Hey gang. RT here.

Well, I’m back home. And not happy about it.

I did the math, and here’s my costs for the trip (6 days, 5 nights): Airfare: 323; Hotel: 336; Cash: 868; Total: $1,527. I could have saved on the hotel (I took a junior suite) and the cash includes all food, gifts, drinks at bars, cabs, airport tax, as well as girls and cover charge at the Park Hotel on Friday night. Also, I spent big bucks on my Hot Date with Natalia, so that raised the total cost as well. So it’s not dirt cheap, when you factor in travel and hotel, but $250 a day inclusive of everything is not bad for a vacation.

RANDOM NOTES

· You have to like the ‘Latina’ look to enjoy Costa Rica. Even the few non-Latin girls were dark haired. NO California bleached blondes here.

· All of the ex-pat Americans I spoke to told stories of how easy it is to pick up a ‘regular’ Tica and have a girlfriend in nothing flat. This may be true, as I heard it so many times from different people. Also, any interactions I had with the local young ladies (non-workers) was friendly and without attitude. For me, on a short trip, that’s not what I was looking for.

· Speaking of ex-pats, I may have mentioned that there are plenty. You can find many places where English is the main language, so if you need an American fix, it’s close by. The consensus was that once you can afford to not work, Costa Rica is the place to do it. It also seemed that these guys weren’t living extravagantly, and still loving life.

· The Presidente is the joint! No guest fee to bring a girl back to your room, free internet, rooftop Jacuzzi, good water pressure and plenty of hot water, free breakfast… I could go on and on. The housekeeping staff comes by at 5 pm to fill your ice bucket. One day, I left the key in my safe deposit box. When I walked in, they were cleaning the room and were VERY RELIEVED that they could give me my key. I felt like an idiot, but a grateful one. You can save a few dollars by staying elsewhere, but it was nice to have all the creature comforts.

· There are also many more-recognizable hotel brands in San Jose – I saw a Radisson, Marriott, Holiday Inn, and a couple of others. I have no clue what their guest policy or prices are, and the Presidente and Del Rey are in the middle of the action. But that’ just my opinion.

· There are internet cafes everywhere (only $1/hour), as well as free terminals at the Del Rey and Presidente, but, boy, do those Spanish keyboards suck! At the Del Rey, they have the terminals set for United States keystrokes, so that’s a bonus.

· Walking the streets is very safe in the daytime, and iffy at night. Most cab rides are only $1.50, so it’s not really worth the hassle. Also, very few streets have signs on them, so it pays to keep track when you’re walking.

· For the most part, there’s a no tipping policy in Costa Rica. Restaurants add a service charge, bar tenders were getting tipped rarely and poorly, in my view. Even the girls who brought you free drinks and cigarettes at the casinos never hung around long enough for a gracias, much less a tip.

· Goods are fairly expensive over there – food, TVs, batteries, etc. This stuff wasn’t cheap. What was a deal, however, were service-based items like cabs, girls (of course), housecleaners, hotel rooms, internet, etc.

· Even though you don’t need one to go to Costa Rica, it’s better to have a passport than just your birth certificate. I was asked for it at the airport, when I checked in at the hotel, and maybe one other place. T would have taken longer with other paperwork. Besides, it’s a good thing to have while traveling. I made a copy of it when I was out and about, and left the original in my room safe.

· Bring a pen wherever you go. It helps cut through the language barrier, especially when negotiating. Also, remember that colonnes are real money. It was very easy to treat it as Monopoly money and overspend, especially in the casinos.

· I saw street girls in between the Key Largo Club and the Holiday Inn. Some were very attractive. I have no clue how much/where/how long, etc. I just couldn’t imagine see one of these girls when there were all these safe, user-friendly options.

· Last, navigating this whole operation was a no-brainer. I could have had a good time if all someone told me was to fly there and get a room at the Del Rey. Having done some research, I had a blast. I bet, that with some knowledge of Spanish, words could not have described the fun to be had there.

VALUABLE LINKS

www.costaricasex.com

is run by Rico, the owner of Bogart’s. When you get to the main page, click on FORUM for a good discussion board. There’s a lot of pop-ups, but hey, the guy is trying to make a buck.

www.clubhombre.com

this board covers legal prostitution all over the world. It was a great source of information. You need to register to post, but it’s free to lurk.

of course

http://lumpsluvscostarica.homestead.com/map.html

is the greatest map on earth. Lumps is the man! I felt totally at home with this map, and I walked all over town in the daytime with no concerns.

www.hotel-presidente.com

is the link for the Hotel Presidente. Don’t pay the rack rate. E-mail and negotiate a better deal.

www.hoteldelrey.com/webcam/index.html

is the link for the Blue Marlin Webcam at the hotel Del Rey. You, too, can be famous! You can stay at the Del Rey as well, but the guest charge is $10, and it is reportedly noisier there. Click on HOME for hotel information.

Well, that’s it for me. I hope you guys had 10% of the fun reading this that I had living it.

Pura Vida,

RT Gooch

RT Gooch: Excellent trip report. You'll find greater fun in Rio.

Yes, it is not difficult to get a semi-pro/non-pro to hangout with you in SJO - needs work. My one brief experience with a non-pro/non-working girl looking for fun time is, be careful you might get emotionally entangled :-)

Finally ex-pats in other parts of the world stand for Brits,Aussies etc. meaning the folks from the colonial territories :-)

Great report.. Now you have me thinking about a return to CR... Have always wanted to see the show at the Park.. You did great on your trip.
No one likes to be flammed but giving prices will help people.. Gives them an idea of the going rate since the chicas will give you a too high price to start with.. Just say that I paid $XX and that was too much, but I was drunk, she looked like my high school sweet heart, etc... If a person knows the going rate is $30 then when the chica says she wants $100 , then a guy knows what price to bargain to..
But again, a really great report..

treeshark