Welcome to Costa Rica
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Welcome to Costa Rica _________________________________________________________________________ File Number ________________________________________________________________ Dear Guest On behalf of ARA Tours, we bid you a warm welcome to Costa Rica. During your stay, we are your contact in Costa Rica and will assure a smooth operation of your holiday at any time. You can reach us under the follow- ing address Physical Adress Postal Adress ARA Tours ARA Tours Sabana Sur Del Colegio de Médicos 100 Apdo. 799 – 1007 Centro Colón metros al este y 150 metros San José al sur, frente a la Universidad La Salle Costa Rica San José, Costa Rica Telephone: 2232 04 00 Opening hours: Operation Department: Fax: 2232 03 63 Country Code Costa Rica ++506 Monday – Friday: 07h00 – 19h00 Monday – Sunday e-mail: [email protected] Saturday: 08h00 – 16h00 In the Internet www.aratours.com Sunday: closed Telephone: 2232 04 00 Emergency: 8893 38 63 In our offi ce, we attend you in English, German, French, and of course Spanish. In case of emergency, please contact your guide or the hotel front desk. They are able to contact us outside of the offi ce hours and on weekends. Please read carefully all information enclosed to this travel documentation. It contains relevant information about your transfers, services booked for your trip and important recommendations for a smooth operation of your trip. Besides, you will fi nd in this documentation all ARA Tours service vouchers for your trip. Therefore, we recollect at the beginning of your trip the original vouchers you received from your tour operator and replace them with ARA Tours vouchers. We wish you a very pleasant, interesting, and memorable stay in Costa Rica. With best regards, The ARA Tours Team Discovering Costa Rica Natural paradise, garden Eden between Pacifi c and Atlantic Ocean, tropical hideaway between two oceans. These are some descriptions found in press articles, guidebooks, and travel reports describing Costa Rica. Soon, you will be able to experience that these statements are no exageration. Costa Rica features an aboundance of colours and shapes, fl ora and fauna. Additionally, peaceful, open-minded, happy and hospitable inhabitants enrich your stay. In the past years, the ever-growing fl ow of tourists generated a wide variety of activities and tourist products. There are many of ways for discovering that natural paradise. Enjoy the wide range of attractions, meet with lo- cals, exchange thoughts, get inspired by their love of life and take home precious energy from untouched nature! While enjoying your stay, please remember you are a guest and that locals have and live a differ- ent culture. Meet them with respect, help us to protect nature and discover it with the least pos- sible impact. Your visit to Costa Rica and your decision to visit national parks, remote villages and regions helps to protect nature and guarantees the locals an assured income. We thank you for this effort and wish you a very pleasant and interesting stay in Costa Rica, the natural paradise. Table of content Information from A – Z Air Connections / Domestic Flights Costa Rica offers a good and affordable network of domestic fl ights, operated by SANSA and NATURE AIR. Both companies feature safe and modern fl eets complying with all technical requirements and well-trained, experienced pilots. They serve every important destination. You can get information about itineraries and rates in our offi ce. Important: The baggage allowance on all domestic fl ights is 12 kg + a small cabin bag. On fully booked fl ights, your excess luggage will not be transported on the same plane for safety reasons. Clothing At high altitudes, it might be quite cold and you will be glad to have a jacket or a pullover at hand. Additionally, we recommend to bring along a light rain jacket. On jungle visits and at dusk or dawn, light and bright clothing covering your arms and legs is indicated as a protection against mosquitos. The correct type of footwear is also crucial for your trip. Light hiking shoes are a must for jungle walks. In general, light summer cloths are indicated all year round. For church visits, appropriate clothing is expected. In Costa Rica, topless or even naked sun- bathing is undesirable and inappropriate. Complaints If you are unhappy with one of our services or if you would like to make a complaint, please let us know im- mediately. You may contact us thorugh your tour guide, calling the offi ce or – in case of an urgent matter – the emergency phone. Deposits Some hotels and especially car rental companies may ask you to make a deposit with your credit card. You will have to sign an open credit card voucher without any amount on it. At hotels, this security deposit enables you to sign restaurant and bar checks instead of paying cash. At the end of your stay, the total amount consumed will be charged to your credit card. Car rental companies need the security deposit to be able to charge pos- sible damages to the car. Please remember to use the open credit card voucher to make your fi n al payment by inserting the amount, or to destroy the voucher before leaving. Food and Beverage Your guidebook will describe in detail the diversity of food and drinks in Costa Rica. Additionally, we would like to give you some precaution measures: We recommend drinking bottled water for being on the safe side. For be- ing really consistent, you should also reject ice cubes. Costa Rica is a highly hygienic country, and the Ministry of Health applies strict rules and regular inspections to restaurants. Luggage We recommend traveling with two pieces of luggage: one main suitcase and a smaller backpack or bag for ex- cursions and short multi-day roundtrips. If you are booked on a roundtrip including overnight stays in San José during or after the trip, we suggest taking the necessary items with you and leaving the main suitcase at your San José hotel. This accelerates the loading/unloading of buses, aircrafts, and boats on your trip. Besides, on all domestic fl ights and Tortuguero boat excursions baggage allowance is limited to 12 kg + small cabin bag. San José hotels offer safe storage, mostly free of charge. Money / Currency / Change / Credit Cards The local currency is the Costa Rican Colón. Be aware that only US$ in cash or traveller checks can be changed easily. Other currencies such as Euros or Pounds can only be changed at the headquarters of banks in San José and takes a signifi cant amount of time. For money changing, you must present your passport. Do never change money in the street with any type of “fl ying agent”. Credit cards are widely accepted in major cit- ies, hotels, restaurants, and shops around the country. Some smaller businesses and those without a phone connection may not accept credit cards. VISA is accepted with priority, while you might experience some dif- fi c ulties with MASTERCARD, AMERICAN EXPRESS or DINERS CLUB. If you travel with one of these cards, we recommend carrying always a cash reserve on you. Pharmacy / Medical Attention Medical care in San José is highly developed and in good conditions. San José has several public hospitals and some private clinics with European or US standards, e.g. Clinica Bíblica (tel.: 2522 10 00), Hospital CIMA (tel.: 2208 10 00) or Clinica Catolica (tel. 2522-1000). These private hospitals feature also a pharmacy opened 24 hours, selling all the important medicine you might need. In case of an emergency, please contact our offi ce during offi ce hours, the emergency phone number or 911. Post Offi ce / Phone Calls All major cities have local post offi ces (Correos de Costa Rica). Costa Rican post offi ces also offer phone and fax service. All around the country there are blue public phones, many of them accepting prepaid cards only. “199 – Tarjeta Colibri” prepaid phone cards are also valid for international calls. Costa Rica does not have area codes. The country code for Costa Rica is ++506. For calling home, use these country codes: Belgium 0032, Denmark 0045, Spain 0034, Finland 00358, France 0033, Holland 0031, Italy 0039, Norway 0047, United Kingdom 0044, Sweden 0046, USA 001 followed by the area or city code without the 0 at the beginning. Reconfi rmation Of International Flights According to the airlines, the reconfi rmation of your fl ights is not necessary if you stay in Costa Rica for less than two months. If this is the case, or if you still prefer to reconfi rm the fl ight please contact the airline or visit their website. Return Flight / Airport Taxes Please take note, that all airlines require your presence for check-in 3 hours before the scheduled departure time. If you have booked an airport return transfer with us, we will respect this rule accordingly. You will fi nd the hotel pick up time on the transfer information sheet in your travel documentation that we handed you over upon arrival. Upon departure, each person must pay the airport departure tax of US$ 26 (subject to change) in cash US$. Safety Please refer to the separate leafl et. Shopping / Souvenirs Everywhere in Costa Rica, there are shops and stands selling T-Shirts and affordable jewellery. For serious shopping, we recommend the city centers of San José, Heredia, Alajuela, Cartago, and Liberia. A wide range of T-Shirts, jewellery, ceramics, hammocks, and wooden handicrafts such as colourful Sarchí oxcarts are avail- able at Plaza de la Democracia and El Pueblo in downtown San José. Please do not buy any articles made from endangered hard woods.