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Costa Rica relies on U.S. military for prime position in Latin American tourism
DestinationsOn a recent Friday morning at a gleaming new international airport in Costa Rica, hundreds of tourists from New York and Minnesota emerged blinking onto the sun-blasted tarmac. At the other end of the runway, eight Americans zipped into tan flight suits aboard a massive white surveillance plane. As four propellers roared, the P3 Orion [...]
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Forget eco-escapes, Costa Rica’s next vacation frontier is medical tourism
DestinationsWhen Canadian house cleaner Marlene Trithardt needed a tooth replaced, she drove past her local dentist’s office in Alberta and flew to the beach paradise of Costa Rica – to save money. Trithardt is one of a growing number of North Americans who turn south for medical care lured by lower prices, contributing close to [...]
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Costa Rican resort dresses up natural springs with spa services
DestinationsLa Fortuna teems with volcano-related tourist attractions, and particularly hot springs. Each dipping establishment offers its own twist on volcanically-warmed baths, but when it comes to versatility, no one beats Baldi Hot Springs Hotel & Spa.
“Pe…
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Costa Rica bans all tourist hunting activity in a Latin American first
DestinationsCosta Rica is poised to become the first Latin American country to ban hunting as a sport, after Congress on Tuesday provisionally approved reforms to its Wildlife Conservation Law. Lawmakers voting on the ban voted 41 in favor and five against, and a second vote expected in the coming week is widely seen ratifying changes [...]
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Costa Rica’s “Happiest Country” push surely isn’t making Bhutan happy
DestinationsSource: McClatchy and Tribune Newspapers Author: Tim Johnson An advertisement that greets passengers at the international airport here says, “Welcome to the happiest country of the world.” Inflated claim? Maybe, but a study indeed ranks Central America’s verdant nation of Costa Rica as the planet’s most content. Its citizens generally live to old age, watched over [...]
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Guanacaste, Costa Rica is happy to see tourism returning to pre-2008 levels
DestinationsSource: Tico Times By Hannah J. Ryan The 2008 implosion of the world’s markets hit the Guanacaste province in northwestern Costa Rica hard, yet mayors, tourism officials, developers and shop owners all agree that things are starting to pick up. With 70 percent of Guanacaste’s economy based on tourism, local business owners say 2008-2009 felt [...]
