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Countries
Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Capital: San Jose

Playa Tamarindo+20
Playa Tamarindoattraction
Hotel Arenal Lodge+4
Hotel Arenal Lodgehotel
Arenal Volcano National Park+6
Arenal Volcano National Parkpark
Lake Arenal+2
Lake Arenalattraction
La Fortuna Waterfall+2
La Fortuna Waterfallattraction
Baldi Hot Springs+3
Baldi Hot Springsattraction

About

Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, sharing a maritime border with Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island. It has a population of around five million in a land area of nearly 51,180 km2 (19,760 sq mi); the capital and largest city is San José, home to around 350,000 residents and two million people in the surrounding metropolitan area.

Cities (5)

Cocos Island National ParkLa FortunaLiberiaQueposSan José
L2Increased cautionstate.gov ↗

By the numbers

Population
5.3M
References4▾▴

These references support the changing or licensed material on this page. Personal notes and ordinary geographic facts are not footnoted individually. Entry rules can change, so verify them before booking.

  1. Travel practicalities. Entry, driving, electricity, water, and official application context. Related: Driving side, World Standards, CDC Yellow Book, WHO drinking-water guidance.
  2. Country background. Wikipedia summary may be clipped or paraphrased. Numeric baselines are cross-checked with Wikidata. Related: Wikidata, .
Area
51.2k km²
GDP (nominal)
$68.4B
GDP per capita
$13.0k
HDI
0.809
Life expectancy
77.0 yr

Wikidata · most recent values circa 2024.

Travel

Language
Spanish
Currency
CRC
Calling code
+506
Schengen
No
Voltage
120V/60Hz
Plugs
A, B
Drives on
Right
Tap water
Treat first
Emergency
112, 911
Tipping
Common but usually not mandatory: about 10% in restaurants when service is not included.
US visa
Visa-free
CC BY-SA 4.0
  • Country flag. Country flag image fallback from ISO code. Related: MIT license.
  • Planning lookups. Daily currency conversion and upcoming public-holiday dates. Related: Nager.Date.
  • Maps, image licenses, and the full dataset registry are listed in site credits.

    When things are closed

    Upcoming public holidays in Costa Rica. On these dates, expect banks, post offices, and government services to close. Many shops and museums close or run shortened hours; transit typically still runs.

    Día de la Madre · Mother's Day
    August 15, 2026
    Saturday
    Día de la Independencia · Independence Day
    September 15, 2026
    Tuesday
    Día de la Abolición del Ejército · Army Abolition Day
    December 1, 2026
    Tuesday
    Navidad · Christmas Day
    December 25, 2026
    Friday
    Año Nuevo · New Year's Day
    January 1, 2027
    Friday
    Jueves Santo · Maundy Thursday
    March 25, 2027
    Thursday
    Exchange rate
    1 USD = 451 CRC
    As of 2026-08-02.