A nice home in Costa Rica Austin, TX (PRWEB) February 24, 2015 -  Keller Williams, the world’s largest real estate franchise by agent count, announced that it has awarded its first region in Central America to a group of business leaders led by Allen Lungo. “Over the past six years, I’ve talked with hundreds of Keller Williams agents and all of them have said it is the best company with whi...

Hummingbird Educational and scientific tourism are becoming very important  in the lucrative travel and hospitality sector in Costa Rica. To this end, it is not surprising to learn that a good number of university students from the United States make Costa Rica their first choice for study-abroad programs within the scientific curriculum. A good example of the type of educational and scient...

Source: OIJ Although Canadian businessman Ryan Craig Piercy Bate is reportedly back in the safety of his home in Heredia, there seem to be more doubts than conclusions related to his month-long disappearance. Some news sources reporting on this mysterious case in Costa Rica mention the possibility of a kidnapping event which came to an end after a ransom payment was made to alleged captors; ho...

Were You Can FInd Me Sheri Joseph has received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship and the Grub Street National Book Prize, among other awards. She lives in Atlanta and teaches in the creative writing program of Georgia State University. In her latest novel, Where You Can Find Me, features Costa Rica as a familiar fictional backdrop: A benevolent place where North Americans can escape...

Source: BlackBerry From about 2008 to 2012, a commonly asked question found across online forums of travel communities such as TripAdvisor, Lonely Planet and Fodor's Travel used to be: Will my BlackBerry work in Costa Rica? These days, that question seems to have vanished altogether along with the popularity of BlackBerry devices; however, faint signs of a resurgence of interest in these once-...

Source: Recovery Ranch One of the most important aspects of recovery from substance abuse is being able to once again provide meaningful contributions to society. Here is a very good example of such an action taking place in Costa Rica, specifically in the Nicoya region of the Guanacaste province. The Costa Rica Star thanks Recovery Ranch for this inspiring press release and for their excellen...

It has become almost fashionable to cite phenomena such as loss of habitat and climate change as the major causal agents for the extinction of certain wildlife species in Costa Rica. Such is the case of the golden toad as well as the harlequin frog and the hawksbill sea turtle (it is important to note, however, that biologists have recently observed a return of the latter two "Lazarus species" in ...

Alleged Greenwashing by Infinito Gold A mining company with a controversial track record in Costa Rica recently announced its acceptance of a loan from a major shareholder, and this temporary provision of funds is expected to float this embattled Canadian firm as it pursues a claim against Costa Rica. Readers of The Costa Rica Star are likely familiar with the saga of Infinito Gold in our c...

Source: Wikimedia Commons Luxury travel to Costa Rica is all the rage these days, and this is a trend that tour operators and travel consultants are paying close attention to. To this effect, Canadian travel agencies such as Vision Travel are focusing on putting together extensive tourism packages that encompass several regions of Costa Rica, and which require several days to visit. The idea i...

RCMP crest The strange case of missing Canadian entrepreneur Ryan Craig Piercy Bate, who was reported missing and possibly kidnapped in Costa Rica a little more than a month ago, has finally yielded positive news for his family. According to two news media outlets in Costa Rica, Mr. Piercy arrived in his home in Heredia, where he arrived around midnight on a Saturday via a red taxicab. Nati...

Source; ADTC A dance academy that specializes in summer camps for girls recently published a new video that explains their approach to dance instruction. The American Dance Training Camp features summer camp locations in seven different spot in the United States; its sole international location is Costa Rica, specifically in Playa Nosara. As it happens, the location in Costa Rica is very popul...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL On Day 2 of the IMG Suncoast Pro Classic, the U-23 Men's National Team of Costa Rica faced the Columbus Crew of the United States Major League Soccer (MLS), and lost by two goals to nothing. The Ticos are not looking good in this invitational tournament, which takes place at the prestigious IMG Academy in Bradenton, a Southwest Florida city that enjoys a strong football cult...

Source: Wikimedia Commons Drones are invading Costa Rica, and so far that seems to be a good thing. The Costa Rica Star has been recently reporting on the resurgence of aerial photography and filming in our country, which happens to be irresistible for aerial photographers and drone operators who like to attach cameras to their unmanned aircraft.   The masterful video below was rece...

Source: Baxter International The following corporate press release is kindly provided by Baxter International, a global healthcare firm that develops, manufactures and markets products that save and sustain the lives of people with hemophilia, immune disorders, infectious diseases, kidney disease, trauma, and other chronic and acute medical conditions. Baxter has a presence in Costa Rica and m...

Source: Wikimedia Commons The life and times of one of the most iconic and controversial musicians in the history of rock 'n' roll have been adapted for the stage by a Costa Rica-based author. Some readers of The Costa Rica Star and Jaco Beach residents are familiar with Britt Nelson, a man with a long and illustrious journalism career in the United States. Growing up in the DC area in the ...

Source: Pixabay Commons Although the online gaming and sports wagering industry in Costa Rica is under siege by United States law enforcement and by proposals that seek to allow and regulate Internet gambling in that country, the industry is not slowing down in terms of technological advancement. This much is evident by the following press release from PPHUSA.com:   San Jose, Costa ...

Source: Bue River Resort Guanacaste, Costa Rica, February 17, 2015 -- (PR.com) -- This year, Blue River Resort & Hot Springs was chosen by Fodor's for the service, quality, and value they offer every visitor at their resort.   Although each and every business that is included in Fodor’s Travel guide is deemed worthy of a traveler’s time, the Fodor’s Choice distinguishes hotels, ...

Wikimedia Commons As part of the ongoing bilateral relations between Costa Rica and the United States, our Minister of Foreign Affairs recently visited the White House and met with his counterpart, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. Two of the topics currently being discussed between these two nations include economic development and matters related to sustainable energy production. The follo...

Source: ITV The following press release was kindly provided by ITV on the eve of the debut of Bear Grylls: Mission Survive, which features Costa Rica as its reality television backdrop. First Episode: Eight celebrities face a 12-day survival mission unlike anything they’ve ever experienced before. To stay alive they must learn to navigate difficult terrain, build shelter, make fire and e...

K-9 Officer Lyra After a dangerous shootout that left two policemen wounded and an alleged robber dead in the eastern suburbs of San Jose, a tactical unit was tasked with looking for an armed suspect who fled the scene. It all happened during the morning rush hour of Thursday in the municipality of Curridabat, and the Directorate of Special Units became resolute on finding the suspect on the r...

Manuel Antonio Beach in Costa Rica The popular online travel reviews and advice website TripAdvisor recently announced its 2015 Traveler's Choice Awards, a tradition that is currently in its third year. It so happens that one of Costa Rica's most pristine stretches Pacific coastline made the list of the world's Top 20 Traveler's Choice Beaches in the World. Here is the introduction to the o...

Two recent attempts by government officials to undermine press freedom in Costa Rica were thwarted by competent legislative and judicial officials. One case involves access to government information that should be made available with full transparency, and the other involves undue snooping on journalists by law enforcement agents with the help of a former communications monopoly that used to be co...

The city of Liberia in the province of Guanacaste may soon be home to the first Industrial Park of Science and Technology in Central America. According to a news report recently filed by Fiorella Valle of Guanacaste online news daily Primero en Noticias, the intention to build this park was announced during a business and development forum that took place in the campus of EARTH University in Liber...

As part of the preparations for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the U-23 Football Team from Costa Rica chose to participate in the IMG Suncoast Pro Classic Tournament, which takes place at the prestigious IMG Academies in Bradenton, FL. Although the Men's National Football Team of Costa Rica is currently enjoying being ranked as number 13 by FIFA, the U-23 team clearly has lots of roo...

Source: Paints and Cocktails Costa Rica is quickly becoming a major destination for various types of learning programs. From Spanish as a Second Language to coding and from yoga to Krav Maga, quite a few international academies are choosing to establish a presence in Costa Rica in order to give students a fun and relaxing location to augment their learning. An interesting new academy, which wi...

Source: Green Lava The burgeoning sector of video game development in Costa Rica is picking up speed and attracting international attention. Thanks to an initiative by PROCOMER, which is a government agency in charge of marketing trade and exports, six video game development firms from Costa Rica will exhibit their work and expertise at one of the most important business expos in this field. T...

Source: Wikimedia Commons A Costa Rican citizen will spend the next three years incarcerated in a federal prison in the United States. Maxim Chukharev is a Russian man of Uzbek ethnicity who arrived in Costa Rica in his late teens and later became a naturalized citizen. He was indicted in 2013 by the United States Attorney General for his participation in the Liberty Reserve case. As previo...

Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo in Guanacaste Right before Christmas 2014, The Costa Rica Star reported that the Forbes Travel Guide, previously known as Mobil Travel Guide, chose our country as one their markets for the purpose of rating hotels and restaurants. Joining this prestigious travel information resource was a matter of pride for Costa Rica, and it did not take l...

CIMA Hospital in San Jose is often visited by medical tourists Baltimore, MD (PRWEB) February 12, 2015 - Living in a sunny, low-cost, laidback destination overseas doesn't mean foregoing good healthcare. In many countries outside the U.S., the healthcare is excellent and affordable. Malaysia received the top score in the healthcare category of International Living’s just- released Annual Gl...

The Greenback If the way you make a living in Costa Rica consists of getting paid in United States dollars (USD), there a couple of things you should know about what your financial future might hold now that the greenback is no longer tied to currency exchange bands. As recently reported by The Costa Rica Star, the Central Bank decided to get rid of the currency exchange bands, which had a min...

Source: Vista Celestial Over the last few years, luxury has been one of the most visible trends within the tourism industry of Costa Rica. There used to be a time when traveling to Costa Rica meant modest accommodations, spartan customer service and functional transportation. To this effect, Costa Rica was mostly known as an ideal destination for backpackers and budget travelers. These days, how...

Wikimedia Commons For a term of 12 months, an upscale resort in the dry province of Guanacaste will provide some neighboring communities with desperately needed water. The resort in question is the Reserva Conchal, which has ceded rights to a local utility so that water can be extracted from the Nimboyores aquifer located beneath the surface of this private property. An agreement between Re...

Source: PSU The following press release was originally published by News Services department of Plymouth State University in New Hampshire.  PLYMOUTH, N.H. – A dozen Plymouth State University student nurses spent the first 10 days of the new year in Costa Rica, home of some of the world’s most pristine rain forests and beaches. But these students weren’t on vacation; in fact, they were hard...

Playa Samara Triathlon Over the last few years, Costa Rica has become the number one destination for adventure sports and high-endurance athletic competitions. Many of these events take place in the Guanacaste region, and thus many athletes have already made this province their temporary home for training purposes. Runners, competitive cyclists, open water swimmers, and endurance hikers who tr...

Source: Modernize.com This article, written by Jane Blanchard, was kindly provided by Modernize, an Austin, TX-based provider of residential construction and renovation solutions. The Republic of Costa Rica is a patchwork quilt of micro climates. In Playas Del Coco, on the westward Pacific coast, leisure travelers snorkel in blue-gray waters warmed by abundant sunlight and fed by 55 inches ...

Basel, Switzerland The Embassy of Costa Rica in Switzerland reports high interest in our country at a recent Travel and Tourism Expo in the large city of Basel, which is strategically located right on the border with France and Germany. According to an institutional communiqué issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Costa Rica was represented along with the Embassies of Chile, Peru and Vene...

Source: Fuerza Publica Fuerza Publica officers assigned to the National Border Police of Costa Rica spent an entire night walking across beaches, rivers and the thick jungle of Burica, near the southern border with Panama, to rescue an indigenous child of the Ngöbe Bugle (or guaymí) ethnicity. The child was suffering from an acute and dangerous infection due to a wound that he had sustained da...

Pixabay Commons CANCUN, Mexico--(Business Wire)--For several years, the Kaspersky Lab Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT) has been closely monitoring more than 60 advanced threat actors responsible for cyber-attacks worldwide. The team has seen nearly everything, with attacks becoming increasingly complex as more nation-states got involved and tried to arm themselves with the most advanc...

Super Mora During 2014, grocery retailers in Costa Rica continued to focus on offering attractive value relations to consumers, which were mainly represented by discounts and offers in the case of supermarkets (even in the case of the high- end players), hypermarkets and discounters, while convenience stores remained committed with offering time-saving, differentiated items and product availa...

Toucan in Costa Rica Nature conservation and reforestation efforts in Costa Rica are certainly paying off for coffee producers, land owners, tourism and hospitality operators, and -of course- birdwatchers. Just about any visitor who stays at an eco-resort in Costa Rica is bound to enjoy birdwatching whether they planned it or not. Here's a recent press release on this topic: Manuel Antonio, Cos...