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Costa Rica Posts Record First Half for Tourism Even as June Arrivals Dip
Costa Rica welcomed more visitors by air in the first half of 2026 than in any comparable period on record, even as June delivered the first monthly decline the sector has seen since last autumn, according to figures released by the Instituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT). Between January and June, 1,605,360 travelers arrived by air, […] The post Costa Rica
High Surf hits Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast with Rip Current Risk
If you’re planning beach days on the Caribbean side over the next several days, plan for rough water. Waves are running above two meters and could climb to around three meters — roughly 10 feet — along Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast, and the bigger swell brings a real risk of rip currents, choppy seas and […] The post High Surf hits Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coas
Dead Sperm Whale Removed From Natural Pool Near Cahuita
A sperm whale measuring between eight and nine meters (26 to 30 feet) was found dead in a natural pool near Cahuita, on Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean coast, drawing a multi-agency response to remove the remains from a site that heavy machinery could not reach. The animal — a sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus, the largest […] The post Dead Sperm Whale Rem
Dollar hits record low in Costa Rica for third straight day
If your income arrives in dollars — a pension, Social Security, remote-work pay or rent from a property back home — this week quietly shrank it. The dollar closed at ¢450.63 on the wholesale Monex market yesterday, the lowest level since Costa Rica’s Central Bank (BCCR) began its current series in December 2007. It was […] The post Dollar hits record low in
Costa Rica Animal Welfare Bill Would Reshape Rules for Breeders and Festivals
An animal welfare bill now before the Legislative Assembly would require veterinary supervision for anyone who breeds animals commercially, impose new operating standards on shelters and animal displays, and raise the maximum fine for the most serious cruelty offenses to more than ¢23 million, roughly $51,000 at the current exchange rate. Frente Amplio legis
Costa Rica Detains Immigration Officer Over Alleged Airport Scheme
Costa Rican anti-corruption prosecutors detained an immigration officer on Wednesday and searched her workplace and her home as part of an investigation into whether she helped a foreign national — flagged as high-risk and allegedly connected to an international terrorist organization — enter the country under false pretenses. The Fiscalía Adjunta de Probida
A Little-Known Tick Virus Turns Up in Costa Rica for the First Time
Costa Rican scientists have detected the Jingmen tick virus in the country for the first time, the earliest confirmed presence of the pathogen anywhere in Central America. The finding, led by researchers at the University of Costa Rica (UCR) and published in the peer-reviewed journal Microbiology Spectrum in June 2026, identified the virus in Amblyomma […] T
Liquid Blue Co-Founder Michael Vangerov Dies in Car Accident
Michael Vangerov, a founding guitarist of the internationally touring band Liquid Blue and a fixture of the live music scene along Costa Rica’s South Pacific coast for the better part of a decade, died last Friday in a highway accident near Uvita. First responders estimated him to be about 70. The accident happened around 6:45 […] The post Liquid Blue Co-Fou
How to Avoid Fake Weight-Loss Injections in Costa Rica
If you are shopping for a weekly weight-loss shot in Costa Rica, start with one fact that changes everything else: the drug most people are asking for by name is not legally sold here. Tirzepatide — the ingredient in Mounjaro and Zepbound — has no sanitary registration with the Ministry of Salud. Its maker, Eli […] The post How to Avoid Fake Weight-Loss Inje
Costa Rica Tightens Immigration Enforcement in the Central Valley
If you live in or are passing through Costa Rica’s Central Valley, keep your immigration papers on you. Migración has announced a fresh round of document checks across the Greater Metropolitan Area, and the simplest way to avoid a problem is to be able to prove your status on the spot. Here is what that […] The post Costa Rica Tightens Immigration Enforcemen
Costa Rica’s Guanacaste Airport Gets First Direct Washington D.C. Flights
Costa Rica’s Guanacaste airport in Liberia will receive its first nonstop flights from the Washington, D.C. area this December, giving travelers from the U.S. capital region a direct route to Costa Rica’s Pacific coast during the busy holiday season. United Airlines will operate daily flights between Washington Dulles International Airport and Guanacaste Air
Costa Rica Investigates Development Inside Wildlife Corridor
Costa Rica’s Comptroller General has ordered immediate inspections of three properties in southern Costa Rica after satellite images revealed possible forest clearing, earthworks, new roads and construction without the required permits. The binding order, issued yesterday, directs the Municipality of Osa and the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC)
Costa Rica Capital Reverses Course on Restaurant and Bar Restriction
San José’s municipal government is moving to discard a proposed entertainment regulation that would have restricted dancing, live music, DJs and karaoke at restaurants and bars, following several days of criticism from artists, business owners and nightlife workers. The San José City Council was expected to vote Tuesday evening to stop the regulation’s appro
Costa Rica Faces Heavy Rain and Gusty Winds From a Tropical Wave
Expect a wet, blustery day today. A tropical wave is crossing and it will bring heavier rain and gusty winds through the morning before it pulls away toward the Pacific in the afternoon. The rain comes first and hits hardest in the Caribbean and the Northern Zone, where you likely woke up to downpours. The […] The post Costa Rica Faces Heavy Rain and Gusty W
Costa Rica’s CCSS Board Paralysis Leaves Health Decisions in Limbo
The board of directors of the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS), the institution that runs Costa Rica’s public health and pension systems, has gone more than two months without holding a formal session, leaving a growing backlog of decisions on hospitals, medicine, waiting lists and pensions waiting to be addressed. The stalemate stems from […] The
Netflix Documentary Revisits Kaitlin Armstrong’s Capture in Costa Rica
A Netflix true-crime documentary is bringing renewed attention to the case of an American murder suspect who hid in Costa Rica before investigators used a fake yoga job advertisement to track her to a beachfront hostel in Santa Teresa. The Truth and Tragedy of Moriah Wilson examines the 2022 killing of Anna Moriah “Mo” Wilson, […] The post Netflix Documentar
Costa Rica Pelicans Test Negative for Avian Flu as Mystery Continues
Pelicans found weak, disoriented or behaving unusually along Costa Rica’s Pacific coast have tested negative for avian influenza, but authorities still do not know what is affecting the birds. The results provide an important update to warnings issued last week after reports of sick pelicans increased in Guanacaste, Jacó, Puntarenas and other coastal areas.
Costa Rica’s First Fogo de Chão Will Open in Escazú
Brazilian steakhouse chain Fogo de Chão should be opening its first restaurant in Costa Rica this month, bringing its fire-roasted meats and tableside dining format to the Sheraton Hotel in Escazú. The restaurant will operate through Fuego Tico S.A., part of a business group that manages more than 80 locations belonging to international brands in […] The pos
Costa Rica Faces an Overlooked Crisis as Road Deaths Reach 903
Costa Rica recorded 903 traffic deaths in 2025, going beyond the 873 homicide victims and exposing a public safety crisis that receives far less attention than organized crime and violent crime. The road toll was the highest recorded in at least 12 years. It surpassed the 887 traffic deaths reported in 2023 and amounted to […] The post Costa Rica Faces an Ov
Former Costa Rica Football Chief Challenges FIFAGate Conviction
More than a decade after the FIFAGate corruption scandal shook international football, former Costa Rican Football Federation president Eduardo Li has renewed his attempt to overturn his US conviction and recover more than $683,000 paid under his sentence. Li’s attorneys submitted updated arguments Monday to the US District Court for the Eastern District of