Landing in Costa Rica: The First-Week Checklist for Remote Workers

Short answer: sort money and connectivity before you fly, book only your first week of accommodation, and find the real long-stay rental on the ground once you are here. In order: entry stamp checked at the airport, eSIM live, Wise card working, one week booked centrally, then transport, health cover and the rental hunt.

Last reviewed September 2026.

Before you fly

• Open and verify a Wise account and order the physical card. Verification is far smoother from your home country. It becomes your daily card and your fee-free bridge for rent payments (money guide).
• Sort health cover. Medical insurance valid in Costa Rica is mandatory if you apply for the digital nomad stay, and simply sensible otherwise; many in our community use our vetted partner.
• Have proof of onward travel and funds ready. Immigration officers routinely ask for both.
• Book one week, not three months. Nearly everyone's neighbourhood preference changes after three days of walking the strip.

Day one, at the airport

1. Check your stamp before leaving the terminal. The number of days written in your passport is the rule for your trip, up to a maximum of 180. It is the officer's decision, not a default (visa and stay rules).
2. Activate a local eSIM or buy a prepaid SIM. Data is your fallback internet for the whole stay.
3. Withdraw a modest cash float. Both US dollars and colones circulate; small colones bills are what sodas, buses and markets prefer.

Getting to the coast

From San Jose to Santa Teresa is four to six hours by shuttle or self-drive via the Paquera ferry, or roughly twenty-five minutes flying to Tambor plus a ground transfer. Members fly that leg with our airline partner at a member rate. All the options, with the trade-offs, are in the transport guide.

First week on the ground

• Transport. Walk the first days, then decide. An ATV is the town's default vehicle; get two or three quotes and expect around US$50 a day or less, with real discounts monthly (ATV guide). Never take the first taxi quote (taxi guide).
• Internet. Scope one cafe and one coworking space you can rely on, and test your accommodation's fiber during your first call (connectivity guide).
• Rent. Long-stay homes here move through people, not portals. Walk the zone you liked, ask, and check our rentals board and the community chat (how rentals really work).
• Paying rent. Transfer to the landlord's local account through Wise instead of an international wire, and never hand over a deposit before seeing the place (rent payment guide).
• Healthcare. Find out where the nearest clinic and pharmacy are in week one, not in an emergency.
• Meet people. Our events run weekly; one of them in your first week changes the whole stay (what is on).

Things people get wrong

• Booking three months sight unseen in the wrong zone.
• Arriving on a holiday weekend needing cash; ATMs run out and have daily limits.
• Assuming a rental car is enough in green season; roads are dirt and rivers are real.
• Leaving valuables on the beach, on any beach here.

FAQ

What do I need to enter Costa Rica as a remote worker? A passport, proof of onward travel and of funds, and for most nationalities nothing more; the officer grants up to 180 days as a tourist.

Should I get a local SIM or an eSIM in Costa Rica? Either works. An eSIM activated on arrival is the fastest and doubles as your backup internet.

Can I open a bank account in Costa Rica as a nomad? Not on a tourist stamp in practice; the digital nomad stay does allow it. Otherwise Wise plus a cash float is the community-standard setup.

How long should I book my first accommodation? One week, centrally and walkable. Choose your real neighbourhood and your long-stay rental after you have walked the town.

NOMADS resources

• Costa Rica for remote workers: the hub
• The tools our community uses

Landing soon? Say hello before you arrive and someone will already know your street → Join the NOMADS community