Questions: Banking etc
 

Hi
Can you use your ATM card in most places, ie Tamarindo, Quepos??

If we are travelling in the Guanacaste area in February do you really need to take pills for Malaria?

You don't need pills! Repellent, yes!
Yes, there are ATM's in both locations. It's hit and miss, however. There have been times when they haven't worked for us--other times they have. We keep a credit card handy just in case!

February still dry season, chances of little or no mosquitos...be safe than sorrow, take some repellent.

The ATMs in CR suck, fyi. My ATM happens to be a Mastercard, so that may be part of the problem. I think the Visa ATM cards work better in CR. I tried the ATM at the bank in Santa Elena and it didn't work. I also tried 3 ATMs in Tamarindo and none of them worked. I was annoyed b/c that meant that I had to miss out on a massage b/c that was cash only! There WAS an ATM upstairs at the airport that was fabulous and not only worked, but gave me both colones and U.S. dollars. I used that right before leaving to get cash for the departure tax. Note that the other ATMs all gave colones only, so you should know in advance what amount you need. In Tamarindo, I was told that the ATMs go online and offline a lot, so you have to keep trying. There was one at the bank that had a long line. There was another at the Best Western Vista Villas that worked for a couple of other guys but didn't work for me. It said if your card started with a "5" that it wouldn't work. Think Mastercards all start with "5" and Visa's are "4." There also was an ATM in a small boutique near the Tamarindo circle, accross the street from a pizza place (on the beach side of the street) that has an ATM that worked for my boyfriend... but that was our last night, so it was too late for the massage. :-/ Good luck!

Definitely you need a Visa card.

ATM visa cards with the PLUS on the back are more widely accepted than the ones with Cirrus on the back. Be prepared and have your passport with you in case the machines are not working and you have to go in and play musical chairs. The private banks are quicker generally. Some banks have movies playing to help the time pass.