Has anyone travelled to Costa Rica recently? I see there is a travel advisory from the Canadian Government "Exercise a high degree of caution". I was thinking of a trip in January, but now a bit concerned. I was hoping to rent a car. Please let me know how you found your travels, and whether you were concerned with crime while travelling.
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Chris Myden
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This is a great example of why I'm not a fan of the travel advisory website, especially the labels it uses for the 4 categories. The travel advisory website is often one of the first that people run across when Googling around for safety concerns.
The descriptions can make some very safe countries sound extremely dangerous, and I'm sure scares away a certain percentage of people that are otherwise unfamiliar with the country.
The same 'Exercise a high degree of caution' label is also currently assigned to: France, Germany, the UK, Belgium, Denmark, and Sweden and 90 other countries (yes, just under 50% of the world's countries have been painted with the same brushstroke).
I mean, when you can make *Denmark* (#2 on the Global Peace Index) sound scary, I don't think any country has a chance of being perceived fairly from the information given on the website...
https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/denmark
"Pickpockets and purse snatchers may work in teams. One person will distract the victim while another commits the robbery.
"Be particularly alert in hotel lobbies and breakfast rooms because they attract professional, well-dressed thieves. These thieves blend in with the guests and target the bags and purses of distracted patrons."
"Ensure that your personal belongings, including passport and other travel documents, are secure at all times."
"Gang-related violence can occur in Copenhagen,"
"There is a threat of terrorism in Europe. Terrorists have carried out attacks in several European cities and further attacks are likely."
"Demonstrations occur from time to time in larger urban centres. Even peaceful demonstrations can turn violent at any time."
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They use the same generic, hyperbolic, 'worst case scenario' phrases over and over on the profiles for nearly every country.
But a person looking at the listing for one specific country would not realize this and it scares them.
"Even peaceful demonstrations can turn violent at any time."
They may as well write: "This country is known for their falafel. A person could choke while ingesting falafel.'
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Here's the way I would interpret the 4 categories on the travel advisory website:
https://travel.gc.ca/travelling/advisories
'Take normal security precautions' = about as safe as countries get, but use common sense.
'Exercise a high degree of caution' = as mentioned, 95 of the world's countries have been painted with the same brush stroke and assigned this label. There is a wide range of countries, from those that most would define as being very safe, to some countries that certainly have things to be aware of. By all means, do some better research but don't be scared off outright by the descriptions on the travel advisory website before doing that.
'Avoid non-essential travel' and 'Avoid all travel' = yeah, now we're getting into countries that most would consider as definitely having legitimate safety concerns even for experienced travellers using common sense.
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Try Googling for: country name, safety, reddit
Chances are you'll run across a discussion like this that paints a more accurate picture:
https://www.reddit.com/.../did_you_feel_safe_visiting.../
TRAVEL.GC.CA
Travel advice and advisories for Denmark

Carene Adams
Chris Myden thank you for this!

Chris Myden all media gov bullshit for the most part!!

Chris Myden if they didn't do advisories and something happened we'd be talking about how they should warn people.

Sherry but if it’s just the same repetitive bs, do you actually gain anything useful from it? Most of the Denmark warnings are much more applicable to the streets of Vancouver than Denmark

Karl maybe not, it needs to be very up to date and factual.

Chris Myden
Admin
All-star contributor
Well if that's the use case for it we could save a lot of time and tax payer expense with just a single travel advisory page: "Don't ever leave your house. Something bad might happen. Note: Meteorites have been known, on occasion, to strike houses."

Chris Myden exactly.

Chris Myden it’s a total bullshit cut and paste approach. I don’t even look at the governments warnings for the exact reasons just explained

Chris Myden I never use the gov't websites for anything, it is untrue for the most part or exaggerated. It's good to check on here with "live" people that are living there. Everywhere in the world had it's gangs, thieves, etc. Just have to be aware of your surroundings and not stand out to be a "target". That means not carrying much money, wearing "bling", carrying a large purse or bags from stores, looking around to see who is close to you & where. Just use common sense like you would anywhere.

Co-worker just went for a month with his whole family. Said it was the time of their lives.

I have travelled extensively and have visited Costa Rica (but 5 years ago ) it’s without a double the nicest Central American country I have been to - we were on the Caribbean side which maybe makes a difference as is less touristy- I found the people there to be kind and caring - had a waiter tell me they find Canadians are a lot like them - we had a car roads are fine but get a gps as locations can be hard to figure out sometimes

The American government website has a comprehensive list of travel advisories, and you may find that they assess the risk level more accurately. I generally rely on it before the Canadian government site
https://travel.state.gov/.../trave.../traveladvisories.html/
TRAVEL.STATE.GOV
Travel Advisories

Chris Myden
Admin
All-star contributor
I've also often seen the United Kingdom's advisory website proclaimed to be a bit more level-headed with their descriptions: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/costa-rica
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice

We were there for a month last Xmas with 7 of us, we have been 6 times and never had any issues. We have traveled extensively from coast to coast.

My 17 & 18 year old daughters went by themselves and they had a blast. Might I suggest a book for you to get over your fears https://freekidsbooks.org/tejus-shadow-dealing-with-fear/....
FREEKIDSBOOKS.ORG
Teju's Shadow - Dealing with fear - Free Kids Books

Rising contributor
Brad I have done a fair bit of travelling, and am not too worried about it. But thought I would ask because of the government standing. I’ll keep the book in mind for my grand daughter

Dyan it said that when we went in 2019/20. We rented an suv and traveled all over for a month. The people are kind and wonderful, we got pulled over by a police officer and had no idea why but showed our insurance and we were good to go. We never felt unsafe. We didn’t wander around at night and kept out things in a money belt and didn’t leave valuables in a vehicle. I live on Vancouver island and everything I did there I would do here. I absolutely loved it there. So much to see. Wildlife is amazing!!! We are going to Panama and Ecuador in January we loved it so much. If you want any more information or tips feel free to private message me

Dyan I live in Costa Rica. Most of what I read on these advisories makes me laugh. First of all... common sense. Wherever you travel you use that to keep your valuables close and don't carry it around. In Costa Rica... dress like you live here. Don't wear a bunch of expensive jewelry and make yourself a target for thieves. It's simple common sense. I've been here for 32 years. Had a bag stolen once but it was my own fault. I left it on the back of a chair (you get used to doing that in Canada but don't do it here!). But, I also knew enough to not carry a bunch of money with me. So I lost a credit card (easily replaced) and about $30. After that, I used more caution.
Now, I want you to come here feeling safe so just do that! You're fine here. Most violent actions here have to do with drugs and gangs. You're not likely to run into either. Rental cars can be a target so... leave it empty. Leave all your stuff at your hotel or house when you go to the beach. Only carry it when you're travelling around the country. Always carry your passport (that's mainly for the driver). The roads are fine. Driving after dark is not advisable. You may be stopped and asked for it and a bribe. It happens. Just play the innocent and they'll just wave you on. Rental cars are really expensive here so bear that in mind. There are private rentals that are cheaper. Feel free to PM me if you want more information but ... I live in San Jose so if you're flying into Liberia, I can't help with that. Only SJO. Money: use credit cards for major things and restaurants (make sure the bill is in colones, the local currency. That way you don't exchange into US as well. Carry some cash. I suggest an ATM and get out c200,000 which is about $500. CAD. Split it between you to carry it. Use that for smaller things like tips. You'll figure it out.
And yes, they love Canadians here. I'm here to help if you need it... just send me a PM.

Many of my friends recently traveled without incident (6 hour drive in from airport). The site can be out of date sometimes, for example see El Salvador which had no murders for over a year but Canadian gov has concerns about safety

I'm just returning from a 3 week trip alone with my two kids.We traveled all over the country and felt safe.Go for it! It's beautiful!

Rising contributor
Sandra how did you travel? Rental car? Bus??

Dyan We took shuttles

I have never heard of Costa Rica being dangerous.

I was there recently for a month. I haven’t looked to see if that advisory level has changed recently. My personal observations…there are less safe areas and more safe so look into it so you are aware, some of the roads are very rugged so check your driving routes of where you want to go and have a sturdy vehicle. The scariest thing for me was the excessive amount of large insects! Lots of women travel solo there. Hope that’s helpful. Enjoy!

Christin laughing at the "excessive amount of large insects." I have a cat. She's a cockroach hunter. Those huge things we get here in CR. They mostly live outdoors but still, they know how to fly! And the giant grasshoppers. Mostly, the bugs don't bother me but sometimes ... yeah.

Nel haha I travel constantly and I still can’t make peace with them

We’ve been 6x - last year was after a 2 year break due to pandemic- we’re heading back there in November- San Jose is like any big city but we don’t stay there - catch a smaller plane to Puerto Jimenez then a ride to Bosque Del Cabo (5th time) - prior to that we rented a car and drove from San Jose to Fortuna area - the side roads are terrible- the people are very friendly and honest/ we’ve never had an issue. The wildlife is plentiful and truly worth going to see!!

We rented a car, traveled down to Manuel Antonio, up to the Arenel Volcano region, then over to puerto Viejo area… only concerns were some nasty potholes and a flat tire, and some roads are not great but fine in a regular car. Use Waze instead of Google maps as Google sometimes thinks crossing rivers is a good idea.

You are safe

Costa Rica is pretty safe, but hold on tightly to you purse or backpack. Even ex-pat locals do this. BUT I wouldn't rent a car. The bus service is good, the roads not so much. Maybe a car for a day rental to go to a particular place, but the bus for any distance, imo.

I’ve been there 4 times and it’s one of my favourite countries! You have to be smart and take reasonable precautions (just like everywhere, including Canada), but it’s a beautiful country and I personally never felt unsafe at all, even when travelling as a solo female.

I’m always surprised that the US is never on this list. I consider it one of the scariest places.

Gaye Same, I'd rather travel anywhere else than the U,S.

Alan Parker
Gaye Totally agree. I have traveled in many ( so called ) 3rd world countries but have never felt as unsafe as in the USA which is also one of the most ignorant and socially unbalanced places on the planet.

Bette Jo Tunks
I was in CR just at start of pandemic. The only place that was sketchy was San Jose. The hotel warned me to carry pack on front. I’ve travelled a fair bit on my own and have been teased a bit from people I’ve met along the way, but I did appreciate the hotel’s warning. And just as heads up, Costa Rica regularly gets small earthquakes! Same hotel, in bed reading and bed started to shake. I went outside for a few minutes but all was good

My daughter and I spent three weeks there and had zero issues. Travelled between cities with shuttles. They have an amazing system that will bring you door to door

Rising contributor
Heather did you pre arrange shuttles prior to leaving? Or was that easily done there? Which cities did you travel to?

Dyan I used Bookaway or Interbus. Some I booked in advance, others when I was there. We flew in and out of San Jose, and stayed in La Fortuna, Monte Verde, Manuel Antonio and Drake Bay

Rising contributor
Thanks for the info, I need to get planning!