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For cats and dogs you need a health certificate and a rabies certificate prepared by a veterinarian. It’s fairly simple and most good vets can do this for you. It can’t be over ten days old and the rabies shot has to have been given at least 30 days prior to departure.
The past week hasn’t been too bad. I have a rain gauge and it’s 1/2 to 1 inch per day, which may sound like a lot but it really isn’t in Costa Rica where we measure rain by the foot instead of the inch. A couple weeks ago we were getting 6-7 inches/day. So, hopefully the heavy rains are done for the year.
From Juan Santamaria head north. Very soon after that veer towards the ramp that says San Ramon. Drive for about 20-25 minutes and take the Atenas exit. This is Hwy 3. Hwy 3 kind of ends in San Mateo, you will see big signs and take a left toward Orotina. When you get to Orotina keep following the signs that say Jaco. This should get you to 34 and you can follow it into Quepos.
The road south of Quepos is being worked on in preparation for its impending paving (which hasn’t started yet). So, most of it is in good shape, some definite rough spots around the Savegre. This changes daily depending on what work they do and how much rain we get.
The USDA has some say but not all of it. Two years ago I had USDA approval and a CITIES certificate to bring my bird to CR. Three days before we left we heard from Dr. Molina, Scott’s recommended vet, that all birds were embargoed into CR because of the Avian Flu.
It was extremely upsetting as I hand raised this bird and had her for 14 years. If you don’t think you can give up your birds, then think twice. Call Dr. Molina and find out what the current status is. Be aware it could change, this is Costa Rica. Also, the rules seem to say that if you do bring a bird down here, the chances of you being able to bring it back to the states are not good.The road is in good condition until you get south of the Quepos airport. It becomes dirt and has some good size pot holes. It is flat, and I see lots of sedans on the road, but you need to take it really slow. You can go a bit faster with a 4X4. All of the mountain roads around there need a 4X4 if you decide to go off the Costanera. It will take you maybe 1.5 hrs. from Quepos to Dominical. The roads south from Dominical are great. The inland route would probably add several hours to your trip. They are supposed to start paving the Costanera any minute now, but nothing so far. Most of the bridges are all new and finished except the Naranjo river.
This is kind of a strange post. How many houses have you actually looked at? There is no shortage of very high end construction with very nice finishes in this country. Most of the imported things such as tile, furniture, bathroom fixtures, lighting, are mostly found in San Jose. But they are there. We even have those little paint swatch things with hundreds of different colors to choose from! Some of them not even brown!
We are located on the Central Pacific, south of Quepos about 25 kilometers. Our house sits in grassland but we are surrounded by old primary rainforest and it is very rural. This is an amazing place, we enjoy all kinds of wildlife. Toucans, parrots, coatis, tayras, pigs, monkeys, sloths, and even an anteater the other day. I love all of it, including the snakes which are really beautiful animals in my opinion. However, the terciopelos are extremely prolific; they have litters of 30-100 live babies. When I moved here, I was told I might see a snake once in a while. Then I find out one of our neighbors was almost killed by one and they are literally all over. So, now I have the dilemma of leaving them alone and risking that one of our guests or our caretaker’s children get bit (both who have narrowly missed being bit) or finding a way to keep their numbers to a minimum. I would prefer we all just get along.
The adage that they are more afraid of you is lost on the terciopelos that I have encountered. They will just sit coiled and stare you down. We pulled into our driveway one night and almost hit one with our truck and it just sat there coiled. We have rat snakes around that move very fast when they see me, but not the terciopelos. As far as an imbalance in the ecosystem, maybe. There are plenty of raptors around which I beleive are their primary enemies. I’m just looking for some good ideas to keep everyone safe. We have heavy boots and rarely walk around at night. It’s just disconcerting to find them relaxing and enjoying the view on the back patio!
Maybe we’re “lucky” but in the past year and a half or so we have had probably 25 terciopelos. Also, a couple coral snakes and an eyelash viper. My husband almost stepped on a couple of them. If these things worked I would gladly part with my money to buy them!
Maybe someone else on the board has some experience with them?So, if airline fares have doubled, what is everyone’s best guess as to what will happen to Costa Rican tourism and real estate? There will come a point where people will just stop traveling.
The bridges between Quepos and Portalon are all under construction; two of the smaller ones are complete. They are maybe half way through the bridges at Naranjito and Portalon.
The only bridge that hasn’t started is the Sevegre for some reason. There are rumours that they will finish these bridges and pave half of it; then go do the southern part of the road. Other rumours say they will do all the bridges to Dominical and then pave it which would probably push it out another year or two. It is happening, just not sure how fast.Another thing happening with the road is the influx of a lot of money. They are clearing Matapalo Beach of all structures built after the 1977 maritime law that do not have concessions. This means a lot of people are losing their homes. There are at least four major projects on the books for this area.
If anyone know the real story on the road, I would love to hear it!
What do you consider affordable? Would a tico style house be OK for you or something more along North American style housing? Rental prices vary wildly so if you could give us an idea what you are looking for and a price range, someone might be able to help you.
We are seeing an interesting situation here on Matapalo beach south of Quepos. The municipality is coming in and giving two weeks notice to structures in the maritime zone that do not have a concession and are starting to tear them down. Many houses have been built down there over the past 30 years and it’s causing quite a panic among the people who live there. They will still have the land once it’s over, but some of these houses are significant improvements to the land and people have a lot to lose.
What is interesting to me is that Shawn is looking for other people who have bought with Paragon to share experiences. Whenever one of these threads start, it’s like this deafening quiet from the hundreds or thousands of people who have bought these lots. Maybe it’s the inevitable people who call them stupid or threats of retribution from Paragon. There are other groups that have started websites that give people a forum to talk about bad developers. One of those is http://www.ventanasdelpacifico.biz. Maybe your only power Shawn is in numbers and finding other property owners who aren’t afraid to stand up to these guys. As Scott will tell you though, be careful because Costa Rica has strong anti-defamation laws.
Those guys are always out there by Jaco. The fee has gone up, it cost me $20. They also say it is a school zone, which school I have no idea. So I just drive slower now.
There is no exit fee. My dog was shipped down in cargo on a separate airplane from me. I took my cat in the cabin; no problem. When I got to customs they sent me to a separate building three times. No one at this building had any idea why I was there and kept sending me back to the original customs building. A man then approached me and said he could help me for $160.00. I only had about $120.00 on me and gave him that since my only objective was to get my dog out of customs. I told him I would come back the next day to pay him the rest. They let me see the dog after that and walk him. They were literally holding other dogs for people who wouldn’t pay. So, what do you do? Try to make a fuss and get your dog detained further? I paid and my dog was released. They had the nerve to call me the next day when I didn’t show up with the extra $40. I had my cab driver call them and say he was my attorney and they stopped calling me. So, that is why I am warning people, take someone who speaks spanish and is assumed to be an attorney. It was a bad experience in a country I really love.
