Saturday, October 23, 2010
Tourists have flocked to Costa Rica for decades, drawn by the country's natural beauty and exotic wildlife
Dear Reader,
It's one of the most popular countries on our beat (and a personal favorite). This tropical jewel of a country started attracting tourists, expats and property buyers in significant numbers in the 1980s. The tourists came for the exotic wildlife, the deserted beaches, and a landscape filled with rich rainforest and sweeping mountain slopes. Those tourists relocated, retired or bought second homes here, seduced by a low cost of living, affordable properties, proximity to the US, and the friendly locals. And those same factors are in play today. I'm talking about Costa Rica.
Tourist numbers here dipped 8% in 2009, with the global slowdown, but they recovered in 2010 (up 9.6% in the first six months of the year), and forecasts predict that tourist numbers will grow at a rate of 8% annually until 2014.
To help protect the flora and fauna that delight so many tourists, the country will receive $56 million to expand conservation programs. That figure allows for the protection of an additional 32,000 acres of forest and marine habitat, adding to the current 3.2 million acres, and should help the growing field of eco-tourism.
Adventure tourism is another important segment of the Costa Rican tourism market. Costa Rica's Caribbean side hosted the warm-ups for the 2011 World Rafting Championship this month. Six teams took part in the warm ups; thirty-five will line up for the championships in October next year. The event will bring competitors, spectators, and media attention, placing it on the map for rafting enthusiasts.
We declared Costa Rica's Caribbean a potential hot spot...but for real estate investment, not river rafting, back in March 2008. It's taken a while, but the mainstream is catching on. Tour companies Disney and Wildland offer tours of the Caribbean now. Boutique hotels, restaurants and cafes are springing up. With a planned major investment in the ports of Limón and Moin, a makeover of Limón thanks to $72.5 million from the World Bank, and the recent announcement of a free trade zone in the area, this place is on the move. Yet property prices remain low (for now, at least).
To see the premier development on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica (with 1.5-acre lots from $50,000), and to find out for yourself just why this undiscovered coast is the next investment frontier, why not try a four day chill weekend here?
Priced at $299 per person, the chill includes accommodation, transfers, and some meals. You'll get a chance to explore the pristine beaches...take a dip in the sparkling waters of the Caribbean...see the rugged parks in the area...and watch parrots and toucans fly past as you breakfast on the veranda.
And you can have a go at some optional adventures, too (including river rafting, horse riding, a canal tour, or scuba diving). The trip will give you a taste of your new life here; it's a quick and easy way to try this coast on for size. Contact Gill here to lock down your spot on this Caribbean chill weekend you shouldn't miss.
Margaret Summerfield
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