FAQs Costa Rica

1. Why did you move to Costa Rica? And why Herradura in particular?

Because of our visa and because of the weather getting colder in Spain (no thanks), we left for a warmer climate. After considering Argentina, Panama, and Mexico we settled on Costa Rica because of different recommendations. There seemed to be many things to do and see for our boys, and many experiences we've never had before.

As with Spain, we shopped for a place near the beach. Orginially we were drawn to the popular beaches of the northwestern Gaunacaste region (Tamarindo). ((Oddly enough, we have yet to visit nor plan to visit that area at all)) However, that area is so heavily trafficked by toursits that there was a short supply of monthly rentals and even those were mostly beyond our price range.

We stumbled onto our property on a real estate page. It was affordable, spacious, had a pool, close to some shops/restaurants, 1 mile from the beach and close to Jaco which is a larger town with just about everything you need. It was also 2 hours or less from the airport and sort of central for exploring other parts of the country.

2. Are the boys in school?

The boys are homeschooled, usually 90 minutes worth of learning and assignments per day stretched out to 2,3 or 4 hours by the boys. You'd think as accomplished career teachers this would be a piece of cake. Nope. We aren't having much fun. Partly higher expectations, partly they still treat us like parents they can whine to instead of teachers. Although each day presents its challenges, overall the boys are progressing and doing well. But we won't be doing it again.

3. What do you spend your time doing?

About every 1-2 weeks we plan a short trip anywhere from an afternoon to 10 days. Usually 2-3 days to explore and experienece different parts of Costa Rica. Otherwise we attend a local church with occassional activities, Parker plays soccer twice a week, we go to the beach 4-5 times per week--visiting different local beaches, and lately spend time with new friends around the casa and in the swimming pool. We read and watch things together, ride bikes, play games, some crafts/art and generally live a laid back life with no need to be anywhere in particular.

4. So what's Costa Rica like?

Costa Rica is pretty cool. The best part about it is it's diversity of flora and fauna (plants and animals), and its completely different geographic ecosystems due to being a very mountainous region with volcanos and the occasional earthquake. We live in a hot and humid area but other parts of the country are perfect weather and can get downright cold. Most of the population lives in the central valley of the country near San Jose--which has some highly developed and high end areas that are reminiscent of some US cities. (Though San Jose is not a beautiful city nor recommended to visit much.) However, most of the country is still quite rural and underdeveloped.

Overall, we have been underwhelmed by Costa Rica and are looking forward to moving on.

5. I'm interested in traveling to Costa Rica. Do you have any advice?

You should come to Costa Rica if you want to see wildlife, visit and swim in waterfalls, surf, go on adventure tours, and get a feel for what this country is like. Some people like to go sports fishing here out on pricey boats. If you like Mexico, and wish it was more like Hawaii (Kauai), Costa Rica might be the place for you. Visit all of the places we're blogging about. Costa Rica isn't for everyone and we've heard much of the hippy vibe from 20 years ago has largely disappeared with more and more areas catering for the money.

If we were to come back to CR again, we'd book a complete package vacation between 10-14 days. The kind where it includes all the transportation, all the adventure tours, all the hotels, and most of the meals. It might even include your flight. Renting a car during the dry/high season of Dec-April will cost at least $100/day, and planning all the things takes a ton of time and research that you might get wrong. Where should we eat? Is this a good location to stay? Which tour company should we zip line with or chocolate tour with? Having someone else make all those decisions for you, and drive you around, will really allow you to relax and enjoy the country. Doing it all on your own is not worth the few bucks you will save unless you're really into getting to know the "real" Costa Rica....and we're not sure there's much to get to know.

6. What are the downsides of Costa Rica?

• Costa Rica is the most expense Latin American country. Prices are similar to US cities.

• The food is not special and it's hard to find diversity. The cuisine of the country is rice and beans and plantains. Maybe ceviche. CR is not for foodies.

• There is little to no vibrant culture, art, music, clothing, or style that defines Costa Rica.

• The indigenous populations are obscure and diminishing.

• There are no ruins or vestiges of ancient cultures save some round rocks.

• Outside of resorts and wealthy city neighborhoods, CR is underdeveloped and rustic with 25% poverty and 17% unemployment.

• There is no highway system and maybe 30% of the roads are pretty bad. Any given car trip may average about 20-30 miles per hour.

• A high percentage of drivers are rude and dangerous. not a fun place to drive, especially dangerous at night due to poor lighting, poor markers/lines and people walking and biking on the side without lights or reflectors.

7. OK, so what's so great about Costa Rica?

• It's generally safe. After about 3 months we have not witnessed nor heard of any crime other than prostitution (unforunately).

• The people are often (not always) genuine and friendly, whether they're getting your money or not.

• Rich diversity of plants and animals. Lots of cool wildlife to see.

• The tours have been great and usually worth the money.

• The government seems to be fairly functional: There's compulsory school in every town and nationalized health care, the roads are being worked on, and cartels and corruption are minimal compared with central and south american neighbors.

• Some nice beaches and the water is always warm. World class fishing and surfing.

• As you'd expect in a tropical country, there's great fruit and coffee to be had!

• Lots of waterfalls and rivers to see and swim in.

• The weather is almost perfect in much of the country, warmer on the coasts.

• The people are proud of their country and generally happy/satisfied.

• Good, clean driking water out of the tap.

8. What are some common misconceptions about Costa Rica?

• Decent snorkeling is hard to find. It's not a snorkeling destination.

• It doesn't rain all the time. Now in the dry season we get rain maybe 30-60 minutes a week. Even in the wet season locals say it's not that bad as it's often dry for most of the day before rain comes in the afternoon/evening.

• There aren't snakes, spiders and scorpions everywhere trying to get you. In our and most peoples' experience you have to go out looking for these things to find them.

• Biting insects like mosquitos, ants and no-see-ums are about as prevelant as most suburbs in the US. We've had some bites but nothing abnormal. It usually happens on the patio just after sunset. Even in the jungle we haven't had to use insect repellent. Most houses and hotels don't have screens and don't need them

• Not all the beaches are beautiful. All beaches are public but many resorts and gated communities have done a good job of building the only private gated road to the nice beach.

• If you're at the beach, you need shade. Laying in this sun on the beach is not comfortable. Shady spots fill up quick.

• You probably don't need a 4x4 to get where you want to go. Some back-country mountain roads and obscure river crossings in the rainy season (with a car snorkel) would be about the only exceptions. Most unpaved roads are fine for a small front wheel car. And of course it depends on the driver as one time in our little compact we passed a big 4x4 that was stuck.