olds around the world to discover what motivates them to travel and create the The No Regrets List, the top 20 bucket list travel experiences for 2017. According to the study, 71 percent of U.S. millennials and post-millennials, view experiences as the most...

The 15 finalists of the National Geographic World Legacy Awards were unveiled today. The World Legacy Awards, a partnership between National Geographic and ITB Berlin, showcase the leading travel and tourism companies, organizations and destinations — ranging from entire countries to small islands and from urban hotels to jungle retreats — driving the sustainable tourism transformation of the glob...

In view of the alert in Costa Rica due to Otto storm/hurricane, Avianca, Lacsa, and Albatros airlines had to cancel eight of their flights to and from Costa Rica, Juan Santamaria Airport. Flights with destinations: San Andres, Bogota, Guatemala and Venezuela were cancelled by the airlines and they have informed travelers that those who already had a ticket will not be charged additional fees to...

By Wendy Anders Golfo Dulce and Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica Hilton announced last week the signing of the Botánika Osa Peninsula to Curio - A Collection by Hilton. Botánika Osa Peninsula - Curio is slated to open in 2018 and the project developer is the San José, Costa Rica-based Sinergo Development Group. The resort will be on the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica, an unspoiled tropical rain...

AirFrance began operating as of this week direct flights between Paris, France and Juan Santamaría Airport (SJO) in Costa Rica; the first flight will land in the afternoon of Wednesday, November 2 and will be received by Costa Rica’s president Luis Guillermo Solís. The service will be offered twice a week (Wednesday and Saturday),in a Boeing 777-300 with capacity for 468 people, the biggest com...

PRNewswire/ -- Copa Holdings (NYSE: CPA), parent company of Copa Airlines and Copa Airlines Colombia, has officially launched Wingo in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Costa Rica. Wingo, which will begin operations on December 1st, brings a low-cost/low-price offering, with flexible amenities to the market in the region. Designed for travelers who prefer a simple and no-frills travel ...

An alliance between Air Panama and the Honduras’ Tourism Board will allow Costa Ricans to travel from San José to Roatán in Honduras with just one stop in Panama. This possibility will be available with two flights a week, Thursdays and Sundays during high season, starting November 15 and extending through February 28, 2017. “The two times a week frecuency allows the Costa Rican public to b...