Costa Rica etiquette and culture: dos, don'ts and local customs

Costa Rica is informal and polite. The default greeting is a handshake, or one cheek kiss between women and friends; buenos días, buenas tardes and buenas noches open almost every exchange, including with shop staff and bus drivers. Pura vida is a greeting, a thank-you and a shrug, and using it back is the fastest way to sound local.

Tipping is not expected the way it is in the US. Restaurants usually put a 10% service charge and 13% VAT on the bill, so a small extra for good service is enough. Taxi drivers, hotel cleaners and guides are tipped in cash, in colones or dollars.

Start with a greeting before anything else. Walking into a shop or up to a counter and asking a question without buenos días first reads as rude, even in a hurry. Use usted with strangers and older people, and tú once someone uses it with you; both are polite, and Costa Ricans lean on usted more than most of Latin America.

Small talk is short and warm: weather, family, where you are from, how you like Costa Rica. Asking about salary, politics or why someone's English is good is not small talk here. If you speak little Spanish, a few phrases go a long way: con mucho gusto (you're welcome), por favor, gracias, and no entiendo (I don't understand).

Pura vida covers hello, goodbye, fine, you're welcome and no worries. Reply with pura vida and you have finished the exchange correctly.

Restaurant bills in Costa Rica normally include a 10% service charge and 13% VAT, so the tip is already there. If the charge is missing, or service was genuinely good, add 5–10%. Bartenders and café staff get the same treatment.

Cash still matters in sodas, small shops, parking lots and at some park entrances. US dollars are widely accepted in tourist areas, but change often comes back in colones, so carry small notes. Cards work in hotels, larger restaurants and tour operators.

Prices are fixed in shops, supermarkets and national parks; haggling is not part of the culture. At markets and souvenir stalls a polite question about a better price is fine, but do not push it.

Beach towns run on shorts, sandals and swimwear. Away from the sand — San José, Cartago, Heredia, churches, banks and government offices — cover shoulders and knees. A light long-sleeve shirt and trousers or a skirt are enough, and they also help against sun and mosquitoes.

Public behaviour is relaxed but conservative in the Central Valley. Loud phone calls, feet on seats and public drunkenness draw looks. Smoking is banned in enclosed public places, including bars and restaurants, and in many outdoor areas such as bus stops and park entrances.

Photographing people, especially children and Indigenous residents, without asking is not acceptable. Ask first, show the photo, and accept a no. Drone use is restricted or banned in national parks and near airports; check before flying.

National parks are protected areas, not photo sets. Collecting shells, coral, plants, rocks or turtle eggs is illegal, and feeding monkeys, coatis or raccoons changes their behaviour and gets animals killed on roads. Keep food sealed and never leave bags unattended at the beach — coatis and monkeys open zips.

On turtle nesting beaches, night visits run with licensed guides only: no white lights, no flash photography, no touching the turtles, and no walking on the sand above the tide line without a guide. Tortuguero and the Nicoya and Osa beaches enforce this in season.

Trails, hot springs and volcanoes have their own rules: stay on marked paths, do not cross barriers at active craters, and take everything out that you carried in. Many parks limit daily visitor numbers, so book entry online in high season.

Time is loose socially but strict for transport. Shuttles, domestic flights and guided tours leave on schedule, and late arrivals are left behind. A dinner invitation for 7pm may mean 7:30 or 8; do not take it personally, and do not arrive early.

Shoes come off at the door in many homes, especially outside San José. Bring a small gift — wine, chocolate, flowers — if you are invited to dinner, and compliment the food. Tico Spanish is full of diminutives (un cafecito, ahorita) that soften a request; ahorita can mean now or later, so confirm times for anything that matters.

Tap water is drinkable in most urban areas; in remote and some coastal places, bottled or filtered water is the norm. Ice in tourist restaurants is usually made from treated water. If you have a sensitive stomach, ask.

Holy Week (Semana Santa, the week before Easter) and the December holidays are the two periods when Costa Ricans travel: beaches and parks fill, buses and shuttles sell out, and some family-run sodas close. Book accommodation and park tickets weeks ahead, and expect higher prices.

Independence Day is 15 September, with parades and school bands in most towns; the torch run arrives from Guatemala the night before. August is a school holiday month and popular with local families. If you want quiet trails, avoid these windows and travel in the green season instead.

Local festivals vary by town — the Palmares and Zapote fairs in December and January, and the Limón carnival in October — and can close roads or fill hotels for a few days. Check dates before locking in a route.