Wanting to relocate to Costa rica

Aroma1 wrote:

My husband and myself want to retire to Costa Rica and so have booked a flight for 11 April until 25 April 2018 to visit and get a feel for the country.
We would like to find somewhere in the Central Valley with a moderate climate, that is not too hot nor too cold all year round
As we have not yet booked any hotels I wonder if anyone could advise us of where to visit. We would perhaps like to stay a couple of days in each location so that we can see if we can find the perfect area.

Any suggestions of where to visit and where to book accommodation would be welcomed
I think that we would prefer a smaller town rather than big cities as we do like the outdoors but not too far from civilisation though!!

Hola Aroma,

Welcome to Exat.com!

From what you describe, a few areas to try would be Atenas, Sarchi, Naranjo, Palmares, San Ramon.  "Not too hot nor too cold" would depend on your definition of that.  Many people like the Atenas area; at the same time, it's too hot for me.  Just a few hundred feet in elevation change will make a big difference in the dry season.  But I would suggest researching any of these towns and just see if they might fit your needs.

If I was looking again in these areas, my choice I think would be just outside of Palmares.  But that's just me.... 

- Expat Dave
Expat.com Team Member

Thank you Dave for your advice. I was wondering about Garcia, San Ramon and a few other  similar locations. We are from the uK and would like temperate spring UK temperature of around 70 degrees and a little more. Ideally so we would not need aircon and heating either.
I am not a sun worshiper but if we wanted the beach we could travel to it for a visit. We prefer a quieter life but would want to see people.

Do you know what injections we would need ourselves, since there is some confusion about what to have.
We have a Savannah cat F5 ( 11 months at present) and a bengal cat, so would want to bring them when we re-locate. I also understand that bringing them to Costa Rica is a little complicated, but we would not want to leave them behind. Once we have found our ideal location and sorted out a rental property, then the cats can travel to CR. Some Countries and parts of the uSA  will not allow hybrid cats even F5 and later generations Savannahs. However I do understand that CR will allow hybrid cats.

This will be our first visit and so I aslo wonder if we would be able to meet a few Ex Pat to get the real story about life in Coata Rica as opposed to the UK.

Aroma1 wrote:

Thank you Dave for your advice. I was wondering about Garcia, San Ramon and a few other  similar locations. We are from the uK and would like temperate spring UK temperature of around 70 degrees and a little more. Ideally so we would not need aircon and heating either.
I am not a sun worshiper but if we wanted the beach we could travel to it for a visit. We prefer a quieter life but would want to see people.

Do you know what injections we would need ourselves, since there is some confusion about what to have.
We have a Savannah cat F5 ( 11 months at present) and a bengal cat, so would want to bring them when we re-locate. I also understand that bringing them to Costa Rica is a little complicated, but we would not want to leave them behind. Once we have found our ideal location and sorted out a rental property, then the cats can travel to CR. Some Countries and parts of the uSA  will not allow hybrid cats even F5 and later generations Savannahs. However I do understand that CR will allow hybrid cats.

This will be our first visit and so I aslo wonder if we would be able to meet a few Ex Pat to get the real story about life in Coata Rica as opposed to the UK.

From what you describe, Grecia might be a bit too hot for you.  I would suggest Palmares and San Ramon as areas to look into.

By injections I assume you're referring to inoculations?  Same ones if you were going to United Kingdom, none.   

Bringing your cats into CR is not a big deal.  You will just need a health certificate, current inoculations.  Just double check on the rules at the time that you plan to bring them in.  Rules change here on a relatively regular basis.  Also confirm with the airline that you plan to use as to their restrictions.

If you guys want to meet while your here, if you're in the area of San Ramon, I'd be happy to meet with you.  Just send me a PM through Expat.com and we can arrange it.

- Expat Dave