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More Canadians are vacationing in Costa Rica | Costa Developers

New flights from Canada to Costa Rica start operating due to the increase of visitors from the North American country to the tropical paradise.

The interest of Canadian travelers to fly into Costa Rican territory is growing. This was determined by interest of airlines to open new flights from Canada. There are presently three existing airlines that fly from Toronto and Montreal to both national airports in Costa Rica.

The arrival of more Canadians could be important income for the Costa Rican economy because the country is one of the wealthiest in the world.

Most of Costa Developers clients come from Canada and the US; they’ve found in our developments a great lifestyle in a coastal home and beach properties.

"The increase of flights from Canada is in part due to the signing of the Air Transport Agreement between both countries," said Luis Carlos Araya, Deputy of Air Transportation.

TACA was the first to launch into full force to attract the Canadian market. Since July 1st, TACA extended its flights between San Jose and Toronto from three flights weekly to a one daily.

Air Canada also increased its operations to Costa Rica, but not from the Liberia, the capital. Guanacaste is the next destination the U.S. Company is interested in exploring next semester.

These aren't the only airlines companies that are interested in connecting Canada with Costa Rica, West Jet, a Canadian airline is also thinking about flights to Costa Rica. Although the low-cost airline is interested in adding the country to its flight schedule, they have not made an official proposal.

There are two major purposes for Canadian tourists when traveling to Costa Rica; the first is to enjoy leisure and adventure offered by national tourist regions and secondly are those traveling for medical tourism, which has become more popular in the country, as well as a retirement destination. Having a second home through our fractional ownership programs, gives the opportunity to recover from a medical procedure or enjoying an incomparable time at a beautiful beach in Costa Rica.

CostaRica Real Estate | Costa Developers 

Japanese companies pay record $45 a pound for Costa Rica’s best coffee | Costa Developers

The chairman of the Cup of Excellence’s board of directors is one of the buyers.

Hannah J. Ryan

Coffee cupping is a detailed art that begins with freshly roasted and ground bean samples. The drink is brewed by pouring hot water over the coffee and scooping off the grounds that float to the top. Cuppers slurp the hot drink from a spoon to spread the flavor across their tongue, swish it about their mouth and then slip it out to experience the coffee's full flavor profile.

This year’s highest-scoring Costa Rican coffee received a record $45 a pound in the Cup of Excellence’s online auction, held Tuesday morning. A Brumas del Zurquí coffee in Heredia was awarded 93.47 points in the national cupping competition in May (TT, June 29). Three micro-roasting coffee companies in Japan paid nearly $100,000 for 2,200 pounds of the winning green coffee.

Judges awarded the especially high score to the Heredian coffee for its unique complexity of dried raisin and prune flavors along with floral aromas.

Prior to the auction, Cup of Excellence international judge Bernd Braune said the winner was a surprise to all because Heredia is not particularly known for exceptionally unique micro coffee lots. Over the past five years, coffee producers around Costa Rica have improved their growing and harvesting practices, Braune said, and to see this quality of coffee is exciting.

The buyers of the winning lot are Maruyama Coffee, Yokoi Coffee and Bontain Coffee. The president and founder of Maruyama Coffee, Kentaro Maruyama, is the chairman on the Cup of Excellence’s board of directors. Bontain Coffee’s owner, Yoshi Kato, is also a board member.

A total of 27 Costa Rican coffees were auctioned at an average price of $8.90 a pound, bringing in some $600,000 for Costa Rican coffee producers and the Coffee Institute of Costa Rica.

Costa Rica’s youngest golf champion

Elias Mardeni, 6, is the youngest golf champion in Costa Rica.

Gabe Dinsmoor

Elias Mardeni is the youngest Costa Rican golf champion in recent memory. He competes in a tournament in the U.S. city of San Diego next week.

From the print edition

Elias Mardeni’s ball is in the middle of the fairway on the fifth hole at the La Iguana Golf Course at Los Sueños Resort in Herradura. The ball is about 20 yards from the green. Elias approaches with his chipping wedge, and he whacks the top off of a small anthill sprouting from the grass. He laughs. 

Then he steps up to the ball and wiggles his hips a little, glancing to his left at the flag. He swings and watches expectantly as the ball drops on the green and rolls to a stop about four inches from the cup.

When the ball doesn’t drop into the hole, his small shoulders slump in disappointment. Elias is 6 years old. He’s also the reigning national golf champion of Costa Rica for boys aged 5-8.

His father, Elias Sr., brings him his putter. “Muy bien, Elias,” he says. The young champ doesn’t answer, but takes the putter and blithely taps the ball into the cup. He turns and walks back toward the golf cart parked on the fairway, dragging his putter behind him by the handle. He’s wearing golf cleats and shorts striped like a train engineer’s hat.

Elias Sr. grins. “He is muy perfectionista,” he says. “And when he makes a bad shot, or a shot he thinks is a bad shot…” Elias Sr. trails off and shrugs.

A moment later the father climbs into the cart with his son. “Come, mi amor, let’s eat some lunch.” He spoons a few mouthfuls of chicken and rice into Elias’ mouth and asks why he is upset. Elias shrugs and looks a little warily at your correspondent and his photographer.

“Okay, mi amor, what do we do when we have a bad shot?” Elias Sr. asks. Elias breathes slowly in and out through his nose. He does it again and then a third time. By his fourth deep breath he’s starting to giggle and clown around, exaggerating the breaths and puffing out his cheeks.

“Okay,” says Elias Sr. “Why do we do that? What do we need to do after a bad shot?”

“Concentrate,” answers Elias.

“Concentrate, why?”

“To win,” says Elias, smiling.

At the next tee, after three practice swings, Elias rips an arrow-straight drive more than 100 meters down the fairway and bounces happily back to the cart.

Tournament play

Next week Elias will compete in the Callaway Junior World Championship tournament at Colina Park Golf Course in San Diego, California. He will play three days, from July 10-13, in a field of 39 in the Boys’ 6-and-Under Division.

Elias Sr. will caddy for his son.

Elias Sr. and his wife, Solgia, run El Pana Surf Shop in downtown Jacó, on the central Pacific coast. Neither of them play golf. Elias Sr. came to Costa Rica some 12 years ago from Venezuela to get away from “our crazy president.” His wife followed a few years later and little Elias was born in Costa Rica.

“When he was 2, we gave him some plastic clubs, and he started to play, and he just kept playing,” says Elias Sr. “He kept playing until we had to say, ‘Elias! Elias! Elias! Put that down!’ I think from that he just never wanted to stop.”

Elias Sr. and Solgia took Elias to Los Sueños when he was 4 and paid for a month’s worth of golf lessons with Los Sueños Golf Director José Quesada.

Quesada saw something in Elias after just a few lessons. “It’s not normal for someone his age, a 6-year-old kid, to have the discipline to practice and to focus the way Elias does, and to absorb so well what you teach,” says Quesada, who practices with Elias several times a week.

Quesada offered to train Elias at Los Sueños and to enter him in national golf tournaments.

“The support he has from his dad is very important,” Quesada says. “His dad really dedicates the time to bring him to practice, and he’s always asking me about the rules and different things because his dad doesn’t even know how to hit a ball. He’s a surfer.”

Elias’ parents switch off minding the surf shop, which sits on Jacó’s main strip just a block from the beach, so that Elias Sr. can take his son to train with Quesada.

Support

Golf isn’t exactly a blue-collar sport – especially in Costa Rica. Elias plays with an old set of clubs from Los Sueños, and Elias Sr. worked long hours in the surf shop to recently buy his son a new driver and putter.

“Elias’ family is a family of workers,” says Quesada, who agreed to work with Elias for free after seeing him play. “They have their shop, they both work, but golf, economically speaking, is an expensive sport, and if he wins or qualifies for other tournaments, there are other costs.”

Elias took third place in his first national tournament in Costa Rica in May 2011. His performance in eight other tournaments since then qualified him for the Callaway Junior World Championship as well as the U.S. Kids’ World Golf Championship in August. 

“He is capable of winning them both,” Quesada says.

Elias is the youngest player to earn the top-ranked slot in the 5-8 age group.

Vista Los Sueños Canopy Tour, located in Herradura near Jacó, has sponsored Elias and helped pay for his school fees. The tour also covered some of Elias Sr.’s travel expenses for the San Diego tournament. 

Quesada, who played golf professionally in the past, said he hopes to keep working with Elias to represent Costa Rica in tournaments abroad.  He hopes other businesses will take note of Elias’ ability and help with the costs of future tournaments.

“There are other good players coming up who have represented us internationally, Quesada says, “but at Elias’ age, he’s at another level compared with what is normal.”

“The kids who play at 7, 8 or 9 play at a superior level,” Quesada adds. “That’s what we want for Elias, but we want to move at a rhythm where, at the same time, the sport is still for him. There has to be that balance between fun and sport, because a lot of kids with potential like Elias get too much pressure, and they get bored and leave the sport.”

‘I love it because it’s my favorite sport’

“Watch out!” Elias yells in English as his father navigates their golf cart around one of the namesake iguanas basking on La Iguana course’s cart path.

“Mi Amor, how many holes do you want to play?” Elias Sr. asks. Elias has forgotten his golf gloves and after the first few holes has a small blister on each palm.

“Six,” he says. “No, nine. No, 10.”

Despite the blisters, Elias is relaxed and playing happily now. He takes his time preparing for each shot, calling occasionally to his dad for a different club or another ball to retry a shot he wants more practice on. “I like golf because I like playing it,” he says sitting in the shade of the golf cart between holes. “I love it because it’s my favorite sport. I feel good when I have a good shot.”

Elias Sr. is smiling and trying to convince his son to take another bite of chicken and rice from a Tupperware container.

“You have to eat your lunch. You can’t play Wii tonight if you don’t each your lunch,” Elias Sr. says.

It works. Elias takes two more bites and is anxious to get to the next hole. “He’s very competitive,” the father says. “He gets upset when he makes a bad shot, but thank God, he doesn’t make that many bad ones.”

Elias is used to playing longer holes than what he’ll face in San Diego. Quesada has him practicing teeing off from the same distances he’ll encounter in the tournament, warning the young golfista to stay humble and focus on playing against the course and himself, not the other competitors.

On hole 9, Elias squares up to his ball and makes a nice drive. The second shot takes him over a shallow creek. He seems happy enough with the shot, but tries it again with a similar result. He approaches the first ball to make his second shot with it – a 30-yard uphill chip shot to the green. 

“Elias, breathe,” says his father. “Concentrate.”

Elias swings and the little yellow ball hangs in the air before dropping onto the green, bouncing once and clattering against the flagpole jutting from the cup.

“Uyyyyy!!” he says looking around with a smile for his father, who stands by the golf cart beaming at his son.

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Costa Rica is the best place on the region to have and raise children

Costa Rica has the lowest infant mortality in Central America and one of the most reduced one in Latin America. The country is also the best place in the region to raise children say a compound of reports.

The infant mortality rate (IMR) is an indicator of child deaths per thousand live births recorded in the first year of life, which reflects the living conditions of the population and to measure the development of a country.

The isthmus is the only nation that holds the infant mortality rate in single digits, which is a huge achievement.

The data is from the non-governmental organization in Washington, US Population Reference Bureau, report released in 2011: “We’re an example throughout Latin America to take mortality into a single figure. The idea is to maintain or reduce it further”, said Ileana Balmaceda, chief executive of the CCSS (Social Security System in Costa Rica)

An adequate prenatal care, care for high risk pregnancies, timely care to the newborn, care for 97 percent of deliveries in health centers and immunization programs and to promote breastfeeding have led to a sustained reduction in child mortality.

This is supported by more and better specialists and high-tech equipment to help keep a steady decline throughout history in the deaths of children less than one year. For Maria Luisa Avila, former Minister of Health, the advantage has been the social investment that the country has made, starting with access to drinking water, sewers, nutrition, access to health services and literacy.

According to the Statistics and Census Institute (INEC), last year there were 666 deaths (five less than in 2010) and there were 73,459 births, 2,537 more than 2010.

Thus, the mortality rate showed a slight decrease in passing of 9.46 deaths per thousand births in the first year in 2010 to 9.07 deaths in 2011.

In addition to this information, Save the Children’s “State of the World’s Mothers” report ranked Costa Rica 13th on list of less-developed countries.

The study released by this NGO was based on conditions for raising children. Following Costa Rica in the region is Panama (24th), El Salvador (37th), Belize (42th), Nicaragua (49th), Honduras (60th) and Guatemala (68th).

Country’s medical center and high quality social security are among the most significant attractions for people thinking about living in Costa Rica. A low infant mortality and a good rate on the following report represents the huge improvement Costa Rica has made to become a high developed country and best of the region in many areas.

Costa Rica Real Estate | Costa Developers

Costa Rica as best destination for markets accessibility and competitiveness

The great contribution which means foreign trade for Costa Rica to their social and economic development is the product of its policies of openness and its simple pricing model.

Thus specifies the last report Global Facilitation of the 2012 trade of the World Economic Forum, published on 23 May and placed Costa Rica in the first place in Central America and ranked 43 worldwide.

The index is published every two years since 2008 and this had a record of 132 economies coverage. Figures express each Central American country’s place in the global list.

The World Economic Forum report says the country has successfully taken advantage of its inclusion into global value chains and improved trade facilitation procedures have significantly contributed to this outcome. Customs revenues have grown manifold; the employment situation has also improved, both in quantity and quality, as have exports.

In the report as well the author closes by saying that the example of Costa Rica presents a very strong, practical argument for further multilateral trade facilitation measures, such as those discussed under the aegis of the WTO.

This case study also shows, however, that even in the presence of strong and well-executed policies, setbacks can occur and facilitating trade is a process that requires constant improvement and continuous policy attention.

Foreign direct investment in Costa Rica will grow 7 percent this year, according to projections by the CINDE (Coalition’s Initiatives for Development).

Of growth, reach the goal established by the Central Bank of $2.25 billion Costa Rica.

In 2011, foreign investment reached $2.1 billion for the dynamic way in area export processing zones and tourism.

Costa Rican president, Laura Chinchilla is currently on a European tour, urging businessman and governments to invest in the country and promote alliances between governments. During his visit to Paris, Chinchilla reaffirmed that the country she rules shared the values of OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) and wants to be member of it.

“Costa Rica has always valued and offered his friendship to this organization.” We also are prepared to offer our work and commitment to move towards this forum where major decisions are taken”, said Chinchilla at the annual meeting of the OECD.

“We are the oldest democracy in Latin America,” she emphasized, and the OECD has provided guidance, analysis, reflection and inspiration to Costa Rica for more than half a century.

More medical centers moving to the most visited beach towns

Posted on May 29, 2012 by admin

The private hospital CIMA is getting ready to open its doors in a few weeks in what will be its second hospital in Costa Rica. The new hospital is situated in Liberia, joining the main one in Escazú, which has been operating for the last 12 years.

The opening date has yet to be announced. According to Gustavo Lee, operations manager of the medical centre, the date will be announced soon. Lee calls the new centre the “best medical option in the North Pacific”. The new hospital is generating some 70 jobs, which most of the hiring will be from the local areas. Although the initial capacity if of six hospital beds, it can quickly be extended to triple that or 18 beds.

The new medical centre will also have a laboratory, pharmacy, radiology department, an emergency room and operating rooms. The medical centre will serve the 270.00 permanent residents of the area and some 500.000 tourists on holiday or who are temporary residents in Guanacaste. The opening of the Hospital CIMA in Guanacaste will allow health specialists to offer their services at a first class hospital and with cutting-edge medical apparatus.

But not only the northern region of the Pacific Coast will have this kind of centers, as well the Central Pacific keeps improving its medical centers due to the great demand of tourists, retired foreigners and the increased number of people moving to the area.

Marjorie Arroyo from Clínica Bíblica said that currently the Medical Center is working with a General Doctor, who’s able to attend minor procedures and exams. If there are major complications that cannot be treated at the Clinic en Herradura, Los Sueños, patients will be submitted to the Hospital in San José.

Currently there is also a monthly visit from a dermatologist, being one of the most common health issues on a tropical region.

Approximately in one or two months the branch will have its own pharmacy, “We have the space and all the permits to open in approximately one month our own drug store” Arroyo said.

In the near future there will be more specialized doctors coming frequently. Arroyo also said that both foreigners and national citizens come to the clinic with different consultations with the permanent doctor, Dr. Erisel Sanabria Coto.

“We’re a small branch, so we decided to currently work with a dermatologist only, but we’ll start implementing more specialists in the course of the year”, commented Arroyo.

Clinica Bíblica has been very excited about their Los Sueños branch, as they bring with them the backing of hundreds of doctors and specialists, a complete state-of-the-art private hospital in San Jose, pharmaceutical department, and more along with over 80 years experience in the medical health industry in Costa Rica.