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i have a friend who just got back from golfito and said prices are not that cheap and when you factor in travel time, travel expenses, hotel, meals, you really aren’t getting a bargain, and the prices she saw were equal to or more than those same items in a local store. besides, you have to stand in line, something i won’t do for any reason. there are businesses who will go there and get your items and bring them back, which is also another expense you have to factor in because golfito isn’t even close to where most of us live.
If you’re just starting to set up a household and need to buy a lot of major appliances, Golfito can be a good option. If you’re only going to buy a couple of items, Maravilla is right. The incidental expenses will eat into any savings that you might get from your purchases. Also, you might be disappointed by the small selection of brands in the stores. You will see the same brands of appliances in most of the stores (Sansui, LG, etc.). Still, there are good prices on most of the goods for sale there.
One thing: try to make your purchases at the outlets that have stores in the town where you are locating. That way, if you have any problems with your purchase, you can take it to the store and they will be more likely to give you some assistance (or so I’ve heard. I haven’t had any problems with any of my purchases yet, touch wood.)
Booze IS cheaper. I need to start drinking more.
Thanks guys. Since we would be setting up a home, I wonder if it is cheaper to buy in the US and ship things in. Then there is duty on everything, but……. This is more complicated than I would want, isn’t it?
go to a local appliance store. pick out what you want. offer them cash and negotiate a discount. keep it simple. life here is overwhelming enough without complicating it by going to golfito. at least if you buy local, you will have valid warranties. i bought all my appliances here. GE washer, Atlas stove, Atlas fridge, and after 6 years, they are still fine and have never had to be repaired. buying appliances isn’t like shopping for the perfect pair of shoes. it’s a washer/dryer/stove/fridge, for cryin’ out loud. not a pair of Manolo’s!
[quote=”VictoriaLST”]Thanks guys. Since we would be setting up a home, I wonder if it is cheaper to buy in the US and ship things in. Then there is duty on everything, but……. This is more complicated than I would want, isn’t it?[/quote]
Other regulars here and I have argued the pros and cons of bringing one’s household goods in a shipping container [i]ad nauseam[/i]. I come down on the side of bringing everything that’ll fit.
Use the search feature this forum offers to look it up.
If you decide to take my advice, know that it’s no great big deal. Yes, there are some hoops to jump through but any normally competent person can succeed. And since everything you import will be a “Used somethingoranother” (even the new stuff), the import duty will be negligible. Don’t let that deter you.
I wonder why my wife’s family come to Florida and buy in the $3-6 thousand range of goods to ship to Costa Rica and that is from a can opener, laptop, plasma TV all the way to a car.
Factor in the price of the airplane ticket, expenses for 2 weeks and incidentals and explain to ME why they still come to the USA to spend that kind of money and they have been doing it every year for the last 10 years.
I will give you a HINT; just a pair of jeans will cost between $40 and $60 in CR and they can buy them over here for $20-30. Shoes, clothes, small home appliances, watches, electronic’s (Xbox control) is $100 in CR and $50 at Walmart.
Because; $3,000 spent in the USA will be the same as $6,000 in CR besides they get to enjoy a vacation.
Maybe we need to think like a TICO when it comes to buying??
oh yeah, that sounds like a really good idea — become a role model for mass consumerism! that’s the ticket. how many pairs of jeans do you need? this is exactly what 2bncr was ranting and raving about — Ticos spending like there is no tomorrow buying massive amounts of stuff they don’t really need or use because it’s CHEAP or CHEAPER. no, i don’t want to be like them. it’s nothing to aspire to.
uh, okay, maravilla, what’s the “per-Tico” limit on jeans? And who gets to decide?
And, by the way, no one is advocating that you own any particular number of pairs of jeans. In fact, probably no one cares if you wear pants at all, but that doesn’t give you any special right to decide for others.
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