Costa Rica will be reopening its borders for international tourists starting on August 1st allowing visitors from Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union, Tourism Minister Gustavo Segura announced Thursday.
*The below article was originally published on July 24. It will no longer be updated, as recent updates can be found on our “Costa Rica: Covid-19 Entry Requirements For Travelers”
Visitors arriving from the Schengen Area, which comprises some countries not in the EU, are also welcome, the Costa Rica Tourism Board clarified later Thursday.
Entry Requirements:
Costa Rica also announced the entry requirements for travelers.
- Must complete and present an epidemiological survey.
- Present proof of a negative PCR coronavirus test. The result must have been received within the 48 hours before their travel to Costa Rica.
- Travel insurance that covers medical care or an unexpected extended hotel stay.
- Follow all airport and local health protocols. This includes wearing a mask or face shield in nearly all indoors circumstances.
The country expects to receive fewer than five commercial flights per week at the outset, Segura said, representing less than 1% of Costa Rica’s pre-coronavirus flight volume.
“These are drops of hope for more than 600,000 people who directly or indirectly depend on the tourism dynamic,” the tourism minister said.
Noticeably absent from the allowed countries is the United States.
In 2019, more than 1.3 million tourists came to Costa Rica from the United States, more than any other single country by far. However, due to the North American nation’s surging case total, Costa Rica has not yet authorized commercial flights from the United States.
Update August 20: Americans from 6 states (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont) can now enter on Sept 1.
Update September: More US states can now enter as of September 15; Maryland, Virginia, District of Columbia, Colorado, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.
The news comes on the same day that Costa Rica announced its highest day-to-day increase in new known coronavirus cases and deaths.
Costa Rica’s borders have been closed since March devastating the tourism industry which makes up 8.2% of Costa Rica’s GDP.
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Olga
Wednesday 10th of February 2021
Hey, isn't Costa Rica opened to all US now? And I think they do not require anymore a PCR test from anyone.
Todd (@stwisme)
Wednesday 9th of September 2020
Costa Rica has expanded its list beyond the original six, effective Sept. 1.
(link)
Kashlee Kucheran
Wednesday 9th of September 2020
Yes,we actually wrote an article here on Sept 1 "Costa Rica will reopen to Americans from these 12 states" (Click HERE to read) but for some reason this article didn't get the updates ;)
David A
Monday 31st of August 2020
Costa Rica is starting to open states in the US based on state ID September 1st. Do you think you can update these as new states are added?
Kashlee Kucheran
Monday 31st of August 2020
Hi David: We updated this article on August 20th to show the 6 state info