Additional Travel Tips
Credit
cards
Credit cards are accepted in San José and
most major tourist areas. But once you are outside of San José and the major tourist
areas, some smaller hotels and restaurants are not equipped to accept credit cards. Some
who do may add an additional percentage charge to your bill for
special handling.
Traveler's checks
Traveler's checks in dollars are widely
accepted at most hotels and restaurants in Costa Rica.
Exchanging dollars for Costa Rican colones
If you want to cash traveler's checks or
change your dollars into Costa Rican colones, the best place to do that is at your hotel
in San José. You can also exchange your money at any bank, but the lines are usually very
long. It is best not to exchange money with a moneychanger on the
sidewalk or street, whether outside
the airport or in San José.
Exchange rate
The current rate of
exchange is about C555 Costa Rican colones for each U.S. dollar. So for
example 1,000 colones, or C1,000, is equal to approximately $1.80.
Tipping
Tipping at the airport and at the hotel is
normally about $.50 per bag, not nearly as much as we are accustomed to in
the United States. This can be either in US currency, or in Costa Rican colones if you
prefer.
All restaurants in Costa
Rica include a 10% tip in your bill (it sometimes shows as service charge), so additional
tipping isn't necessary. But if the service was extra good, or the waiter or
waitress extra nice, if you would like, you can leave a few coins on the table to signal
your appreciation.
Tipping taxi drivers isn't
necessary, unless he is particularly nice, or helpful with your baggage.
Spanish
You don't have to worry about speaking Spanish at
the airport or in most restaurants or hotels. Tourist facility employees are accustomed to
assisting North Americans and will be able to communicate, even if simply by
"doing".
We Recommend
We recommend not wearing
expensive or showy jewelry and not carrying a purse. A fanny-pack worn around your waist works
well. Also, if you have a rental car, it is a good idea not to leave it unattended if you
have anything in the car - even if you have locked the car. |
