Doing a conference on moving or relocation tours

Hello miss pear
We too are going to be there in August for the convention. Is that where you are planning for your trip in August?
If yes, I hope to meet you, there.
From what I've heard there will be a lot of people there too.
We are hoping to get a lot of information about where to live before we buy. And I'm sure there will be a lot of people there showing and selling as well. We will all learn a lot more about CR.
I might be on over load after...lol but the more we learn the better.

Suggest you both consider attending this .arcr.net/seminar that ARCR puts on every month, except December.

It doesn't  present  a slew of development owners trying to sell you property...

Mizz Pear wrote:

Hi Everyone,

I'm in the process of planning a trip there in Aug and will definitely be looking to move ASAP when I return! I've never been, but have been researching for yr.  So much info it's overwhelming & I procrastinate!  You think doing a conference on moving there or taking relocation tours is good way to go ? I'm going on my own.

Hola Miss Pearl!

Welcome to Expat.com!

Personal opinion, I will say this as calmly as possible, be very, very cautious about using these so-called tour guides.  I won't mention how much I detest them.    (Sorry, I guess I just did. 😱)   Many if not most are operated by Gringos and the majority of them charge absolutely ridiculous amounts.  They will take you around the country and have only positive things to say and many  sell over-priced property on the side.  You will not get what you pay for.

As many of us have pointed out in the Forum,  and what I have personally seen since moving here - at least 50% of the expats that relocate to CR will return to their home country within the first one to two years.  Of those that remain, about 80% of those will return within three years thereafter.  There is a reason.  It is in no way all unicorns and rainbows.  It takes a lot of mental adjustment to assimilate into Costa Rica.  But if you can adjust, it is well worth it.   

Some tour guide/groups charge thousands of dollars for a week or two tour.  For this country, they are extremely overpriced.  Keep in mind that the average Tico is earning $600 a month if their lucky.  There are Tico tour groups as well.  I would suggest seeking them out as they will know the country better than any Gringo, no matter how long they've lived here.  At the same time, make sure that they have no interest in selling you property.

I would agree with Kohlerias that ARCR does have a good reputation and does offer reliable information. 

Personally, I would want to make it an adventure.  If you do not speak espanol, I would hire a translator in advance of coming down, rent a car and just tour the country with the translator.  Costa Rica's size is compared to that of West Virginia.  It's small enough that you can experience a lot, pay for hotels and food for a lot less than what many of these tour companies charge.

Almost all towns will have ferias/open air markets every week.  Many expats attend them.  It would be a great place to meet people and just ask them of their opinions and what they think of living here.  You will find that the majority of expats are happy to share their time with you and talk about their exploits.

Hope you have a great trip and experience!   ☀️🌴

- Expat Dave

In my experience,   after living in 4 different rural areas of the country, for the most part the ferias/open air markets are very basic  and possibly  not what you may be used to visiting in your home country and often open only one day per week.    The roof may consist of various pieces of stitched together plastic and tied up a at  height that could behead a normal sized person...   That's not to say that the produce is not of good quality, however you still have to check carefully. Nor does every town have one... although there is probably a truck parked near the town center, selling produce.
Crafts sold by local artisans, are few and far between, unless in an area frequented by many extranjeros and /or tourists.

I have to politely disagree with Expat Dave.
I will agree that some - if not all - of the private tour guides will push you at least a little to buy a property from them or from someone they get a commission from. BUT , that said, my wife and I took George's Retire On Social Security tour and even though I knew a lot about Costa Rica from having visited  many times, we found the tour to be very worthwhile - informative AND fun and we saw parts of the country we would otherwise probably never have seen.  Sure, they highlight the good points of living here, too... But again, take it with a grain of salt!

So if you go into it with the attitude that you will NOT buy anything on the trip - I see no harm in being exposed to someone showing you various properties. My wife and I learned info about building and about hospitals and various aspects of living in Costa Rica that we found interesting and useful on George's tour. I'm not even sure he gives the tour any more, so certainly I have no financial interest in recommending it. This was many years ago but George also showed us houses being built - not for sale, just a guy building his house so you could ask questions about prices and whatever. We saw the CIMA hospital, we saw some tourist attractions and we saw a few properties for sale in various parts. But honestly we were never pushed in any way to buy anything! We were told some were available but there was no sales pitch nor pushing.

Here in San Ramon we have a very nicely built and large feria every Friday all day, and Sat til noon. There is at least one gringo seller but always gringos around for you to talk to and I can pretty much guarantee NO one will mind if you ask them questions about living in San Ramon or surrounding area.

My husband Tom and I took George Lundquist's tour and we too found it very informative
We also took Paul and Gloira Ieatman's health care tour. We saw a lot of places with George and with Paul we saw at least 4 hospitals and clinics
Between them both we got loads of information that helped us to think even more about the move to CR
Hope this tell you more about the tours they are worth the money
We were there this year 4-2017
And we are planning on being there in August for the convention
Tom will be down in CR next week and hopes to meet some of y'all then too
He's heard there's a few expat bars and places that he's planning on going to while there
Hope this information helps others to know that the tours are ok.
Ginny

Hi Ginny,
Thanks for reply. I did sign up for the Fast Track conference thru International Living.com. I decided to cancel because the price was getting up there. I ended up booking relocation tour with Christopher Howard. Everything  is included in price, transportation,food,hotels, and 2dy seminar on moving there. Pretty much what I was looking for. They do not sell property, you get that info at seminar. There is just so much info out there it's overwhelming.  I would love to know how your trip goes if you are doing that conference.  I'm still going in Aug.  and staying longer to have some fun too!!

Thanks everyone for the replies. I just saw responses now! I'm not familiar with these forums and how they work.  Didn't think anyone answered! lol  I will definitely be checking out some of the other topics. So to answer my own question, I decided on relocation tour. Traveling solo just seemed like  better choice for me.

GinnyP wrote:

My husband Tom and I took George Lundquist's tour and we too found it very informative
We also took Paul and Gloira leatman's health care tour. We saw a lot of places with George and with Paul we saw at least 4 hospitals and clinics
Ginny

It is a good idea to also check out the public CAJA facilities in the areas you are considering. Some are great...and some, not so good.

We got to see some (of the caja's system) on the tour with Paul that was when we went to see the clinics
We got to go into the hospitals, 2 times once with each tour. Because I'm handicapped we needed to see what was out there. In the way of health care. From what we have seen and with the next trips to CR we will be seeing more to help us decide on the move.
But so far that's where we are headed
I don't except much' as I'm kind of a home body person and can't get around much unless I can take Nova my service dog to aid me so I'm not expecting a ton of things.
From what I seen here I will be doing a great deal of taxis rides. Shame they don't allow dogs even service dogs on the buses. We will have to look into that more.

Glad to hear that the tour included the CAJA facilities.
As you would have noticed that most sidewalks are pretty bad here, so scooters and wheelchairs tend to use the road. Climbing onto the buses are often difficult.

Unfortunately Costa Rica is not an easy country in which to have limited mobility.

How do you find George's Tours, or a suitable reasonable English-speaking Native or Expat guide for about 4 different countries: Mexican Riviera, Belieze, Costa Rica, and Panama?  Help is appreciated!  Want to move as soon as I can do due diligence!

You won't regret your choice.

Christopher Howard

I NEED a tour guide for 4 countries, not each separately!  Help?
Doug