Like many tropical countries 2 main seasons exists in Costa Rica: dry and wet season. The dry season more or less lasts from end December until mid-April, the rest of the year is rainy season. During the wet season there is a lot of precipitation, the rains often concentrated in heavy showers during a couple of hours in the afternoon, so the morning being sunny and enjoyable.

The Caribbean lowlands are in general much wetter than the rest of the country, the dry season being much shorter. The lowlands of the northwest is the driest area of Costa Rica: dry season starts in November and lasts until the end of April. The southern Pacific are much wetter with rain during almost the whole year, during the dry season a little less. The highlands in general are very wet in the wet season and very dry in the dry season. With other words: be prepared to get wet, and bring raingear and / or umbrella when coming to Costa Rica, even in the dry season.

In Costa Rica the temperature hardly varies over the course of the year, but does vary with the altitude. The Caribean lowlands have an average day temperature of 30 °C, in the Pacific lowlands it can be a few degrees warmer. The capital San José, located in the central highlands has an average temperature of 20 °C.

For visiting Costa Rica there are no vaccinations obliged. Reccomanded, however are vaccinations against Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B. Please contact your doctor about this. Malaria and dengue are sporadicaly reported in remote Caribbean lowlands. Packages offered by Aratinga tours will never include malaria nor dengue risk area.

Costa Rica’s currency is the "colon". There are coins of 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 500, and bills of 1000, 2000, 5000 and 10 000 colones. When traveling in Costa Rica we reccomand to bring US dollars in cash and in American Express traveller cheques. In both cases try to bring small bills, since that will make changing them in the local currency easier. In most places you can also pay in US dollar.

The Euro is still not very known in Costa Rica and can only be changed in the Banco Nacional de Costa Rica. One US dollar is 500 colones; one Euro is 615 colones (January 2006). ATM machines are common in most cities. In many hotels and restaurants the major credita cards are also accepted.

For visiting Costa Rica you will need an international passport that will not expire for the following 6 months after your arrival back home. As a tourist you can stay 90 days in the country. Reccomanded is to always bring a copy of your passport and of your travel insurarnce papers.

In Costa Rica the electrical current is 110 V AC at 60 Hz and plugs are two flat prongs (same as USA).

Like many other places all over the world you will have to take good care of your belongings in Costa Rica, especially in San José, and other places with large concentrations of tourists. Leave as much of your jewelery at home and always try to leave important documents and big amounts of cash in your hotel save or at the hotel reception. This might costs a few extra colones, but will give you a safe feeling.

Outgoing mail can be delivered directly to the post office or at your hotel reception. Airmail letters to North America / Europe / Australia cost about 0.24 /0.29/0.31 usd for the first 20 g. Letters usually arrive within a week to North America, about 2 to 3 weeks to Europe and Australia. Public phones are widespread in Costa Rica and can be used to call abroad. Herefore you will have to buy a "Colibrí" telephone cared, widely available in supermarkets and smaller grocery stores. To make an international call you have to dial 00 + country code. Every decent hotel will also dhave acces to a telephone for calling abroad.To phone to Costa Rica from abroad you will need to dial the international code: 506 before the seven digit number.

Costa Rica is six hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), which means that Costa Rican time is equivalent to Central Time in North America. There is no daylight saving time.

In general Costa Ricfa offers decent international and national meals for relatively little money. Rice, black beans and fried plantains will be prepared regulary in local dishes. Try also the refreshing ceviche: a delish fish or the tamal: mashed corn with meat and vegetables, cooked in a bananaleaf.

There is a wide offer of sodas and alcoholic beverages. Reccomanded are the healthy fresh fruit juices (refresco's naturales).