News stories continued:
Continued:
Tourism institute may try some non-standard ad
techniques
New Yorkers out for a stroll may soon find themselves listening
to the sounds of the Costa Rican rainforest and the yodeling of
tourists on a zip-line tour every time they pass by a telephone
booth.
In San Francisco, unsuspecting drivers may find themselves
following a bus painted with leaves and flowers, with the legend
“Costa Rica – No artificial ingredients” emblazoned upon its
side.
 |
Cortas -
Short News Stories |
Service
industry
Services are expanding fast in the economy of Costa
Rica. Ten years ago, they accounted for 54 percent of
the Gross Domestic Product, but now
 they
are 58 percent. Regarding employment, seven years ago 64
percent of the workers belonged to the sector, now the
figure has increased to 68 percent. Also, the trend is
likely to continue, because banks report that credit
applications are mostly to fund service activities.
According to analysts, as countries develop, the demand
for services increases, so much so that the average is
66 percent of the overall production. Also, the service
sector demands better training, therefore it also
promotes education.
200 patrol cars
The first visit of a high-ranked Chinese official to
Costa Rica ended with the donation of 200 pick up
trucks, to be used by the police as patrol units, and
$10 million in cooperation funds. The Chinese Assistant
Prime Minister Hui Liangyu also signed five assistance
agreements. The Costa Rican Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Bruno Stagno, pointed out that a dozen agreements have
been signed with Beijing so far. A spokesperson for the
Chinese delegation said that they want to establish
friendship and cooperation ties with the other Central
American nations, too.
On U.S. buses
Sights of Costa Rica will be enjoyed by people traveling
on buses in New York and San Francisco, California, as
part of the strategy developed by the Costa Rican Board
of Tourism (ICT in Spanish) to attract more visitors.
Also, via their cell phones, New Yorkers will be able to
“visit” the rainforest for a few seconds. ICT marketing
director Maria Revelo said that even though the Costa
Rican tourist sector has kept on expanding, it must act
as if it were amidst a crisis, in order to keep
promotion up. This year’s first quarter, arrivals
recorded at international airports were 17 percent more
than in the same period in 2007. Also, the promotion of
Costa Rica will be reinforced this year in Europe, Latin
America, and emerging markets such as Portugal, Russia,
Ireland, China, and Japan.
Pre-Columbian art
The German police confiscated 1,200 pre-Columbian art
pieces, 457 of which the National Museum of Costa Rica
claims are part of the national heritage. The pieces are
part of the “Patterson Collection”, the world’s largest
private pre-Columbian one, owned by Leonardo Patterson,
born in Costa Rica and now a German citizen. The pieces
were confiscated after they were taken out of Spain and
were bound for Germany. The police in Munich stated that
the collection will be withheld until the proper owner
of them is established.
-La Nacion |
Camouflaging methods of public transport and blue-toothing
mobile phones with the exotic sounds of Costa Rica's tourist
destinations are two ideas the Instituto Costarricense de
Turismo has incorporated in its strategic marketing plan for
sustainable tourism, announced Tuesday.
Lasting from 2008 to 2010, the marketing plan budgets $14
million for the first year alone.
“We want to be proactive not reactive,” said María Amalia Revelo,
subdirector of marketing for the Instituto Costarricense de
Turismo. “These are some of our newest and most innovative
ideas.”
Other plans are more mundane. Emphasis is placed on the
importance of the Internet, with the intention of bettering the
institute's Web site so that tourists will be able to access
information more easily. An online campaign will place ads for
Costa Rica with links to strategic pages in the most common
search engines, such as Google.
Pamphlets and brochures about travelling to Costa Rica will be
distributed in airports, to target the people who recommend the
country to friends and family. Statistics from Liberia airport
show that almost half of visitors came to Costa Rica due to
personal recommendations, and it is hoped the materials will aid
this process.
Costa Ricans themselves will also have efforts dedicated to
them. Ms. Revelo said that the national market is essential to
the strategy. She said that the institute will work together
with local municipalities and cámaras de turismo to open up new
destinations where Ticos can go to relax.
The plan will also try to do away with the low-season slump,
mainly in May, September and October, by catering to niche
markets. Honeymooners from the United States, families,
especially those from Britain, and people who come to fish are
top of the list of those who will be targeted by new low-season
packages.
Considering that the tourists who come to Costa Rica have been
proved to be affluent, educated and mainly American, the
strategy includes advertising in higher-class tourist magazines
such as Conde Nast and the American Association of Retired
Persons Magazine. Costa Rica will also continue to make its
presence felt at international tourism expositions on other
continents.
“We need to do more to take the product to the consumer,” said
Ms. Revelo. “If the tourist can't see the product in their own
homeland, they will never end up in Costa Rica.”
Despite the economic slump, there is still a high focus on the
United States of America as the prime market for Costa Rica as a
tourism product, with the plan dedicating 30 percent of its
funds to the country.
Opening up to new markets is also a top priority though, with 23
percent dedicated to Europe and Asia, and 8 percent headed to
Latin American countries such as Argentina and Mexico.
“The American depression has global effects, and for us it is a
challenge, but one that we want to confront,” said Carlos
Ricardo Benavides, minister of Turismo. “With the strength of
the euro rising, it makes it easier for Europeans to travel, and
we are optimistic about the possibilities of tapping this
market, especially with the direct charter flight from London to
Liberia.”
Ms. Revelo said that the tourism institute has worked closely
with private businesses in the development of the plan in order
to draw on all the experience and knowledge available.
AMCostaRica.com
Back to top
Continued:
Central Pacific Courses Target Golf Tourism
 Three
new golf courses are being planned for the Central Pacific, two
of which are nearly ready to begin construction and represent
more than $20 million in investment, say developers.
If completed, they would bring the total number of courses in
the region to four, including the La Iguana Golf Course at the
Los Sueños Marriot Ocean & Golf Resort. Another four courses
have been built along the northern Pacific coast in Guanacaste,
and at least four more are planned for that same region.
“Certainly, Costa Rica is an up-and-comer,” said Rick Summers,
the CEO of the Publications and Marketing Group of the
Professional Golfers Association, or more simply, the PGA
Magazine. “But right now there are many, many very strong
destinations that obviously have a head start on Costa Rica.”
In the United States, the nation that sends the most tourists to
Costa Rica, golf has become an industry worth more than $75
billion, according to a World Golf Foundation study released in
January. Of that, $18 billion is from golf travel.
In Latin America and the Caribbean, countries like the Dominican
Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Jamaica have established
themselves as international golfing locations, Mr Summers said.
“The good news about three new places (in Costa Rica) will be
three new influential voices that say golf is important not only
to drive tourism dollars, but equally important to drive
economic benefits from jobs,” said Mr Summers in a telephone
interview from the United States this week, emphasizing the
importance of government promotion of golf.
While the country has yet to stake out a secure claim, three
courses in particular — the Garra de Leon Golf Club, Cabo Velas;
the Hacienda Pinilla course, south of Tamarindo, and the Four
Seasons Golf Club Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo, all in
Guanacaste — have begun to make a name for themselves
internationally.
Aaron Dowd Jr., who is developing one of the three golf courses
coming to the Central Pacific along with his father, Aaron Dowd
Sr., says he believes his project will join those ranks.
His development, called Cabo Caletas Ocean and Golf Club, will
cover 450 acres of property in the area of Esterillos Oeste,
about 15 minutes south of Jacó.
Included in the project will be a 150 to 200-room hotel,
hundreds of condominiums and 130 homes surrounding the
centerpiece, oceanfront golf course.
|
|
Tarcoles
River Crocs Blinded by
Love–Or Sex |
| They say that love is blind, but
the sexual drive can have the same result, at least if
you are a crocodile in the Tarcoles River.
 At
least four out of every 15 of the fierce males in the
river (known for its high population of the reptiles)
are blind in one or both eyes. The culprit is not
contamination of the water, or genetic defect or some
rare disease, as scientists theorized for several years.
They are simply love-struck.
Scientists have noted that the river contains two male
crocodiles for every female. To mate and carry on their
particular genetic code, the males clash violently,
charging into each other and biting their opponent’s
head or tail until one gives way under the battering and
is driven off. The croc’s eyes, raised above the level
of a rather flat head for seeing above the water when
the rest of their long snouts and bodies are submerged,
are thus vulnerable.
Occasionally, these battles result in death to one of
the fighters, but a more likely result is injury. The
thick skin of the reptile (once highly valued for shoe
leather and still poached in some places but valued here
as a tourist attraction on the Tarcoles River) usually
heals, leaving only scars and a bitter memory. (Is it
any wonder that the croc is noted for his ill temper?)
Only the eyes are really at serious risk. For some
reason, the left eye seems especially apt to be injured.
Crocodile specialist Juan Bolanos, a scientists at the
National Autonomous University at Heredia, says the
damaged eye appears totally white at first, but the
pupil has been ruptured and soon the orb rots from
within. Bolanos, who recently completed a study under
the auspices of the National Geographic Society, says
that crocodile fights are a normal survval mechanism,
but here they are more violent than in many parts of the
world. Of the estimated 150 crocs in the river, about 40
10-foot-long specimens are sexually active and the
fighting occurs among these.
In a healthy population, there are two females for every
male, so competition is not nearly as fierce, says
Bolanos. To find out why the exact reverse is true of
the Tarcoles, toxologist Thomas Rainwater took samples
of river water for study, veterinarian Nick Millichamp
examined eyes, while expert herptologist Brady Barr and
Costa Rican biologist Luz Denia Barrantes studied other
aspects of the mystery. (We cannot imagine giving an eye
exam to a writhing, snapping 10-foot croc as Millichamp
did! Gives a new slant to “scientific dedication.”)
Conclusion: Some young men might think the cool way to
protest their love for a female is to use violence, but
that’s a croc.
by Rod Hughes |
“It’s going to be a golf course that we believe will get Costa
Rica noticed as a golfing destination,” Mr Dowd said.
Covering 130 acres of his development, the course will be 7200
yards long, feature five holes with ocean views and cost $11
million. Residents who buy property in the development will
receive memberships to the course, and additional memberships
will be available, at least initially, to the general public.
Mr Dowd said he has built approximately five golf communities in
Florida, and the Esterillos course will be designed by
professional golfer Mark McCumbers’ company McCumber Golf.
“What we liked about them is that they really use the natural
characteristics of the property to blend the golf course into
its surroundings so the impact is minimal,” Mr Dowd said.
He added that the course will use paspalum grass, which requires
50 per cent less fertilizer and 40 per cent less water.
Meanwhile, a property-wide system of drains and canals will
collect rainwater and treated wastewater into lakes, which will
then be cycled through the course’s irrigation system.
Construction on the course is set to begin later this year, he
said, and is expected to open “mid-2010.” While it has been
permitted, Cabo Caletas was recently among a dozen developments
subject to surprise inspections by the Environmental Tribunal,
an office of the Ministry of the Environment and Energy (MINAE).
The Tribunal reported only that it “observed the obstruction of
a creek that apparently feeds a wetland” during the inspection,
and a report from the office is to be reviewed Monday.
Mr
Dowd, however, said the creek referred to is normally dry during
the dry season, and builders had already installed a temporary
culvert — to be replaced in the coming months by a permanent one
— that was blocked by some fallen clay the day of the
inspection.
A second golf course is being planned just minutes away in
Esterillos Este, called Del Pacific in Esterillos. Like Cabo
Caletas, the project is also part of a larger real estate
development, however the course will be limited only to
residents of Del Pacifico.
“We feel that it’s an amenity that our owners wanted,” said
Barry Strudwick, founder of the project, in a telephone
interview from the United States.
The 700-acre development will have a five-star hotel, three
restaurants, 300 houses and 1200 condominium units, in addition
to a “town center” with 25,000 square feet of commercial space.
About 100 houses and condominiums are already under
construction, and the project, which Mr Strudwick says will
total $1 billion in investment over 10 years, has already
generated $25 million in sales.
“We’re actually creating a town, not just a development,” Mr
Strudwick said.
The course, which will cost $10 million, is being designed by
Delaware architect Allen Liddicoat, with consultation by Billy
Casper Golf. The links-style course will extend 6800 yards and
play down to the ocean, Mr Strudwick added.
“It will be at a challenging resort-level golf,” he said. “Fun,
but not frustrating.”
The developer said his company is targeting “affluent,
pre-retirement baby-boomers, with an active lifestyle.”
“Typically when a family visits they’ll go do a zip line in the
canopy one day, they go to Manuel Antonio the next, they might
go fishing or surfing a third day. The father who is along for
the eco-vacation that mom planned is ready to play golf the
fourth day,” he said.
The third golf course to come to the region is much earlier in
the planning stages, and is part of a 988-acre project called
Garabu, located between Jacó and Herradura. The development
would feature two hotels of at least five stars, a business
center, an amphitheater, seven nine-story condo towers and a
golf course. The first phase of the project, which represents
about ten per cent of the total planned development, will cost
$88 million, said a spokesman for the company this week.
The developers, however, said it was to early to give further
details about either the project or the golf course.
TheBeachTimes.com
Back to top
Continued:
Constitutional Court Approves Insurance Bill
The Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court has found no
profound flaws in the bill to break the National Insurance
Institute’s monopoly on insurance, clearing the way for the
lawmakers to pass the measure. The bill is one of 13 needed for
Costa Rica to participate in the Central American Free Trade
Agreement (CAFTA) with the United States.
Of the 13, many have been passed and others are in varying
places along the road to passage. Now the government must gather
together its precarious 38 lawmaker coalition to pass the bill,
President Arias hopes before August. It is designed to open the
insurance market that has been historically the sole province of
the government institute.
The bill was sidetracked by the fierce congressional opposition
that questioned eight clauses on the basis of form and nine on
substance. The court panel found no unconstitutional aspects to
the bill. The administration’s Natioanl Liberation Party has had
the thankless task of mustering its bare 38 vote two-third
majority every time a CAFTA bill comes up for vote. This means
checking with its allies and making certain they are present on
the floor to vote, no mean job with elected representatives
whose absenteeism is high.
With time growing short before the Sept. 30 deadline, this will
mean some late night sessions by the 38 pro-CAFTA bloc members.
If the deadline is not met, Costa Rica will remain outside the
trade pact, which was narrowly ratified by a majority of voters
in the referendum last October.
by Rod Hughes
Back to top
Weak US Dollar makes property in Costa Rica
less expensive for Canadians!
Canadian buyers should consider securing their currency now to
take advantage.
With the strength of the Canadian Dollar vs. the US Dollar over the
last few months, now is a better time than ever to buy property in
Costa Rica.
|
Of
Special Interest
To Canadian Readers
 |
For example, if you had been looking to buy a property in Costa Rica
priced at $500,000 USD at the beginning of January 2007 it would
have cost you $592,000 CAD. However, if you looked at that same
property at the beginning of July 2007, it would have cost you only
$528,000 CAD. In other words, the same property would be $64,000 CAD
cheaper than it was at the beginning of the year! And if five years
ago you had been looking to buy that same $500,000 USD property, it
would have cost you a staggering $809,000 CAD. In other words, the
same property is now $281,000 CAD cheaper than it was five years
ago!
If you are a Canadian looking to buy property in Costa Rica, you
will inevitably need to transfer your currency US Dollars to buy the
property or arrange financing. It is very important to pay attention
to the exchange rate for your payments, or it could end up costing
you a lot of money!
The fact is that many individuals will simply use the exchange rate
offered by their personal bank. The bank's 'retail' rate of exchange
is usually a few percent worse than the market rate. The bank may
also charge wire transfer fees, commissions, and bank receiving
fees. Since the bank takes a large profit that is built into the
exchange rate, many individuals don't realize they are other options
available to them. There is an alternative to using your bank that
could save you significant sums of money.
Working with a "specialist currency broker" like HiFX can not only
save you time and hassle, it can also save you money. Their focus is
to educate clients on the currency market, secure a better exchange
rate than the banks, and transfer funds free of charge. Because the
exchange rate that HiFX can offer is much better than the bank's
rate, you will save substantially (on average 1%-4% of the amount)
which on larger transfers can turn into thousands of dollars.
HiFX can help you take advantage of recent currency movements and
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HiFX services are free of any fees and there is no obligation to use
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For more information and to speak with our dedicated account
representative at HiFX, please contact Bryce Anderson +1 (415)
678-2770 bryce.anderson@hifx.com or visit
www.hifx.com.
Back to top |
Three
new golf courses are being planned for the Central Pacific, two
of which are nearly ready to begin construction and represent
more than $20 million in investment, say developers. 
