thanks, my question wasnt about shopping or a cell phone, it was about prepaid sim card

I have an unlocked cell phone, i'd appreciate it if someone can answer my question

Correct, same thing; if you want someone to accompany you to purchase anything of this type including a SIM card or other we can help.

All the cell companies in CR offer pre-paid SIMs to foreigners but you have to be a CR resident to get a cell phone plan.

Also, cell phone plans or contracts don't count with poker sites as proof of address as a general rule.

Companies include:

• Claro
• Movistar
• Kolbi
• Japi
• Amongst others

You can buy Movistar credit online.

You're not getting a cell contract or a bank account without residency, which can be accomplished in approximately 9 months. Ask the nearest Colombian or Nicaraguan for details.

You should be able to purchase cell credit for most major companies online.

If the motivation for getting a cell plan is to get documents in your name so you can reactivate poker accounts, there are much quicker and more affordable ways than going through the legal residency process - if you happen to qualify under any of the categories - which can easily take up to a year and cost thousands of dollars over time.

Most poker players don't need official residency unless they plan to live there permanently, since you can go in and out with a tourist visa every 90 days (although the actual # of days given at the border or airport is not guaranteed). Regardless, many people have done it this way for years (or decades). We've relocated nearly 500 poker players around the world, CR is a top destination and in 3.5 years only 3-4 people have needed to go through the residency process with our residency attorney because they had kids or got married or were changing denouncing their home citizenship/tax domicile etc. Otherwise, it's probably best to live there for a good while before committing to that process.

Contrary to public belief, it is still possible to get a bank account without residency (although there are a lot of requirements and documents to get one). There are also only a few branches left in the country that will still allow this.

How much for a nice one bedroom (apartment) in Tamarindo, including utilities?

How much for a ballin' one bedroom (apartment) in Tamarindo, including utilities?


Kristen: Would you address the legality of online gaming in Costa Rica?

$500

$1100

It's illegal for call centers in Costa Rica to accept bets from Costa Ricans.

@RickySteve: Thanks for the response.
Those prices seem incredibly low, are you living there now and can confirm this?

--I must be getting a very skewed sense of prices from the websites I am looking at, if those figures are accurate.

I lived there from 2011-2013.

Thanks, it looks like the prices are much closer to what you're suggesting than what I was thinking.

Price for a 1BR in a beach town like Tamarindo depends on the following primary factors:

• Arrival date (high/low season or near a holiday)
• Lease term
• Location
• Utilities included or not included

In the low season from after Easter until Dec 1, a nice 1BR luxury furnished condo can be $900/mo. From Dec 1 until Easter, the same property can be $900/week. On longer term rentals, you may be able to find a really low end room to rent for $400-500/mo somewhere on the outskirts of town, or a nice new condo by the beach for $1000-1500 plus everything in between. As a general rule, daily/weekly rentals are more expensive than monthly or annual lets and so on.

Tamarindo is pricier than other beach towns like Coco and Jaco because it's small and has high demand.

Regarding the legality of online gaming, online gaming is legal and there are many brick and mortar casinos as well throughout the nation, although it's not as highly regulated as countries like France and Spain, for example.

La Nacion national newspaper published a few articles about Poker Refugees in Costa Rica back in 2012 and legislators commented on the topic if you'd like to reference:

Without regulation. The Director General of Taxation, Carlos Vargas explained that online poker players are not required to pay income taxes because gains in the game are not considered as income product.

"With the recently passed Ley de Impuesto a Casinos y Empresas de Enlace de Llamadas de Apuestas Electrónicas, this established new taxes, but for companies that develop the activity and not the players," said Vargas.

Congressman Luis Fishman, a member of the Committee on Financial Congress, confirmed that the regulation of the players were excluded from the law, published in the Gazette last August.

"That aspect was left out; the regulations related to the issue of betting and casinos including virtual types, but for online poker, at this time there are no blanket restrictions at all, "said Fishman.

In the USA., the government receives pressure from industry to regulate the game, however, a definitive solution is not in sight.

Meanwhile, players like [poker refugees clients] are resigned to remain abroad while waiting for a solution.

Here is the source in Spanish for further reference: http://conamaj.go.cr/observatorio/in...ca-pas-se-conv

Thanks Kristen,

I should have clarified; I'm interested in long-term rentals (6 months).

Is there any advantage to Tamarindo (over Jaco or Coco)? It looked like the nicest are, but if I could get comparably nice living quarters for less money by living in one of the other areas, I would be interested.

For long 6 months you can usually get a similar rate to 1-year but depends when lease starts because everyone wants to rent their places out during peak weeks.

Location compared to other beach towns depends a lot on what you're looking for, lifestyle and goals. CR is a super small but totally diverse country and each place has its own vibe completely.

Jaco and Coco have more lower end and cheaper places comparatively but beaches, geography and vibe are different.

PM me and we'll talk!

My gf and I are trying to plan a one week long trip to Costa Rica in late March, but have no idea where to stay and what cities are best to visit and which to avoid.

We'd like to do a lot of the hiking in mountains, forests, see the animals, etc. All-inclusive isn't a must.

Don't try to cram in too much in one week. One or two places max.

Don't go during Easter.

A brief visit to Arenal by car and then fly to Corcovado would be my recommendation.

I agree that Arenal is a great place to go; one of my favorites. Another good hiking/forest area is Monteverde or Chirripó.

Then for more nature and animals but with beaches, the Osa is good. This means Corcovado as RickySteve said for the most raw nature experience. Be prepared to travel by boat. It's quite remote. I also like the other side of the peninsula which is Puerto Jimenez down to Pan Dulce. Across the gulf - Pavones area is nice too.

I wouldn't go to more than 2 different regions or you'll spend most of your time traveling. CR is a small country but can take a really long time to drive through.

Flying is faster on Nature Air/Sansa but can get pricey. March is still high season. Enjoy

Kudos for not recommending Manuel Antonio. (Not that it's a terrible place or inappropriate for 95% of tourists.)

Monteverde is nice but frankly overrated and the roads getting there are not pleasant.

Puerto Jimenez is a dump.

Sansa tends to be expensive but Nature Air has great sales if you get on their email list.

Yes I would avoid all the touristy areas during March, which pretty much includes most of Guanacaste and the Central Coast (Jaco-MA-Dom). Prices are high and it's crowded and more petty theft at these times. The Caribbean is ok for a couple days but not much to do, and it's rainier at that time.

The only exception for Guanacaste is the Nicoya Peninsula from South of Carrillo/Punta Islita down to Cabo Blanco. That is a nice area to explore and no tourists until you get to Santa Teresa. But there is not a ton of nature and animals to see until the tip of the Peninsula from Cabo Blanco to Montezuma, so that kind of defeats the purpose. Best to split the trip half in the mountains and half in the Osa imo. Just remember internet is not good down there so maybe not the best for online poker.

Question if possible..... I'll be moving to Costa Rica for WCOOP in September. Does anyone use NETELLER to deposit to their Stars account from Costa Rica?

Is that even an option? Hoping to fund NETELLER before I leave and use it @ Stars & other euro sites.

I've asked Stars security but they cannot recommend depositing option

Unsure if I want to go through the expense or hassle opening up a bank account or use the transfers threads on 2 + 2.

Thanks in advance!

Found the answer...

To open an account with Neteller or Skrill you still need to be able to verify your identity and address. The most common ways of doing this are with a combination of passport/ID, lease, bank statement and utility bill (in your name).

You can't open the account until you are offshore, then would need to fund it also while offshore and it can't be from a US bank account. You can only link a foreign bank account and Neteller doesn't do transfers in USD. There are a few hoops to jump through.

leaving Costa Rica Jaco after 3 months, we had a chef here twice a day for 3 months, he is a good chef and fun guy. Def enjoyed his food the whole stay. Charges 20$ salary (ex cost of food) per meal, does all the grocery shopping etc. Not bad if u split it with a house. Often we had guest and he didnt mind cooking for extra people, If anyone is looking for a chef in Jaco let me know

Hi we are always looking for people like this. I tried to send you a PM here through the site but it wouldn't let me? Can you send me the details to info at pokerrefugees.com? Thank you

im in costa rica now. anyone know of a skype group im in the san jose area. thank you

There isn't one that I know of but there's a Facebook group called Costa Rica Poker you can join.