Flying to Costa Rica

[knelson]

I have a trip to San Jose next month and I was corious if anyone can give me some information on operating in Costa Rica. I have flown to Mexico on several occasions and a little in Brazil/Trinidad/Tobago, just haven't made it to Central America yet. Thanks for any/all information. Interesting things to do on a 72 hour layover would be helpful too.

Thanks

Kevin

 

[MONKEY]

Go to www.tabacon.com . It is one of the coolest places I have ever been.

 

[B737G]

Rent a car and drive to the central pacific coast. The surfing at Playa de Hermosa is excellent. The town of Jaco is nearby and has some good bars. The beetle bar is fun. There is a volcano called Arenal(unsure of spelling) and it is supposed to be a great place to visit. Plenty of women and beer is cheap. Enjoy!

 

[flybynightly]

Did a trip there last year. The controlers were great and San jose gets a fair amount of heavy jet traffic. Don't forget to apply for your overflight permits for nicaraugua and neighboring countries at least 3 days in advance. If you go downtown for fun be very carefull and take a taxi everywhere even if it is only a couple of blocks.

 

[bart]

Going there next week for the first time. Most important thing are overflight permits for Cuba and Central America. You need at least 48 hours notice for Cuba.

 

[cvsfly]

Doing a search and I'm resurrecting this thread. We have a flight in a couple of months to Costa Rica. 1st time to Central America, but a fair amount of Caribbean experience. We will be leaving US from South Florida in a Turbo-prop. Suggested Handler for Cuba overflight? And for arrival? Universal? Flight routing on G448 (I believe) to GCM Grand Cayman for fuel. From there I need to order charts (we have Jepp Caribbean CAR04 sub) - does Jepp have just a Central America trip kit? On their web site it looks like the trip kit I would need also includes the Caribbean CAR04. Does a routing from GCM/MWCR to Costa Rica involve any other overflight clearances? Nicaragua? What's a good emergency diversion on this route? Has anyone that has made the Cuba overflight requests and gotten in the air only to discover that the overflight is denied and have to fly the long way around? What's a good & bad Port of Entry in Costa Rica on this route? Not sure yet what destination in Costa Rica yet, but may involve San Jose. Would love to get away from there to either coast. Any pointers?

 

[cvsfly]

Bump. Sorry too short. Bump.

 

[knelson]

I went last year and am going back in March. All I can say is ENJOY!!!


I can't answer your Jepp questions very accuratly, I would just call them and ask to speak with a customer support person. I use Colt International (800-626-0577) These guys rock. They will take care of all the permits, overflight and landing, and flightplanning/international weather. As far as general advice on what to do, I would highly recommend going over to Quepos (pronounced kay-poce) on the caravan airline out of San Jose (I don't recall the name now) and go sail fishing. In Quepos, stay at the "Hotel California". Rent a 4-wheeler and take the mountain tour, swim in the waterfalls, ride the rapids, walk the quarter mile indiana jones style suspension bridge (all part of the 4-wheeler tour if you tip your guide well!). Stay away from the casinos, blackjack only pays even money which equals BAD ODDS. And most of all, do your best not to totally exhaust yourself, there are so many cool things to do your trip will seem too short. Good luck and PM me if you have any questions.

P.S. Take lots of film

 

[Swede]

San Jose is pretty benign. Tends to get turbulent. There are a lot of rocks in Central America... many airports are nestled in valleys, w/high terrain surrounding. Costa Rica has good ATC, but not all countries do. If in doubt, stay on published routings and observe MEA's. Taking vectors in SOME countries can be hazardous, unless above grid MORA.

Use ICAO terminology ("Line up and wait" rather than "On to Hold", etc). Position reporting required on some overwater routings, you may want to brush up on stuff like this. Keep radio transmissions simple, clear, and slow. Some of the FIR boundaries require a 10 minute "Here I am approaching the FIR" call. These are listed on the enroute charts.

You'll enjoy it. Have fun!

 

[Full of Foehn]

I've used Universal and Jepp in the past and had no complaints. Theonlyairports that you can enter the country from are San JoseandLiberia.The handler was Sergio Morera with Aerojet de CostaRica,S.A..He wasvery good at his job. We needed a permit to fly into adirtstrip on thewest coast (any airports other than San Jose andLiberia require apermit) and we had to apply in person; he guided usthroughthe wholeprocess.

Not much really to do in San Jose. Rent a car (Hertz isavailable)anddrive to the west coast. Jaco, as somebody mentioned earlier, isagreat coastal town with a night life. For a nature experience,Irecommend going to the town of Monteverde. There areseverallongsuspension bridges that traverse the rainforest canopies.There isanunbelievable amount of life; it makes the rainforests ofthePacificNorthwest look second rate. There is a great hotel therecalledtheArco Iris, its run by some nice Germans. The hotel is not aHolidayInnor anything, but it is clean, neat, and not that expensive.

In fact, most things outside the major cities are very inexpensive.Iwasparticularly suprised at the quality of the foodeverywhere,evenroadside stands had excellent food.

I've seen both the Poas and Arenal volcanoes, either areveryimpressive.Try to get some fishing in if you can afford it,thePacific will notdisappoint.

I also got a speeding ticket while driving, so watch thelimits.Isettled it on the spot; a quick $20 US donation tothepoliceman'spersonal fund negated the need for any furtherpaperwork.But let himmake the gesture, don't offer.

Let a service like Universal, Colt, or Jepp jump through the paperwork hoops and enjoy yourself on the trip.

FoF

P.S. Take your own fuel additive if your plane requires it; it is generally not available south of the USA.