In the United States or Canada, you can get basic information on Costa Rica by contacting the Costa Rican Tourist Board (ICT, or Instituto Costarricense de Turismo) (tel. 866/COSTA RICA; www.visitcostarica.com). Travelers from the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand will have to rely primarily on this website because the ICT does not have toll-free access in these countries.
In addition to this official site, you'll be able to find a wealth of Web-based information on Costa Rica with a few clicks of your mouse. In fact you'll be better off surfing, as the ICT site is rather limited and clunky.
You can pick up a map when you arrive at the ICT's information desk at the airport, or at their downtown San José offices (although the map included with this book is generally better). Other sources in San José for detailed maps include Seventh Street Books, Calle 7 between avenidas Central and 1 (tel. 256-8251); Librería Lehmann, Avenida Central between calles 1 and 3 (tel. 223-1212); and Librería Universal, Avenida Central between calles Central and 1 (tel. 222-2222).
Perhaps the best map to have is the waterproof country map of Costa Rica put out by International Travel Maps (www.itmb.com), which can be ordered direct from their website, or any major online bookseller, like Amazon.com.
