As of September 1st, Costa Rica's tourist marinas will be authorized to receive foreign visitors, who must comply with all the requirements established by local authorities.
As a result of the covid-19 outbreak and the closing of the borders decreed by the government, the arrival of foreign tourists to Costa Rican marinas was restricted for more than five months.
As a result of the covid19 outbreak, Costa Rica closed its borders to tourism and during April and May practically no visitors entered the country, a situation that will persist in the coming months due to the slow reactivation of the sector.
In order to mitigate the advance of the virus, by means of a government decree the authorities ordered that as of March 18 only Costa Ricans and residents could enter the country.
During the first semester of 2019, foreign tourists in Costa Rica spent $2,228 million, exceeding by 3.8% what was reported in the same period of 2018.
Data from the Central Bank of Costa Rica indicate that between January and June 2018 and the same period in 2019, tourist spending increased by $81 million, from $2,147 million to $2,229 million.
In the last decade, the number of hotel rooms in Costa Rica has increased at a 4% average annual rate, and in 2018 Guanacaste was the area that concentrated a quarter of the hotel offer, monopolizing about 26% of the total.
Figures from the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) detail that between 2008 and 2018 the number of rooms dedicated to lodging increased by 15,474, from 41,759 to 57,233.
About 153,000 visitors annually come to the country to fish for recreational purposes, and the activity generates a chain of business of about $500 million annually.
According to a study conducted by the Costa Rican Fishing Federation (Fecop), most of the income reported in the country by sport and tourist fishing derives from the arrival of tourists interested in the activity, who generate annual revenues of $460 million.
Because of the delay of the Costa Rican authorities to solve the problem of water supply in the Gulf of Papagayo, developers request that the terms of the concessions granted to them to develop tourism projects in the area be extended.
The Instituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT) has already received requests for concessions to be extended, because some of the projects that have not been completed have already consumed half of the time they were granted.
The construction of the road to Monteverde in Costa Rica, which has been postponed for years and that in the coming weeks would publish the tender documents, promises to further enhance tourism in the sector.
This is not the first attempt by a government to develop this important road project. In July 2014 the Ministry of Public Works announced that it would publish in 2015 a "direct competitive tender" to asphalt 18 kilometers of road in the province of Puntarenas.
Now that the works that will allow the water supply to the main tourist centers of the Gulf of Papagayo, in Costa Rica, are finished, it is expected that they will restart the investments paralyzed years ago.
After the opening of Las Trancas-Papagayo Bahía Aqueduct on March 1st, which was achieved after an agreement between the Costa Rican Institute of Aqueducts and Sewers, the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism and the private sector, there is optimism that investments can be reactivated in at least 11 projects.
The VAT that will be gradually collected in Costa Rica over four years would put tourism businesses in a disadvantageous position, since they will have to increase product prices or reduce their profits.
The implementation of Value Added Tax (VAT) will be done gradually, from 0% in the first year, 4% in the second year, 8% in the third year and 13% from the fourth year, a situation that would make the operation of tourism companies more expensive.
Although between 2017 and 2018 the average spending of tourists in Costa Rica fell 14%, businessmen estimate that the country has the capacity to absorb more demand.
Figures from the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) specify that in the last two years the average expenditure made by tourists who arrive in the country decreased by $226, going from $1,561 in 2017 to $1,335 in 2018, and the stay per person remains around 12 nights.
A 3% additional to the 13% VAT that was expected to be charged in Costa Rica as a tax on accommodation services provided through the Airbnb platform and other similar platforms was finally removed from the bill being discussed in the Legislative Assembly.
Bill 20.865 for the regulation of non-traditional hosting and its intermediation through digital platforms, which is discussed in the Legislative Assembly and determines the taxes to be charged for the activity, will be modified by the Economic Affairs Commission.
From January to April 2019 the company Apple Vacations will be running a weekly charter flight between the airport of Liberia, Guanacaste, and Rockford in Illinois, United States.
The Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) reported that the route which will bring 2,340 tourists to the country will have a weekly frequency.
This year Costa Rica will focus on consolidating itself as a global destination, of a potential market of approximately 9 million tourists.
Global promotion to position Costa Rica as a destination will begin in 2018. According to data from the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism (ICT), the average tourist who visits the country spends 18 nights and spends $3,200, and in addition, prefers small lodgings, local food and crafts.
On November 13th and 14th Costa Rican entrepreneurs of hotel brands, investment funds and real estate developers will be meeting in Costa Rica to discuss sustainable investments in the industry.
The event is being organized by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) and will take place at the Hotel Real Intercontinental.
Hotel entrepreneurs in Costa Rica attribute the decline in occupancy rates to a lesser flow of US tourists visiting the country, which in the first half fell by 2%.
According to the results of an occupancy survey carried out by the Costa Rican Chamber of Hotels among its affiliates, hotel occupancy fell by 5% in June compared to the same month in 2016, and projections for the coming months are not very flattering.