Staying Connected

Telephones

Costa Rica has an excellent phone system, with a dial tone similar to that heard in the United States.

A phone call within Costa Rica costs around 10 colones (2¢/1p) per minute. Pay phones take a calling card or 5-, 10-, or 20-colón coins. Calling cards are much more practical, and coin-operated phones are getting harder to find. You can purchase calling cards in a host of gift shops and pharmacies. However, there are several competing calling-card companies, and certain cards work only with certain phones. CHIP calling cards work with a computer chip and just slide into specific phones, although these phones aren't widely available. Better bets are the 197 and 199 calling cards, which are sold in varying denominations. These have a scratch-off PIN and can be used from any phone in the country. Generally, the 197 cards are sold in smaller denominations and are used for local calling, while the 199 cards are deemed international and are easier to find in larger denominations. Either card can be used to make any call, however, provided that the card can cover the costs. Another perk of the 199 cards is the fact that you can get the instructions in English. For local calls, it is often easiest to call from your hotel, although you will likely be charged around 150 to 300 colones (30¢-60¢/15p-30p) per call.

To call Costa Rica from abroad:

1. Dial the international access code: 011 from the U.S.; 00 from the U.K., Ireland, or New Zealand; or 0011 from Australia.

2. Dial the country code 506.

3. Dial the number.

To make international calls: To make international calls from Costa Rica, first dial 00 and then the country code (U.S. or Canada 1, U.K. 44, Ireland 353, Australia 61, New Zealand 64). Next you dial the area code and number. For example, if you wanted to call the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., you would dial 00-1-202-588-7800.

For directory assistance: Dial 113 if you're looking for a number inside Costa Rica, and dial 124 for numbers to all other countries.

For operator assistance: If you need operator assistance in making a call, dial 116 if you're trying to make an international call and 0 if you want to call a number in Costa Rica.

Toll-free numbers: Numbers beginning with 0800 or 800 within Costa Rica are toll-free, but calling a 1-800 number in the States from Costa Rica is not toll-free. In fact, it costs the same as an overseas call.

New Numbers -- In March 2008, Costa Rica changed all of its phone numbers from seven to eight digits. The change involved adding a "2" to the beginning of all existing land line numbers, and an "8" to all existing cellphone numbers. All of the phone numbers listed in this book are the current eight-digit numbers. However, if you come across an old seven-digit number (on a billboard or brochure, for example) here's what you do: Old cellphone numbers began either with a "3" or "8." All other numbers were land lines. Toll-free and emergency numbers were not affected.

Cellphones

The three letters that define much of the world's wireless capabilities are GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), a big, seamless network that makes for easy cross-border cellphone use. If your cellphone is on a GSM system, and you have a world-capable multiband phone such as many Sony Ericsson, Motorola, or Samsung models, you can make and receive calls across civilized areas around much of the globe. Just call your wireless operator and ask for "international roaming" to be activated on your account. Per-minute charges can be high, though -- up to $5 (£2.50) in Costa Rica, depending upon your plan.

Unfortunately, those with unlocked tri-band GSM phones cannot simply buy a local SIM card in Costa Rica. Renting a phone in Costa Rica can be problematic, too. Due to a state monopoly on telecommunications, the entire cellphone rental industry exists in an area of legal limbo. Several local firms are renting cellphones to visiting tourists and businessmen, but this may be illegal, and the Costa Rican telecommunications institute could theoretically crack down on them at any time. However, to date, they've been able to go about their business, albeit discreetly.

None of the rental companies has a booth or office at the airport, so you'll have to contact them either beforehand or from your hotel. Most will deliver the phone to your hotel. Cell Service (tel. 2296-5553; www.cellservicecr.com) and GSM Rent A Cell (tel. 2231-5410; www.gsmrentacell.com) both rent cellphones. Rates run around $5 (£2.50) per day or $35 (£18) per week for the rental, with charges of 70¢ to $1.50 (35p-75p) per minute for local calls and $1.50 to $3 (75p-£1.50) per minute for international calls.

An alternative to the above companies are some of the car-rental agencies. Currently, most of the major car-rental agencies are offering cellphone rentals, for rates similar to those listed above.

Voice-Over Internet Protocol (VOIP)

If you have Web access while traveling, consider a broadband-based telephone service (in technical terms, Voice over Internet protocol, or VoIP) such as Skype (www.skype.com) or Vonage (www.vonage.com), which allow you to make free international calls from your laptop or in a cybercafe. Neither service requires the people you're calling to also have that service (though there are fees if they do not). Check the websites for details.

Internet/E-Mail

Without Your Own Computer -- Cybercafes can be found all over Costa Rica, especially in the more popular tourist destinations. To find cybercafes before you travel check www.cybercaptive.com and www.cybercafe.com. Juan Santamaría International Airport has free Wi-Fi, as well as a makeshift Internet cafe.

With Your Own Computer -- More and more hotels, resorts, cafes, and retailers around Costa Rica are becoming "hotspots" that offer free high-speed Wi-Fi access or charge a small fee for usage. Most laptops sold today have built-in wireless capability. To find public Wi-Fi hotspots before you travel, go to www.jiwire.com; its Hotspot Finder holds the world's largest directory of public wireless hotspots.

Costa Rica uses standard U.S.-style two- and three-prong electric outlets with 110-volt AC current, and standard U.S.-style phone jacks. Wherever you go, bring a connection kit with power and phone adapters, a spare phone cord, and a spare Ethernet network cable -- or find out whether your hotel supplies them to guests.