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After reading everything on CR, My wife and I are planning an exploratory/retirement trip in June(1 month long). Just a few questions.
1. Are George Lundquist’s tours worth the time/money?
2. Is the caribbean side worth a visit?
3. Any members on this board rent apartments or have B&B’s?
We are 2 “almost” retired educators ages 52, 51 looking for any info., help, hints etc… on CR from residents.
Thanks,
Steve and Tracey Schlabra
Fairfield, TexasWelcome to Costa Rica!
There are thousands of articles and Discussion on this website that might give you some of the information you are looking for ….
1. Many people have spoken highly of George’s tours ….
2. Sure! It’s beautiful and different than the Pacific…
3. We have a rental section [url=https://www.welovecostarica.com/public/Rental-Homes-And-Apartments-in-Costa-Rica.cfm]on this site here[/url].Scott
[quote=”schlabra”]After reading everything on CR, My wife and I are planning an exploratory/retirement trip in June(1 month long). Just a few questions.
1. Are George Lundquist’s tours worth the time/money?
2. Is the caribbean side worth a visit?
3. Any members on this board rent apartments or have B&B’s?
We are 2 “almost” retired educators ages 52, 51 looking for any info., help, hints etc… on CR from residents.
Thanks,
Steve and Tracey Schlabra
Fairfield, TexasI took George’s Central Valley tour back in 2009. I have never regretted one cent of what it cost. George is straight forward and honest about any questions you may have and full of information. He takes excellent care of his guests. I am still living in the States but have thought of Costa Rica every day since being there. As a matter of fact, I’ve recently been contemplating doing the Southern Tour featured on George’s website in order to see if that area of the country would appeal to me.
Regarding apartments or B & B’s, I have a whole house I’ll rent you; the only problem is it’s in Maine where it was 17 above this morning around 10 am! If you’re interested, I’ll use the rent money to spend the winter in CR!! LOL
All joking aside, do yourself a favor and do a tour with George!
Cheryl DuPlessis
Greenville, MaineWhatever you do do NOT come here with the thought of buying. I agree with the renting. Many say one year. I say permanently.
Suggest you read this information, from [url=http://www.costaricalaw.com/Immigration-and-Residency/residency-general-information-and-summary.html]Costa Rica Law[/url] on living here legally, prior to your trip.
[quote=”Doug Ward”]Whatever you do do NOT come here with the thought of buying. I agree with the renting. Many say one year. I say permanently.[/quote]
Curious as to your statement to rent permanently. Can you elaborate on why that is your preference? Thanks!I have heard good things about George’s tours. It might be perfect for some. But if you have a sense of adventure (and anytime in CR can be an adventure), you can tour yourself for a fraction of the cost.
I would advise staying a week in at least 4 different areas of CR. If you need crowds of Expats, there are towns that won’t stretch you to far out of your comfort zone. If you like Texas weather for part of the time (less the 100 degrees), find yourself near the beach. If you want to escape Texas heat, drought, and freezing cold–get yourself in elevations above 3500 feet and less than 5,000.
Take a lot of internet trips first; they are the easiest.
I have heard both pros and cons of the Lundquist tours, but have never been on the tour myself so I will leave that discussion for those that have.
Other than PuraVidaTexan and maybe a couple others on this blog, I am confident that I am one of the very few who know where Fairfield TX is – having grown up in Houston with relatives in Dallas I remember passing through it many times.
Whether you should go to the Caribbean side or not is purely a matter of choice. All I will say is that it is harder to access by roadway and there are fewer locales to choose from. Let me just say that there is a reason that the beaches of Guanacaste have become home to far more relocatees than the beach areas of the Caribbean side.
As far as your first visit, see as much as you can, but don’t judge any area without giving it a fair amount of time. On some tours, you see 4, 5 or 6 towns in a day – and that’s not fair!
The best advice is to let the climate you seek be your guide. If you ultimately decide to live at elevation you can always visit the beach, and vice versa.
If you decide to visit Guanacaste, I always suggest that you visit our little area of Samara and Carrillo, and of course I suggest that you check out our guest house at
Good Hunting!
The Carib coast is, I am told, lovely. Also hot, humid and full of bugs. The Pacific coast is also hot, humid and buggy.
If you are thinking of retirement in CR, make sure you spend several days (or a week) in the Lake Arenal area. Temperatures 68-85 year round. No worries about air conditioning like there is on the coast where electricity can run you $500 a month. Water is cheap. There is a large and growing expat community and good medical care. This is becoming the best location for a new life in CR.
[quote=”VictoriaLST”]The Carib coast is, I am told, lovely. Also hot, humid and full of bugs. The Pacific coast is also hot, humid and buggy.
If you are thinking of retirement in CR, make sure you spend several days (or a week) in the Lake Arenal area. Temperatures 68-85 year round. No worries about air conditioning like there is on the coast where electricity can run you $500 a month. Water is cheap. There is a large and growing expat community and good medical care. This is becoming the best location for a new life in CR.[/quote]
Don’t let the secret out…. I’ll never be able to get a table at Moya’s on Friday night!
Without a doubt, take Georges tour. He does a masterful job of letting you know what NOT to do after you “fall in lust” with Costa Rica.
Also, give yourself a good 3 weeks on your own after the tour to take the country out for a test ride on your own. All you need is a decent GPS and a Costa Rica chip. My Garmin with the chip had gravel roads on it that the local goats did not know were there. It’s really pretty easy to get around and in 3 weeks you can catch a lot of look-sees and come away with at least an idea of several areas you would like to see again. Take the time the first time and that will pay you benefits in the long run. Good luck and CR is hard to get out of your memory, once you have been there.I agree with those who advise renting a car with a Garmin in hand and just explore. I’m moving down in 3 weeks after 8 or 9 trips in 4 years. I’m renting a house in an area I found by making a booking mistake.
I also recommend that the two of you sit down and discuss your priorities. What kind of climate? View? Medical access? Once you establish YOUR priorities, finding your home area will be so much easier.
Good luck and have fun exploring.
[quote=”Doug Ward”]Whatever you do do NOT come here with the thought of buying. I agree with the renting. Many say one year. I say permanently.[/quote]
How’s that Doug? Please elaborate on renting instead of buying. Benefits? Thanks
I agree with going the ‘rental route’ too, until you have decided whether the chosen area has what YOU need.
Many come here, having decided on their ‘spot’ based on what others have said or blogged about, and have not actually ever spent any time to look around at the many wonderful and varied choices that are here before making the huge decision to purchase a house.
It is only later that they find, that for them, it may be too hot & humid at the beach, is too wet and/or windy location for their preferred activities or it is much further than they thought to city entertainment.
Some friends purchased a beautiful condo … only to find out a few months of living there that condo living, was ‘not for them’.
So by renting, you just pack up and try another area … without finding yourself stuck where you do not want to be.
Merry Christmas. Well we didn’t follow most of the advice given but so far so good. Once we made the decision that CR was the place, after Mexico, Panama, Belize and a few islands were crossed off, we made 5 trips. Each from 8 to 10 days in a different area of CR. We covered it all and when we got to the South Pacific area knew it was right for us. That is the key, no one and I mean no one can tell you what is right for you. You will know it when you feel it and you might not feel it at all and that is just as important. Anyway, we bought! My daughter and son in law were at a place in their lives where they were willing (hard to convince:)) to move to Uvita for a one year commitment to ready the property and get to know all the ropes. We visit every few months for 10 days. We have now put our primary home in the states for sale and will be moving in about a year to do a 6 month rotation for a few years. We are also 52 and this is really not retirement forever as much as a sabbatical and then see where it goes. We bought at about 1200 feet and so glad we did. Learn Spanish ! Have patience and if you want American don’t move there.
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