Area: 19,946 sq mi
Population: 3,896,092

FLIGHT DURATION:
14 hrs 20 mins. San José is some 5,420 mi from London.

AIRPORT INFORMATION:
Juan Santamaria Alajuela airport is 28 miles away from San José's centre. A shuttle service takes you to the heart of the capital in 45 minutes, for 20 colón (2p) and a taxi takes around 30 minutes and costs around 2,000 (£2.40) colón.

SECURITY:
A safe and peaceful country of great pacific tradition that deserves its nickname of 'Switzerland of Central America'. The Costa Ricans are the only people to have abolished their army (50 years ago). Only the region of Limon is subject to crime, due to the dealing of crack, and in San José, as in any other big city, you must be aware of pickpockets. You are strongly advised to be vigilant in bus terminals, especially the one called 'Coca Cola' in San José as pickpocketing and theft are frequent there. You should also be vigilant on the Atlantic coast and in the city of Puerto Limon where drug problems are growing, as they are in San José.
If you are going to the northwest of Costa Rica, you should also be careful as the Arenal volcano has had a resurgence of activity in previous years (600 people were evacuated and most of the hotels at the foot of the volcano were closed).
Please note that the road between La Fortuna (Alajuela Province) and Nuevo Arenal de Tilaran (Guanacaste) is only open to the traffic of the local residents of the area; you are therefore advised to call the hotels in the region to make sure they are open before you begin your trip.

ALL OF THE EDITORIAL TEAM'S ADVICE:
At least ten days are necessary to visit the great sites of the country such as the Irazu and Arenal volcanoes, lake Arenal, the National Park of Tortuguero, the National Park of Manuel-Antonio, as well as to spend a few days relaxing on the beaches. You should not hesitate to discover this country on your own or in a group, without a guide, as the country is peaceful and very well developed on a tourist level.
Though they are a joy to the surfers, some waves, due to the currents, can be fatal for swimmers, so make sure that you are informed of potential dangers before diving in head first!

TELEPHONE:
To ring Costa Rica from the UK, dial: 00 + 506 (country's code) + correspondent's number.
To ring Costa Rica from the UK, dial: 00 + 44 + correspondent's number.