Another beach paradise, Costa Rica is one of a growing list of places that people can travel to in the Covid-mad world that we currently find ourselves in.  Their entry requirements are a little more strict than others, but still it is possible for every country (except for maybe the U.K. at the moment) to get in if they go through a few easy steps.

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Costa Rica is mostly known (for tourists) for its amazing and varied beaches.  For the most part, the beaches on the East side at the Caribbean sea are crystal clear and calm and the ones on the Pacific side contain some of the best surf available in this part of the world.  I have been to both and unless you are interested in surfing, I think the East side will probably be more appropriate for most people.

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The surf and tides on the West side can be considered dangerous by many and if you are the type of person that is expecting a Baywatch type of beach patrol to come and rescue your dumb ass when you ignore the warnings, you could find yourself in a bad situation.  However, if you use your head and enjoy surfing, there are few places as incredible as Costa Rica for surfing.  The waves are not world-class difficult, so it is also a fantastic place to learn to surf and there are many surf schools, as one would expect.

The prices for accommodation are dramatically lower than they normally would be and we can attribute this exclusively to the massive drop in tourism that has been created by the global pandemic.

<h3> Flights </h3>

The flights from the USA to Costa Rica are **ludicrously cheap** right now.  Despite the fact that this is a 9 hour flight, getting there from major USA airports are around or even less than $100.  Doing just a simple search on Expedia I was able to find flights out of NYC, DC, Denver, Chicago, and LA for around $100.  This is **unheard of** and honestly, if you have the time and money you may never see prices like this ever again.  

<h3> Accommodation </h3>

Hotels and bungalows on or near the beaches are going for about 1/4 to 1/3 what I remember them being and considering the fact that I haven't been there for over 5 years, these are absolutely incredible deals.  Once again, this is unlikely to stay this way once we have a non Covid-crazy planet, so if you have the chance, this might be the time to go!

<h3> Requirements to travel </h3> 

As of November of 2020, the PCR test is no longer required in order to enter the country.  You simply need to fill out the "health pass" that is simply a questionnaire that is available on [the Costa Rican government website](https://salud.go.cr/).

There is no quarantine required for entry to Costa Rica for all nationalities 

The usual visa rules apply and vary greatly depending on what country you are from.  For G8 countries the visas are free for 30 days.  Visas for longer stays are relatively inexpensive and again, vary depending on your country of origin.  Generally speaking if you are from a G8 country, these fees are so low that they are rather insignificant.  

You will also be required to obtain health insurance valued at US $50,000 and while that sounds like a crazy amount you might be surprised at how inexpensive travel insurance can be for this amount.  I haven't put any prices here because it varies *wildly* depending on how old you are and if you have any pre-existing conditions. 

You must also purchase a $2000 "prolonged lodging insurance" that is simply for covering the costs of accommodation should it become necessary to quarantine.  

These sums are rather generic and is what we are starting to see everywhere in the world that is opening up to travel.  

<h3> Overall costs </h3>

Because of the dramatically lowered prices on flights and accommodation which must be getting subsidized by someone, somewhere, the cost that you are going to face by purchasing insurance will easily be offset by the amount of money that you will NOT be spending on your other travel expenses.  If you have the ability to go there and work remotely, the internet speeds of Costa Rica rival that of the United States (according to a friend of mine who has lived and worked there for the past 7 years.)  

If I had the ability to make this journey and work remotely, I would definitely consider it and maybe you should as well.