No, not Taco Bell, and not running either, more like riding in an air-conditioned van with a dozen other Expats to Nicaragua and back.
One of the things that attracted us to Costa Rica, in addition to the beaches and Pura Vida, was the ease of staying in the country without getting a special Visa. If you go to Europe, say, France specifically, you can only stay for three months at a time and then you have to leave for three months. You can do this two times a year for a total of six months in any 27 countries in the whole of the Schengen Visa territory, basically the whole of the EU. So, if you don't have a specific Visa to be able to stay in the county you need to leave and can't come back for three months. That makes it kinda hard to settle in somewhere.
In Costa Rica, you only have to leave the country every three months, get your passport stamped from somewhere else, and come right back. There are no limits on how many times you can do this.
In the part of Costa Rica we are in that means heading up to Nicaragua. Just like everything else here, that is both easy and complicated, it's going to take you longer than you think unless it doesn't, and no one can tell you how much it will cost – if you need to make a border run to extend your time in CR here are some tips, based on our recent adventure to Nicaragua.
Get a Guide!
If you have your own car you can drive up to the border and sort this thing out for yourself but even if you're fluent in Spanish I wouldn't do it. There's a lot of parking in different places, stopping at multiple "offices", a very loose term for any number of concrete buildings where you show your passport and get some sort of stamped paper and pay someone $1 or $10 or $2. Then there's the whole miles-long line of semi-trucks waiting to cross that you can go around by driving head-on into cars in the oncoming traffic lane, which, how on earth would you think to do that if you just drove up there?
I asked our guide how long it took those trucks to cross. He shrugged, "Sometimes many hours, sometimes many days." As testimony to this, many tiny "towns" had formed along this route with small stores and restaurants, and drivers were out of their trucks, shopping, eating, and catching up with friends.
There are lots of companies who offer this service. We went on a group run with 13 people in our van. The trip costs about $70 per person, not including the fees at the border. And having done it I can attest that it's the way to go. You can also get a private guide who will either drive you or join you in your car and escort you through the process. I'm not sure what that costs.
No matter which way you choose to go here are some things to keep in mind as you plan your trip.
Border Run Basics #1: Bring US dollars, lots!
Border Run Basics #3: Bring a raincoat or umbrella.
#1: Bring US dollars, lots!
The tour company we booked with told us to bring at least $30 in small bills to pay fees at the border. On the bus, there was a lengthy discussion about how much it actually costs and the sum of many different more experienced ex-pats was, "it's hard to say." The tour guide helped clear it up by adding, "It depends on the day and which of the offices is open." All of this seemed sketchy and a bit off the rails to my very north American mind. It should be simple right? A standard procedure?
After having just done the border run I can tell you for certain I have no idea how much it cost. There was the first "office" which was $10, then $1 to walk into the door to the place where we would leave Costa Rica, then another dollar to walk into the building where we would enter Nicaragua, then $3 to enter that country. Then the whole thing repeated when we turned around and walked back to Costa Rica; $1 to get in the building, more money to the country we entered, etc., etc.
At one point, the border agent decided to speed up the process by taking all of us together as a group so we pooled our money together. Who knows if we got that right?
We followed our guide's advice and brought $30 plus a tad more just to be sure and all I know is that we had a little left over.
#2: Print your Proof of Exit
What's a Proof of Exit? Good question!
To enter Costa Rica you have to tell them where you're staying and when you plan to leave, in under 90 days, and prove that you are leaving, for example, showing a plane or bus ticket with your name and departure date (90 days or less away) on it.
If you already have your trip elsewhere scheduled be sure to print it out or take a screenshot of it. Cell service is notoriously unpredictable there and you won't be able to come back if you can't show that you plan to leave.
This has rarely been an issue for us since we make a lot of trips home to visit our young grandson, oh, and our kids too. But if you haven't planned your next trip out you still have to show that you will be leaving the county soooo...what do you do? There are quite a few services that can help you with bus tickets or "temporary" plane tickets. Here's a recent article about proof of onward travel that has info about Nicaragua as well as Panama, The Costa Rica Star.
You can also buy temporary plane tickets through companies like BestOnwardTravel.com or OnwardTicket.com. Here's an article about that, Plane Tickets.
This is a straightforward part of the border run and very easy if you've taken care of it ahead of time and a true panic if you haven't.
#3: Bring a Raincoat or Umbrella
Seriously, do it.
When my husband and I read this part of the email from the tour company, we both, separately, then together, decided that must just be a holdover from the rainy season where, of course, that makes sense. Here in Guanacaste, it hasn't rained a measurable amount since the end of November and we're now at the end of March. We opted not to bring any rain gear.
Sure enough, as soon as we crossed the border it started raining. The buildings and "offices" are all spread out with lots of open-air walking in between. Luckily, our intelligent and experienced guide brought plastic ponchos for us to borrow.
To Sum it Up!
Go with a guide
Bring small bills
Be patient
Print your paperwork
Bring drinks and snacks
Bring a sense of humor
Even if it hasn't rained in months, bring an umbrella
The saying in Costa Rica is Pura Vida. In our short time here I've learned that means anything from hello, to goodbye, to that's how it goes. If you're in a hurry, if you thrive on organization, if you need with every fiber in your being, for things to work out to your concise plan, I would not recommend coming to Costa Rica. But if you're good with "close enough" and flexible with the way it happens, this is the place for you. There is a lot of joy to be found in letting go and finding the flow.
Pura Vida, Ya'll!
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