FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Reservations, cancellations & costs

No, your trip will not turn out more expensive if you book it through us than if you book each service directly. The reason is simple: Camino Travel works on a commission base with its suppliers, which makes it possible to come out with the same prices than those offered by each supplier (hotels, car rentals, and activity service providers). Plus, you will have experts constantly advising you on the feasibility of your travel plans, the best tour options, properties, and helpful tips.

1- You only have to pay once for your holiday, and we take care of everything else. You do not have to worry about putting together your itinerary, contacting each service provider, waiting to receive confirmations, and all the little details involved in planning a trip.
2- We give you proffesional advice during all the process of trip preparation. We know Costa Rica and we constantly travel throughout the country researching new properties. Since 1991 we are receiving people with the most diverse interests, which gives us the expertise to advise you what best fits your interests and desires.
3- You can travel unworried knowing that there is a support company that will respond to any, question, need or problem whilst you are in the country. We have a 24-hour emergency number.

Planning your trip with Camino Travel is very simple.

1- You send us an e-mail (sales@caminotravel.com) or fax (+ 506 – 225 6143) in which you tell us about your interests, questions, and ideas for your holidays according to the information you have read in this website. If you already have your travel dates and/or flights, it helps us have a closer approach to what your trip can be.
2- We listen to you, make our suggestions and send our advice regarding the logistics of your itinerary and the locations that best suit your interests. We make a proposal with a day-by-day itinerary and pricing.
3- Once you decide on your trip plan, and upon your approval, we proceed to book all the services requested. After receiving the written confirmations from all the different suppliers, we send you an e-mail or fax in which we state inform you the status of your bookings. In case there is no space available in one or several services (hotels, tours, etc.), we suggest you other properties and give you a new pricing (we try to keep the pricing as close as possible to the original quote). As soon as everything is booked and confirmed, we send you an invoice with the total holiday amount and once we receive your payment, we proceed to issue the service vouchers that you will receive when you arrive in the country.

All services must be paid immediately after confirmation. If, by any chance, you must cancel your trip or any particular bookings, please bear in mind that all cancellations must be received in writing. Cancellations received with a minimum of 30 days prior to arrival receive a total refund, less a handling charge of USD $100. Twenty days prior to arrival, a 30% of the total amount is subject to forfeiture. Eleven days prior to arrival, 50% of the total amount is subject to forfeiture. Ten days or less prior to arrival, 100% of the total amount is subject to forfeiture. Camino Travel is not responsible for non-recoverable expenses incurred by travelers in preparing for a cancelled trip, such as a non-refundable advance purchase hotel, transfers, tours, etc., nor for any necessary additional arrangements should the applicant have embarked prior to the departure date. Certain hotels have more strict cancellation and refund policies. These vary according to each hotel and depending on additional circumstances (time of the year, occupancy rate). Camino Travel strongly recommends its clients to purchase trip cancellation insurances to avoid any inconveniences.

Traveling to Costa Rica

Being Camino Travel an incoming tour operator (in other words, that handles travel services only within Costa Rica), the company does not issue any international airline tickets. We do recommend you purchase your tickets at home with enough anticipation. If you book arrival and / or departure transfers with us, your Camino Travel advisor will certainly ask you your flight number and time of arrival/departure at least ten days before you arrive.

Flights and connections to Costa Rica have increased in the last couple of years. Travelers can now arrive both in San José or Liberia (Guanacaste) International Airport. See which airlines reach the Costa Rican territory:

Arriving in San José:

• American Airlines: via Miami & Dallas
• Continental Airlines: via Houston & New York
• Copa Airlines: via Lima, Panama, Guatemala, Quito and Santiago de Chile
• Delta Airlines: via Atlanta
• Iberia: from Madrid via Miami
• Martinair: from Amsterdam via Orlando / Miami
• Taca: via Lima, México, Orlando, Miami, Los Angeles, New York, Toronto, Panama, Quito
• United Airlines: via Los Angeles, México, Washington D.C., Chicago

Arriving in Liberia:

• American Airlines: via Miami
• Continental Airlines: via Houston
• Delta Airlines: via Atlanta
• Northwest Airlines: via Minneapolis
• Sky Service: via Montreal & Toronto
• Taca: via Miami

If you have booked an arrival transfer through Camino Travel, then an identified driver (usually with a Camino Travel T-shirt) will be waiting for you at the airport. This person will hold a board with your last name written on it, so pay attention to the signs in order to spot your driver. He / she will take you to your hotel, and will give you your service vouchers and / or information package. If you are travelling with a group, then your Costa Rican tour guide will wait for you at the airport as well.

Costa Rica benefits from a perfect tropical climate. The average temperature is 70°F (around 21°C) in the highlands. In the lowlands temperatures range from the high 70´s to the low 90´s (21 to 28°C). Costa Rica does not have four defined seasons; what can be called seasons is rather defined by the amount of rainfall. There is a rainy season from May to November. The dry season lasts from December to April. However, even during the rainy season the mornings are, more often than not, bright and sunny. Temperatures vary little throughout the year; the main influence on temperature is altitude. Always pack an umbrella or raincoat, just in case!

• Sunscreen lotion
• Sunglasses
• Hat or Cap
• Insect Repellent
• Swimsuit
• Beach towel
• Sandals, and comfortable hiking / walking shoes
• Binoculars
• Camera
• Film for your camera (it can be more expensive to buy it here than at home)
• Raingear (umbrella, raincoat, waterproof shoes)
• Comfortable, fresh clothes for the beach (shorts, T-shirts, light dresses)
• Comfortable, warm clothes for the mountains (jacket/light sweater, long trousers)
• A small back pack that can be used for day tours
• Your passport along with two photocopies
• Another ID (e.g. drivers license) with your photograph on it
• A Spanish /English (or your mother language) dictionary

Children sharing the room with their parents or adults in charge usually pay less than the regular fare. The policies regarding children’s discounts and age limits vary from one hotel to the other, so make sure you inform us the age of your children so that we can check on special rates when quoting your itinerary. Also, take into consideration that children sleeping not sharing the room with their parents (e.g. two children staying in one room whilst their parents stay in another room) do not benefit from any lodging discount.

There are numerous banks in San José and within the Central Valley. There you can change travellers’ cheques, and buy colones (local currency). Take your passport with you, it will be requested. Also make sure your signature is the same as in your passport, otherwise your transactions will be immediately rejected. Outside San José you might find banks in the main towns both in the beach and in the mountain and lowland areas. When you go to the bank, it is a good idea to ask the counter for the branch offices throughout the country. Banks are usually open from Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm. They are closed on certain holidays (Dec. 25th, January 1st, Holy Thursday and Friday), so inform yourself well in advance. ATH automatic expenders are also available in San José and the main tourist areas, but do not be too confident that you will find one in every place.

Other particular issues

Since the majority of our holidays are tailor made, most of our clients travel with private transportation services. This means that they will travel only in the company of their driver. However, for those clients who wish to reduce their transfer costs, there is the possibility of taking Seat-in-Bus transfers. The SIBs work on pre-established routes. Basically, they are door-to-door transportation services that have particular schedules and that take people from different hotels. An individual client usually travels with other tourists that he/she does not know.

Several activities, especially adventure tours, do have specific regulations to avoid accidents. For instance, most canopy tours have a weight limit of 225 pounds per person. White water rafting companies need to know if the clients are too tall, or weigh more than 230 pounds, in order to provide the corresponding life vests and helmets. Weight limits also apply for horseback riding tours. Please let us know with if you have any restriction before booking your tours and activities.

For any emergency within Costa Rica, dial 911 or 128 (Red Cross). If you are driving, try to reach any public place (gasoline station, minimarket, restaurant), to ask for help. We also provide a 24 hour emergency number for you to contact us. As a safety tip, always carry the telephone number of a contact person at home (if possible, give us this information as well before you arrive in Costa Rica), and give a copy of your itinerary to your loved ones in your country, as well as the telephone numbers of the hotels you will be staying at.

Send us your questions!
Camino Travel is eager to help you clear out your doubt. Please write us to ask your questions.

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