One of the most pristine beaches in Costa Rica is home to luxury resorts, spectacular real estate, lush vegetation, sugary sands, and yellow-bellied snakes that slither right out of the ocean and give some people a good scare. Playa Flamingo is located on the Gold Coast of Guanacaste, one of the hottest tourist spots in Costa Rica, and it is here where sightings of Pelamis platura, yellow-bellied ...

At the Central American and Caribbean Games in Veracruz, athletes from Costa Rica are doing their best to bring home medals and glory even as violent protests and deep civil unrest are marring the activities. There are 31 Latin American and Caribbean nations participating in this event, which is being conducted at a time when the people of Mexico are deeply unsettled about the unknown status of 43...

On November 14th, the Big 3 wireless service providers in Costa Rica officially began offering the long-awaited Apple iPhone 6 and the oversized iPhone 6 Plus to eager shoppers. As reported by The Costa Rica Star, the Superintendency of Telecommunications (Spanish acronym: SUTEL) recently issued technical approval of the new Apple smartphones and their operating systems, even though they were alre...

The governments and civil society of Costa Rica and Mexico are pleased to announce that the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Regional Meeting for the Americas will take place in San José, Costa Rica on 18-19 November 2014. This meeting will be preceded by a Civil Society Day, which will take place on November 17. The Open Government Partnership currently includes 17 participant countries from ...

Outside of La Terraza (The Terrace) Restaurant & Bar, a known nightspot located in the heart of San Jose, a group of gender equality activists staged a loud protest on Saturday night as patrons lined up to enter this well-known dancing and drinking establishment. As reported by metro reporter Laura Ruiz of daily newspaper La Prensa Libre, a kiss between a same-gender couple was the reason for ...

A medical device outsourcing firm based in Galway, province of Connacht, has acquired the assets of a foreign firm operating in Costa Rica that could result in additional jobs for their manufacturing facility in Heredia, a municipality where outsourcing is a major industry. According to a recent news article by Gavin Daly of the Sunday Times of London, Creganna, a Galway-based medtech group, is li...

Ricardo Gareca and Miguel Angel Russo are veteran football players and coaches from Argentina who could elevate the National Men's Football Team of Costa Rica, fondly known as La Sele, to higher international ranking within FIFA. These two football professionals are in line to replace current interim coach Paulo Cesar Wanchope, who took over coaching duties from Colombian tactician Jorge Luis Pint...

On Thursday night, former Minister of Foreign Affairs Enrique Castillo Barrantes was awarded one of the highest honors issued by the French Republic. The ceremony took place at the diplomatic residence of Jean-Baptiste Chauvin, Ambassador of France to Costa Rica, and Mr. Castillo was accompanied by relatives, friends and the current Minister of Foreign Affairs Manuel Gonzalez Saenz. Mr. Castill...

Black Friday in the US. Source: Wikimedia Commons On Friday evening, traffic jams near major shopping centers located within the Greater San Jose Metropolitan Area (Spanish acronym: GAM) served as a reminder to drivers in Costa Rica that Black November is now in full effect ahead of Black Friday. Exacerbating the situation was the fact that mid-month payment for most workers took place this Fr...

Source: Spirit One of the most successful discount airlines in the United States recently announced an increase in the frequency of its flights between Houston and Costa Rica starting on May 28, 2015. Earlier this year, Spirit Airlines made news when it repainted many of its aircraft in a bold and bright yellow pattern that makes their passenger jets look like big New York City taxis in the sk...

At Finca 6 in Palmar Sur of the Osa canton yesterday, President Luis Guillermo Solis and representatives from the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) unveiled the official plaque commemorating the declaration of the National Park of the Stone Spheres as a World Heritage Site. The Mayor of the Osa canton and officials from the National Museum of Costa Rica we...

Grupo Nacion, the most powerful media group in Costa Rica, is restructuring its operations by shutting down two daily newspapers and a monthly magazine. Sports daily Al Dia will cease publishing in late November and home design magazine Su Casa will circulate for the last time in December. The other news daily being axed is Ahora, which was a trial newspaper that aimed to reach younger middle clas...

At a recent gathering that took place in the capital city of Costa Rica, men wearing ceremonial garb over their business suits conferred about topics such as apprenticeships, fellowcraft, medallions, seals, rituals, and the famous Scottish poet Robert Burns. This special meeting was presided by a special guest from a faraway land who bore gifts, including a medallion that was placed in a museum de...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL It’s official: The National Men’s Football Team of Costa Rica is no longer an underdog, but still needs to match the brilliance of the defensive backline that put Tico players in the quarterfinals of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. La Sele, as the team is affectionately known in Costa Rica, gave fans plenty of reasons to cheer as they matched up against their counterparts...

Source: RSN UCR There is a new and attractive lake atop the crater of the Turrialba volcano in the province of Cartago; alas, volcano tourists should not yet rejoice. The park remains closed and under yellow alert due to an early morning eruption on Thursday, which sent heavy plumes of ash followed by a gas exhalation phase. Needless to say, the lake is strictly off-limits to swimmers. &nbs...

Sustainable tourism is alive and well in Costa Rica; in fact, more travel agencies and tour operators are putting together packages for lovers of the outdoors who wish to get really close to pristine nature. To this end, it is important for travelers to ensure that their tour operator is properly accredited with a Certificate for Sustainable Tourism issued by the National Board of Tourism (Spanish...

Despite economic uncertainty in Costa Rica, the luxury real estate development sector has experienced a solid year. This is specially the case in the Gold Coast beaches of Guanacaste, where developers are continuing to build exuberant gated communities in the highlands so that residents can enjoy sweeping vistas of the Pacific Ocean. One such project breaking ground at this time is Las Ventanas de...

Although stakes are high for the National Men’s Football Teams of Costa Rica and Uruguay as they match up later this afternoon at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, betting action on this rematch between World Cup foes has been mostly subdued. Most of the attention for this match is on star striker Luis Suarez of Uruguay, who has gained accolades for his unmatched football skills and infamy for...

The information technology (IT) scene in Costa Rica is growing and flourishing at a desirable pace. As recently reported by The Costa Rica Star, the Gold Coast of Guanacaste is now home to an international hacker retreat and a programming boot camp. Hackathons, collaborative events that last from a few hours to a few days for the purposes of nurturing special IT projects and creativity, are becomi...

Over the last few years, the luxury travel segment has managed to flourish despite most of the world still being challenged by the global financial crisis that started in earnest back in 2008. As demand for luxury tourism increases, Costa Rica is being added as a special destination with greater frequency, Here's a recent press release by Four Seasons, a luxury brand that offers private jet advent...

First there was the Big Mac Index, then the Casado Index and now the Arroz con Pollo (Chicken Rice) Index. Costa Rica has no shortage of innovative and highly informal methods of pointing out the numerous shortcomings of the national economy. As previously reported by The Costa Rica Star, our country is not as expensive as the Big Mac Index, created by The Economist, suggests. When it comes to pur...

Our dear readers who live in the United States, specifically in the Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia, will be able to benefit Costa Rica by recycling their bicycles during the 2014 America Recycles Day later this week. Non-profit organization Bikes for the World is participating in a special campaign sponsored under the Keep America Beautiful umbrella, and they are working in conjunc...

Whereas unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, commonly referred to as “drones”) routinely make headlines for their use in wartime operations, surveillance and invasive law enforcement, in Costa Rica they are used for science. As reported by The Costa Rica Star in late 2011, The Center for the Investigation of Nuclear and Particle Science (Spanish acronym: CICANUM) of the University of Costa Rica (UCR) u...

Following an official staff visit (known as a mission) by representatives from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to Costa Rica, the mission's preliminary findings have been published with the consent of our country's authorities on finance and economics. You can read the entire text of the Concluding Statement at the IMF website; The Costa Rica Star is pleased to bring you the following highli...

The traditional seafood cocktail of Costa Rica is known as ceviche, but the Institute of Pacific Ports in Costa Rica (Spanish acronym: INCOP) insists on writing it as cebiche. Nonetheless, the INCOP, the National Tourism Board (Spanish initials: ICT) and Travel Show Expo have put together a weekend festival in celebrating this dish.   According to travel reporter Gianluca Boncompagni of...

Costa Rica is quickly becoming a hub for regional and international business conventions. For TyreExpo2015, organizers have even scheduled Hall of Fame Astronaut Franklin Chang-Diaz, whom we interviewed in 2011 about the up-and-coming aerospace industry in our country. TyreExpo is the preeminent international trade fair for the tire and accessories industry, bringing together suppliers and buyers ...

The United States today celebrates Veterans Day, and in Costa Rica the American expat community often gathers to celebrate those who served their country’s Armed Forces.   Author’s Note: The use of the noun and adjective “American” in this article conforms to the definition in Princeton’s WordNet: (A native or inhabitant of the United States), and the recommendation by the Associated Pres...

UN-Cruise Ship La Pinta Un-Cruise Adventures is a specialty line of cruise ships that emphasize in luxury and adventure on smaller vessels. This unique cruise line is the recipient of the 2016 Reader's Choice Award by Porthole Cruise Magazine, and CEO Dan Blanchard took the opportunity to announce the inclusion of Costa Rica as a destination for the 2016 cruise season. Here's the official pres...

German airline Condor is the latest European carrier increasing its number of flights to Costa Rica. Such is the report by Tatiana Gutierrez Wa-Chong of business weekly El Financiero, published by Grupo Nacion. The new flight on Tuesday increases the number of flights between Frankfurt and the Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO) to three per week.   The new Condor flight connect...

Sixteen musicians from Costa Rica, including Carlos Vargas and Edin Solis, accompany Canadian music star Alanis Morrissette in The Morning, a song commissioned by Italian coffee giant Illy to serenade the women who grow and export coffee enjoyed in European markets. Illy is known for its expert roasting of Arabica coffee beans that are specifically grown to be brewed and served in the espresso ...

Source: MSP In a single day, three medical evacuation flights carried out by members of the Air Surveillance Service (Spanish initials: SVA) of Costa Rica saved the lives of an elderly man, a pregnant woman and a little girl. Two of the rescue flights involved fixed-wing aircraft, and the other was carried out by a helicopter. The first emergency flight took place in Alto Telire, a remote i...

In the 20th century, Costa Rica was mostly a haven for surfers, backpackers and ecotourists. In the 21st century, Costa Rica has diversified its tourism offerings to welcome visitors who arrive here for adventure, business, culture, education, nightlife, scientific research, and other purposes. Luxury vacations are a segment that has grown considerably over the last few years, and Guanacaste is th...

Alvaro Umaña served as the first ever Minister of the Environment in Costa Rica. During his term as Minister, various conservation initiatives that are now standard in Costa Rica were first envisioned. Such initiatives include payment for environmental services, ecotourism certifications, carbon neutrality, and others. Mr. Umaña will be one of the keynote speakers at the upcoming Stanford Woods In...

The National Men's Football Team of Uruguay is not taking any chances when they match up against Costa Rica in Montevideo this Thursday. Uruguay has called up as many star players as possible for this highly expected rematch, which calls to mind the beginning of what would be an outstanding performance by Costa Rica at the FIFA World Cup in Brazil earlier this year. Source: CONCACAF Interim...

Brightstar Corp. is exactly the type of major foreign direct investment (FDI) that President Luis Guillermo Solis has been trying to bring to Costa Rica. This global supply chain and retail solutions provider for the wireless industry is headquartered in Miami, and its new operations center, located in Barreal de Heredia near the CENADA, is creating 150 jobs. Here's the official press release by t...

A special art project inspired by a buried treasure legend in Costa Rica will benefit nature conservation in one of our country's most cherished national parks. Earlier this year, a treasure chest was buried in Isla del Coco (Cocos Island) by a progressive art academy in Vienna, Austria. Later this week, the sole encrypted map to the hidden treasure will be auctioned off in New York City; however,...

Nadine Hays Pisani is a charming native of New Jersey who knows how to make her dreams come true. She quit her job and moved to Costa Rica a few years ago, and wrote a best-seller plus a sequel about her experience. Her latest book deals with the same topic, albeit with more of a “how-to” style of prose. Ms. Hays has kindly provided The Costa Rica Star with an excerpt of her new book, Happier Than...

In the late 20th century, the lovable city of San Jose was graced by Memories of Flight, a multi-media installation made of welded steel, aluminum mesh, slide projectors, and computer parts. It was a large and ghostly sculpture in four sections ranging in size from six feet to fifteen feet tall, ten feet wide. This sculpture by Marta Thoma Hall was commissioned by the National Museum of Art in Cos...

The waters surrounding Cocos Island of Costa Rica and the Galapagos Archipelago of Ecuador are two of the most important shark habitats in the world. These two nations have been working together to protect their shark treasures, and they recently contributed to the Convention on Migratory Species. Here's the official press release on this important marine conservation matter: Historic Advances in...

Source: Paul Freed, California Academy of Sciences A groundskeeper in Rio de Oro de Santa Ana, province of San Jose, was cleaning up weeds and brush in an empty lot when he suddenly ran into a creature that resembled a large snake, but far uglier and slimier. The groundskeeper was startled and could have hacked the unsightly organism to pieces with his machete; fortunately, he isolated the ani...