Current situation in Costa Rica
At this moment, the migitation of Covid-19 within Costa Rica is high but concentrated. About 85% of active cases are in the Central Valley, where the bigger part of the population lives and which is a more urban area. Rural areas have cases too but in much lower numbers and spread is contained easier.
Costa Rica registers cases in a different way than most other countries do; when a person tests positive, his or her household is also registered as positive, without testing. This makes the daily number of registered cases about 20% higher than the actual amount of persons tested positive.
It is a safe way of counting though, since it obliges also the whole household of the positively tested person to self-quarantine. There are between 600 and 1000 new cases registered daily.
Restrictions in the country
In the whole country there are certain restrictions in place:
- Cars are not allowed to drive 1 day a week, depending on what license plate they carry.
Rental cars are excluded.
- Masks are mandatory in public spaces.
- At all stores and supermarkets, sinks have been installed outside. Washing hands/spraying hands
with alcohol before entering is mandatory.
- Beaches are accessible from 5AM to 10PM and then closed
- National parks are mostly open, although entry is limited. Some parks demand reservation online.
- Hotels can operate at 50% capacity.
- Borders to Nicaragua and Panama are closed.
- Bars and nightclubs are closed.
Travel restrictions for foreigners
When arriving into Costa Rica there is one perquisite:
- You need to upload an official declaration of your travel and/or health insurance (in English or
Spanish) that states you are covered for Covid-19 related costs up to 50.000 USD and this insurance has to cover 2000 USD of housing cost in case you have to self-quarantine.
If your travel or health insurance sends you a declaration stating all Covid-19 costs are covered, it should be sufficient. Note: this declaration has to be in English or Spanish.
Uploading these documents can be done at: https://salud.go.cr/
**At this moment, KLM airlines offers free cancellation for any ticket under any circumstance.
So if you are unsure about traveling or permission into the country, book your flight at KLM to avoid unnecessary costs**