Costa Rica
Costa Rica has bewilderingly diverse culture, climates, flora, and fauna, and landscapes range from rainforests, to dry tropical and temperate forests, to volcanoes, to Caribbean and Pacific beaches, to high mountains, and marshy lowlands. Costa Rica is an exceptionally stable and peaceful country compared to the volatile region it's in, and is one of the world's top destinations for nature and ecotourism. Wikivoyage
Cities
Cities with a full Wikivoyage guide, largest first.
Can I go? Entry and visas
From GOV.UK, for United Kingdom passports, updated 19 May 2026:
You can visit Costa Rica without a visa for up to 180 days under a tourist visa waiver. The exact period is at the discretion of the immigration officer on arrival.
For more information on requirements or if you plan to work, or stay for a longer period, check with the Costa Rican Embassy in the UK.
If you overstay, the immigration authorities can fine you 100 US dollars for each month and refuse future applications to enter Costa Rica.
Passport validity
Your passport must have an ‘expiry date’ at least 1 day after the day you plan to leave Costa Rica.
Check with your travel provider that your passport and other travel documents meet requirements. Renew your passport if you need to.
You will be denied entry if you do not have a valid travel document or try to use a passport that has been reported lost or stolen.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Your embassy in Costa Rica
Finding embassies…
For a lost passport, an arrest or an emergency.
Costa Rica's embassy in United Kingdom
Finding embassies…
For a visa before you go.
Entry rules change, sometimes overnight. Always confirm with the official source before you book or travel. This is a pointer, not legal advice.
Good to know
Emergency numbers in Costa Rica
- Currency
- Costa Rican Colón (CRC)
- Time
- UTC−6
- Tue 13:27 there now
- Plugs and power
- Types A, B · 120 V
- Driving
- On the right
- Calling code
- +506
- Languages
- Spanish
- Capital
- San José
From Wikidata, Unicode CLDR (currency, languages) and the IANA time zone database; checked 10 October 2026.