Image Enchanting Mountain Vistas  
Frequently Asked Questions      
Pura Vida, Costa Rica Policies & Information
Deposit Policy
Cancellation Policy
Travel Arragements
Shuttle
What to Bring
General Information

Travel to Costa Rica

Deposit Policy

A deposit of $350 per retreat is required to confirm your space, with balances due 90 days prior to start date of the retreat. Reservations not paid for in full 60 days prior to start date of retreat will automatically become available to a waiting list.

Cancellation Policy

$350 withheld 60-30 days prior to the start date of the retreat. All monies withheld after 30 days prior to start date.

Travel Arrangements

Inner Harmony has contracted with Mikki at Sundance Travel as our official travel agent.
(Please identify yourself as an Inner Harmony Customer)

~ Call Sundance Travel at: 800-919-4505 or 602-275-3500 extension: 2122
~ Fax your request to Miki’s attention at: 602-267-8095, or
~ E-mail you request to Miki at: mikim@sundancetvl.com

Sundance Travel is open 24 hours/7days a week, including all holidays.

**Note: Saturday’s are travel days with meals only. Classes start Sunday morning and end Friday evening. Wednesday’s are set-aside as Eco Adventure Tours day unless otherwise stated. For more information on Tours - click here.

Shuttle Service:

Shuttle service from the San Jose (SJO) airport is included in your retreat cost. Please email your travel arrangements to: reservations@puravidaspa.com so someone from Pura Vida can meet you at the airport when you arrive. Look for a sign with your name on it.

If you have any questions please call: 888-515-4505.

Costa Rica's Travel Documents Requirements
Citizens of the U.S. and Canada may enter Costa Rica with a valid passport. Please note that Costa Rican law requires your passport be valid for at least 90 days after the date you enter the country. This means that if your passport will expire within the next 90 days, you must renew it before your trip. Check with your airline or travel agent for more information.

Citizens of other countries should check with the applicable Costa Rican Consulate in your country about rules governing entrance into Costa Rica.

You are required to carry your passport with you at all times. If you are stopped by officials, a photocopy with your photo, passport number and entry stamp will usually suffice and is recommended.

Costa Rica Health Aid and Issues
You are unlikely to encounter any serious diseases in Costa Rica. Sanitary standards are high and the health system is excellent. No vaccinations are required to enter Costa Rica as epidemic diseases have been all but eradicated throughout the country. Infectious hepatitis and malaria, a serious problem throughout Central America, is reported only rarely in Costa Rica.

Several private hospitals in San Jose offer emergency medical services to foreigners at reasonable prices. Clinica Biblica (avenida 14, calles central & 1, tel. 223-6422) also has a 24-hour pharmacy. Costa Rica's Social Security system (the Caja) offers a medical insurance assistance program for foreigners needing emergency medical assistance. The coverage can be bought at travel agencies, language schools or through tour companies.

What to Bring
To make your stay at Pura Vida comfortable and convenient, we suggest you bring the following:
-Flashlight -Alarm clock -Sunscreen and hat -Bathing Suit -Beach towel -Day Pack -Walking or Hiking Boots -Warm sweater/sweatshirt -Rainwear, poncho is best -Sandals with Straps -Hair Dryer (optional) (May-Nov) -Insect Repellant -Toiletries

For white-water rafting you need shorts and waterproof sandals or shoes that you do not mind getting wet and that will not come off in the water (those with Velcro or strap fastenings are fine).

SHAMBHALA GUESTS ONLY- Bring the following additional items:
-Warm sleeping wear -Sweater -Warm sweat pants -Jacket

  • Don't forget to pack...
  • Current Passport (US citizens do not need a visa, but non-US citizens may need one). Please contact your airline or passport office.
  • $300-$500 per person spending money for spa treatments, tours, taxis, shopping, bar drinks, and tips.
  • Beachwear, hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, bug repellent, flashlight, alarm clock, and camera.
  • Water shoes that will stay on your feet if you choose the white water rafting excursion.
  • A light jacket and pants will be welcomed as the nights can sometimes be cool after the rains.
  • Specialty teas, sweeteners, etc.

General Information
Pura Vida Resort is at 5,000 ft among the coffee fields, overlooking San Jose, 20 minutes from the airport. The resort is on 7 acres of lushly landscaped hillside. There is a pool, hot tub and watsu tub on site as well as a wide variety of spa treatments. Wireless internet can be received around the office and pool area at no charge. One computer is available in the office area for guests at a nominal fee. Plumbing is very sensitive, so toilet paper, feminine products, cigarettes or any other non-organic material should not be thrown into the toilets. Wastebaskets are located beside the toilets for that purpose.

Pura Vida's telephone number: 011-506-483-1128. The resort has one phone for incoming calls for the entire facility, so please use it only for emergencies. The reception office is open from 7am to 10pm daily.

Pura Vida's e-mail: reservations@rrresorts.com

The servicing airport is San Jose. Inner Harmony uses Mikki at Sundance Travel as our agent (800) 919-4505
Currency: US Dollars are accepted throughout Costa Rica

Visa and Master Cards are accepted at Pura Vida: Please get your card imprinted at the beginning of the week as verification goes thru their Atlanta, Georgia office.

Money
At Pura Vida we accept U.S. Dollars, Colones (the Costa Rican currency) and traveler's checks. It is not necessary to exchange Dollars for Colones before you arrive in Costa Rica as almost all stores, restaurants, tour companies, etc. will accept Dollars. If you need to obtain Colones, we can exchange small amounts here at Pura Vida or you can go to any local bank.

Airline Flights
When booking flights to Costa Rica, you will want to come to Juan Santamaría International Airport in San Jose (SJO). Airlines with regularly scheduled flights into this airport are American, Continental, Delta, United, Taca, Copa, MartinAir, and Iberia.

Pura Vida Pickup & Drop Off
All programs at Pura Vida include airport pickup and drop off. After disembarking, you will go through Immigration (Imigración). After proceeding through Immigration, you will see someone holding a sign saying "Pura Vida Villas" and your last name. This person will give you a VIP sticker to put on your clothing. This sticker will facilitate your progress through the rest of the airport. Next you will go to the baggage claim area and get your luggage. From here proceed to Customs (Aduana) where your bags may be checked. Once through Customs, you will exit the airport building. Look for our driver who will be holding a sign saying "Pura Vida" and your last name. From the airport it is only about a 20-minute drive to Pura Vida.

You will need to provide your reservation agent at the R&R office 1-888-515-4580 with the following information no later than 10 days prior to your departure to guarantee a pickup:
airline, flight #, departure city, and time of arrival.

If airport pickup and drop off are not included in your package, the cost is $25 round trip.

If making your own way to Pura Vida (by taxi, rental car, etc.) use the directions below:

Local Phone Number for Pura Vida Spa:
From the U.S.A dial 011-506-483-0033

Directions to Pura Vida in English:
As you exit the airport, you will have to make a right. Just after exiting the airport you will go under the Pan-American Highway and take the ramp to the right following the sign to Alajuela. This ramp will loop around and merge onto the main highway. Make your way immediately to the right lane and take the first off ramp to your right, again following the sign to Alajuela. Take this road about 2 kilometers past the Mall Internacional on your left. Go to the second traffic light and make a right (there is a Campero fried chicken restaurant on this corner.) Continue straight through several traffic lights. You will pass a McDonald's on your right. Two blocks after the McDonald's, follow the flow or traffic, which will be making a left turn (there is a Martinizing dry cleaning store on the corner.) After this turn, continue straight about 6 blocks. At a traffic light you will see a building with Coca-Cola signs painted on it on your right. Make a right at this corner. Just after the turn you will see a large red structure on your left, which is a soccer stadium.

(If you just need directions from Alajuela, you'll start here "at el stadio", the soccer stadium). Start measuring! Exactly 7 kilometers from here, toward Carrizal, you will find a bar on the left called "Bar Nueva Penca" (formerly Apolo 15). Make a sharp left turn that is almost a U-turn and go 700 meters. The road is paved for the first 400 meters and then is dirt the last 300 meters. At the dirt fork in the road you stay left, keeping straight on the road you're on.

You will come to a huge stone wall with two burgundy gates. Stop at the second gate and ring the bell. Be a little patient if we are not there on the first ring. You're here!

Cost of a taxi from the airport is approximately $12 by cab, and $16 by minivan.

Dirección a Pura Vida en español:
De la puerta principal del estadio de la Liga, maneja 7 kms. hacia Carrizal de Alajuela hasta llegar al Bar Nueva Penca(anteriormente Bar Apolo 15) a mano izquierda o sur oeste, 700 mts. por una curva, mitad pavimentada y mitad lastre. Antes que se acabe el pavimento hay una "y" griega, tomar la de la izquierda hasta llegar a una pared grande de piedra con portón morado metálico a mano izquierda. Tocar el timbre en el segundo portón.

Airport Departure Tax
When departing Costa Rica, you will need $26 cash for the non-residency departure tax. You should pay the tax upon arrival at the airport before you check your bags.

Costa Rica -- An Amazing Country
A unique feature of Costa Rica is that it does not have an army. Costa Ricans decided there would be less chance for military coups without one, and thus it has become the global model of democracy. During the last 50 years, the money that would have gone into the military has been spent on education and health care. Today, Costa Rica has one of the highest literacy rates in the world and the highest standard of living in Central America.

A special gift Costa Rica gives to the world is a system of National Parks, Biological Reserves, Indian Reserves, Wildlife Refuges and Wildlife Corridors, more than 25% of the nation's land is dedicated to preservation. Costa Rica contains an astonishing diversity and abundance of tropical flora and fauna. Caribbean and Pacific beaches border a land filled with white-water rivers, waterfalls, tropical rain forests, active volcanoes, mountain cloud forests, and exotic wildlife.
Back To Top

Costa Rica Statistics

  • Area - 50,895 square kilometers
    Here is a map of Costa Rica which shows Alajuela
    (Pura Vida's location)
  • Population - 4.5 million
  • Capital - San Jose
  • Language - Spanish
  • Location - C. America between Nicaragua & Panama (8°-11° N of equator)
  • Currency - Colon, Bills: 10,000, 5,000, 1,000, 500, Follow this link to a currency converter
  • Religion - More than 90 percent of Costa Ricans are Roman Catholic.
Geography of Costa Rica
A backbone of volcanoes and mountains, an extension of the Andes-Sierra Madre chain, which runs along the western side of the Americas, divide the country. Costa Rica has four distinct cordilleras or mountain ranges -- Guanacaste and Tilaran in the north, Central and Talamanca in the south. Costa Rica is part of the Pacific "Rim of Fire" and has seven of the isthmus's 42 active volcanoes plus dozens of dormant or extinct cones. Earth tremors and small quakes shake the country from time to time. The country's highest point is Mt. Chirripo (3,797 meters). The capital, San Jose, and the neighboring major cities of Alajuela and Heredia lie in the middle of the Meseta Central (Central Valley). Almost two-thirds of the nation's population lives in this small, fertile valley. The Pacific coastal plain is much narrower than its Caribbean counterpart. Both coasts are lined with white and black sand beaches.

Costa Rica's Climate
Costa Rica is a tropical country that contains several distinct climatic zones. There is no winter or summer as such and most regions have a rainy season from May to November and a dry season from December to April. Annual rainfall averages 100 inches nationwide with some mountainous regions getting as much as 25 feet on exposed eastern slopes. Temperature is more a matter of elevation than location with a mean of around 72 degrees in the Central Valley, 82 degrees on the Atlantic coast and 89 degrees on the Pacific coast.

Here is the weather forecast for San Jose, the capital, which is close to Pura Vida.

Call us if you have any questions.

Office: 1-800-347-5633
contact@ihretreat.com
Back To Top