Staying Safe in Costa Rica

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Staying Safe in Costa Rica

by Matt Lloyd in Costa Rica

Wondering whether Costa Rica is a safe country to visit or even relocate to? You are in the right place to find out. Costa Rica is a true haven for many people looking to relocate with luscious jungles, stretches of white sandy beaches, and an abundance of friendly people. Despite this, queries about the safety levels in this country do come in abundance.

Overall Costa Rica is seen as one of the safest countries you can visit in Latin America with it being ranked by the Global Peace Index as the number one peaceful country in Central America. However, the country is still located in a region with high levels of petty crime, drug trafficking, and regional poverty, within 2017 the country recording a record-high murder rate of 12.1 per 100,000 people.

The tourism industry has presented false pretenses of Costa Rica’s crime rate and can leave many expats underprepared when arriving. In this article, we look not to discourage you from making Costa Rica your new home but to make sure you are prepared with appropriate information surrounding safety issues in the country.

Photo by Cosmic Timetraveler

Which Areas Should You Avoid in Costa Rica?

Most people moving to Costa will tend to relocate to areas which a high community of expats including the beach towns of Puerto Viejo and Nosara along with many mountainous towns in the Central Valley area. However, there are key places to avoid including sketchy neighborhoods in the capital San Jose. This includes Guanacaste which the OIJ reported a significant increase in homicides from 22 to 38 in Guanacaste from 2018 to 2019. These areas are plagued with elevated levels of crime with drug and gang-related issues on the rise it is highly recommended not to be visited by expats or tourists.

San Jose Province – Photo by Robin Canfield

Some of Our Top Tips to Staying Safe in Costa Rica

Vehicle Crime: Crime around vehicles is a common issue in Costa Rica, with theft surrounding unattended vehicles significantly high with the OIJ recording 4,537 cases in 2019 with foreigners accounting for a sizable percentage of those cases. We recommend parking in well-lit areas and make sure any items of value are well hidden. A common crime occurring to new expats is slashing tires in which they use to deploy you away from your vehicle. It is important to be vigilant of your surroundings and if this issue occurs to lock your doors when leaving the car to check on the problem.

Petty Crime: Despite homicides being mainly gang-related and down 5% in 2019 (516) from small and petty crimes such as “Snatch and Grabs” are on the rise. This is probably the most common crime for expats in Costa Rica, as they typically tend to target vulnerable non-locals. It is important to keep valuable items hidden as much as possible and avoid unlit areas alone, especially when alone.

Passports: Passports are needed a lot for daily activities however, crime surrounding missing passports has increased in expat communities. Taking out a photocopy of both your ID page and visa is a much safer option.

Home Burglary: Burglary and robbery has been an issue in Costa Rica especially during the holiday season and expats are the most at risk. General advice is if an intruder confronts you or tries to take your belongings do not resist as issues surrounding most theft-related violence occur due to victim resistance. In the past, expats moving to the country have not followed measures by locals such as having secure housing surrounded by bars and wire. Enforcing these high-security measures can help reduce the risk of these happening including securely locked and stable doors, bars in all slider windows and doors, and an alarm system.

If you are looking for more information about relocating to Costa Rica, which will also touch more on how to keep safe in the country a Relocation Retreat, which is a 7-day event will be held in May (dates to be announced) at www.sunsetdelmarbeachresort.com in which a variety of guest speakers will come and speak about moving to Costa Rica.

Discover everything you need to know about moving to Costa Rica while enjoying 7 relaxing days at a beachfront resort, click here.

About The Author

Matt Lloyd runs a hotel in Costa Rica since 2016. He's based on the Pacific Coast side of the country, outside the town of Jaco.

If you'd like to discuss options for moving to Costa Rica with me on a phone call, you can book a free 30-minute session here.