Six days after we arrived the country of Costa Rica was shut down to foreign travelers. We got here at the right time, thank God. I could not have gotten into the country if we would have waited a week. Along with the shut down of the country, Costa Rica also put restrictions in place for bars, restaurants, churches, and gatherings. Like many other countries they have also closed business that were not essential, closed beaches and parks, and limited the number of people in markets and stores. The country has done amazingly well containing the outbreak here. To this date we have 780 cases with 480 recovered and only 6 deaths. Those are great numbers and I've very proud of my new home for being so organized and on top of things. I feel very safe here compared to many other countries.
While most of the country is in lock down it's not as sever as the United States. We can still walk down to the markets and go shopping for groceries with ease. The streets here are not as much of a ghost town as we have seen friends and family post online. A lot of the people here, like us, walk to the markets and essential stores so there is more foot traffic than a lot of the United States. We are not required to wear masks but many people still do.
When it comes to driving there are restrictions on what days certain licence plates can travel and the travel time in limited to restricted hours. We have left the city a few times to travel to Potrero and a few other cities looking for some needed items. But we haven't dealt with many problems since we don't drive a lot.
The country is still locked down to foreign travelers. Thankfully the government has extended the visas for those of us here on "vacation" visas. May of the expats who live in the country full time are not residence or citizens. Like me, they are required to leave the country every 90 days and reenter to renew their visa. Because the population of expats are high and so many are land/home owners or renters it would hurt the economy to lose a large number of expats who wouldn't be allowed to overstay their visa or comply and not be able to get into the country. My visa is due in about a month and that means I will be alright to stay without needed to worry about reentry.
The original reopening of the country was scheduled for May 15. The government has extended that date to July 15. I do not believe they will allow the country to reopen until the United States, Europe and Canada shows greatly reduced numbers because they are the primary origin of vacationers to Costa Rica. I am hoping to travel home in the fall this year so I hope that everything keep going smoothly!
While most of the country is in lock down it's not as sever as the United States. We can still walk down to the markets and go shopping for groceries with ease. The streets here are not as much of a ghost town as we have seen friends and family post online. A lot of the people here, like us, walk to the markets and essential stores so there is more foot traffic than a lot of the United States. We are not required to wear masks but many people still do.
When it comes to driving there are restrictions on what days certain licence plates can travel and the travel time in limited to restricted hours. We have left the city a few times to travel to Potrero and a few other cities looking for some needed items. But we haven't dealt with many problems since we don't drive a lot.
The country is still locked down to foreign travelers. Thankfully the government has extended the visas for those of us here on "vacation" visas. May of the expats who live in the country full time are not residence or citizens. Like me, they are required to leave the country every 90 days and reenter to renew their visa. Because the population of expats are high and so many are land/home owners or renters it would hurt the economy to lose a large number of expats who wouldn't be allowed to overstay their visa or comply and not be able to get into the country. My visa is due in about a month and that means I will be alright to stay without needed to worry about reentry.
The original reopening of the country was scheduled for May 15. The government has extended that date to July 15. I do not believe they will allow the country to reopen until the United States, Europe and Canada shows greatly reduced numbers because they are the primary origin of vacationers to Costa Rica. I am hoping to travel home in the fall this year so I hope that everything keep going smoothly!
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