The Spanish Group "Feria de Valencia" in conjunction with a Costa Rica group "Feria de Costa Rica", will be joining forces to develop a large tourist project in Cariari de Heredia in a property that measures 23 hectares. The project will feature a large Convention Center of 11,000 square meters, 2 hotels and office and retail space. The construction of the project will begin with the development of the Convention Center in late 2010 with a total development time of 4 - 5 years for completion.
This investment will benefit greatly the Incentives and Convention industry in the Central Valley of Costa Rica that has been claiming for many years for this type of infrastructure. This area of San Jose has a strategic location that is very close to many brand business hotels such as Marriott, Ramada, Crowne Plaza, Doubletree, Hampton Inn, Marriott Residence Inn, Intercontinental, Radisson and Holiday Inn as well as the Juan Santamaria International Airport, three golf courses, three high quality shopping malls and lots of retail businesses. Therefore, this is the perfect location for the project in order to make it very attractive for companies to choose to hold their Conventions in Costa Rica where they can work hard and then play hard with our country's vast tourist attractions and natural beauty.
Last January 27th, the new highway from San Jose to Puerto Caldera in the province of Puntarenas was officially inaugurated by President Dr. Oscar Arias Sanchez. The new road was developed by a Corporation composed of Spanish and Portuguese construction firms named "Autopistas del Sol". The project began after 35 years of delay on January 9th, 2008 and features a total investment of $360 Million. This new highway has reduced the travel time to the Central Pacific Coast to less than an hour and has boosted the tourism industry in Puerto Caldera, Punta Barranca and the city of Puntarenas.
This project constitutes the largest infrastructure project carried out by the Government of Costa Rica in the past 50 years which in turn has kick started a series of large projects to be carried out in the next 5 years. This new highway will sure boost the attractiveness of real estate hot spots like Playa Herradura, Playa Jaco, Playa Manuel Antonio and Playa Dominical who will also benefit from the completion of the Costanera Highway.
Costa Rica was recently ranked among the world's happiest (#1) and greeniest (#3) countries by the World Happy Index (HPI). So what are the "Ticos" doing to be so darn happy? Well, they earned their rank due to the fact that Costa Rica boasts the highest life satisfaction in the World, they live slightly longer than Americans and they have an ecological footprint less than the size of a quarter. This tiny Latin American country (smaller than the size of West Virginia) located in Central America between Nicaragua and Panama, has been able to increase life satisfaction and life expectancy by 15% over the past 45 year period and it has some of the World's most beautiful natural surroundings that are well maintained by a system of National Parks that cover 25% of the country's total land area. Additionally, the country is very committed to peace as the armed forces were abolished in 1949 and it holds one of Latin America's longest and most stable Democratic government. This commitment to the environment and peace has bolstered the Costa Rican economy as military spending was wisely spent in education and it's focus on sustainability of the environment has made this natural paradise into one of the World's top tourism destinations. As a matter of fact, it is one of the only tourist countries seeing migration from the United States.
So what are you waiting for? Take some time off to visit Costa Rica and perhaps you may also get infected by the "happy people virus".
Marina Papagayo is Costa Rica's first and only luxury marina and is located in Central America's Hottest Investment Destination: The Gulf of Papagayo. The marina is located in Peninsula Papagayo, a master planned luxury residential Resort community which already boasts a 150-room Four Seasons Resort, a 20-unit Exclusive Resorts residence community, an 18-hole par 72 championship course designed by none other than Arnold Palmer and already featuring an array of ultra luxury homes and amenities that includes Golf Club, Beach Club and now, Marina Papagayo. The Marina features a 180-slip custom designed floating dock system that can accomodate luxury watercraft up to 220 feet, state of the art facilities and services such as: Dockside Marina Concierge, on-site customs and immigration clearance, high-speed fuel pumps, dockside grey water pump, 500-amp electrical service, WiFi, cable and even white glove golf cart concierge and dock shuttle service. The Marina will ultimately accomodate 380 vessels which will make it Costa Rica's largest and most advanced marina and will also have amenities such as a European ambiance inspired seaside village and a luxury yacht club.
What is really terrific about this new Marina is that it features a new ShoreMaster® floating dock system that allows captains, crews and owners an easy access to
their boats by maintaining a constant gunwale height at all times. Also, Costa Rica's strategic location below the hurricane belt and sheltered from easterly trade winds will provide boat owners with a safe haven for vessels and a safer alternative to other marinas in the US and the Caribbean.
Hyatt Hotels Corporation and Hotelera Playa Sombrero S.A., a Costa Rica development company, have signed a management agreement for a 150-room Andaz Papagayo Hotel. The Hotel is set to open on 2013 and located on a 23 acre ocean front parcel within the exclusive community of Peninsula Papagayo, which is Costa Rica's finest residential resort destination. This project will be Hyatt's first resort location for the new Andaz brand and the first Hyatt Hotel in Costa Rica. Other Andaz Hotels include Andaz Liverpool Street (London), Andaz West Hollywood (California), Andaz Wall Street (NYC) and Andaz San Diego (California). The opening of Andaz Papagayo signals Hyatt's strategy to venture in Latin America's Hotel market.
Houston Airport Systems (HAS) has reached an agreement to purchase all of Alterra Partner´s shares and take over the ongoing renovation of the Juan Santamaria Airport. HAS is the current administrator of three airports in Houston, Texas which handles 58 Million passengers in 2007 and is considered as one of the United State´s most efficient and succesful airport administrator. This is great news for Costa Rica´s tourism industry as the new administrator is already working on getting financing from the Banco Centroamericano de Integracion (BCIE) and wishes to conclude the works to provide a high quality service.
The acquisition of the Alterra Partner´s shares is part of the HAS´s plans to expand into the Latin American region. HAS is currently finishing the renvoation project of a $620 Million airport in Quito, Ecuador in the Mariscal de Sucre Airport. The firm is also looking to invest in Colombia and New Dehli.
Avenida Escazu is the newest and most ambitious project to ever be developed in the capital city of Costa Rica, San Jose. This project was awarded as the Best Master Plan in Costa Rica in 2006 and is currently full under construction and promises to change Escazu´s booming lifestyle. A new access in between Escazu and the Prospero Fernandez highway and the intersection to the Costa Rica Country Club, creates a new central area destined to become a focal point of economic and social activities in the capital. The project´s Master Plan includes: a IMAX movie Theatre, the first Marriott Residence Inn outside of the US, office buildings, commercial space, a medical building, a health center and modern loft residences.
The prestigious Forbes Magazine has voted Tamarindo "Costa Rica´s Most Popular Beach". Tamarindo was voted among several other popular beaches mainly due to its great conditions for practicing sports such as surfing and having better facilities, including transportation. This is a great announcement for the Tamarindo community as they have been working hard in several projects and infrastructure improvements to develop more facilities, reestablish the beach´s lifeguard program, pave the town´s main access road and reinstate their recycling program. Other programas such as the fight against the dengue fever and beach cleanups promises great things for Tamarindo who recently lost their Blue Flag Award.
Tamarindo has attracted a large number of investments and businesses over the past few years. The availability of goods and services has increased dramatically which has contributed to an explosion of tourism, real estate development and increased population. We hope that this is a positive start to the revival of Costa Rica´s most attractive and special tourist town.
RIU Hotels has begun full construction of its new undertaking, a 5-star All Inclusive hotel built by the firm itself located on the oceanfront in the beautiful region of Matapalo, Guanacaste on Costa Rica's Northern Pacific Coast. The hotel will consist of a six-story building, with a total of 701 rooms, 35,000 m2 of lush tropical gardens, 4 restaurants, 5 bars, 2 large swimming pools, Spa, nightclub, conference center, boutique shops and high-speed Internet Access. The new RIU Hotel will be Costa Rica's largest and most ambitiuos Hotel project. This new development will fuel the increase in tourist arrivals and investment in the Guanacaste province.
The project is currently under development and will be finished in late 2009 according to RIU. RIU Hotel is a large Spanish Hotel company based in Madrid that owns and operates hotels across the globe in Mexico, Dominican Republic, Spain, Bahamas, Jamaica, Aruba, Cape Verde, Anfang, Bulgaria, Chipre, Cuba, Croatia, Malta, Morrocco, Tunez and the United States. The company is also a stakeholder of TUI Travel PLC, an international leisure company operating in over 180 countries and serving 30 million customers.
Wyndham Resorts has announced they have partnered with a local Costa Rica investment firm to develop a project in Jaco Beach called Wyndham Resort & Residences in Jaco Beach. The project will consist of two adjoined high-rise towers with a common lobby, 24 hour security, four modern elevators and high speed internet and cable in every unit. The common areas will house several pools, a Jacuzzi, a spa with a modern gymnasium, a beach club and a beach level restaurant. The 136 condo-hotel units will have top of the line quality finishes. The project also includes a new chic Rooftop Sunset Bar atop the Resort featuring breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean. The bar will the first of its kind on the beaches of Costa Rica. A
The project’s developer Rica Costa Group is one of the most prestigious in Costa Rica and has developed such renowned international projects as: Solaris at Brickell, Valle del Tamarindo and Via Lindora, among others and Venetian Capital will lead the sales efforts.
Despite economic worries in main North American Markets, Costa Rica's tourism industry is still growing. Last year was unquestionably a year of growth for Costa Rica's tourism industry and the beginning of 2008 confirms consistency. International tourist arrivals registered at the Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO) and Daniel Oduber Quirós (LIR) have showed a steady growth. According to the Insituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT), 127,647 international visitors arrived by plane in January of 2008, marking a 13.7 percent over the same month of 2007.
Expansion began last year with U.S. and European airline companies including Spirit Airlines, Frontier, Champion Air, Sunwing Airlines, First Choice, Air Caraibes, and Air Comet flying across Costa Rican skies. Costa Rica closed 2007 with a total of 1.9 million international tourist arrivals, an 11.5 percent increase in comparison to 2006. Revenue generated by international tourists reached a historic high of US$1.9 billion, up US$300 million from last year.
In terms of investment, in 2007 Costa Rica received an estimated US$800 million in tourism investment; excluding investment in real estate development. Hilton, Marriott, Ritz Carlton, Rosewood, One & Only, RIU, Starwood and Wyndham are among some of the hotel chains that decided to invest in Costa Rica’s tourism industry.
These statistics prove that Costa Rica is still in demand for travelers as well as investors and real estate buyers. The real estate market continues to be strong with buyers seeking a more affordable and quality lifestyle for retirement and second homes.
The United Nations´ International Labor Organizaton (OIT) has listed Costa Rica as having the lowest unemployment rate in Latin America and the Caribbean at 4.8%. Costa Rica had an incredible drop from 6% to 4.8% in 12 months and beat out other bigger and stronger countries in Latin America such as Mexico (4.9%), Argentina (7.1%), Panama (7.7%) and Colombia (12.1%). This is an incredible achievement considering that Costa Rica has not approved their free trade agreement (CAFTA) with the U.S. and that its population is of approximately 4 million citizens. According to the OIT, many of the new jobs came from the real estate and tourism boom that resulted in an increase in construction and development.
Costa Rica was named this week as "Top Latin American Tourism Destination" by Travel Weekly during the Feria Internacional de Turismo (FITUR) in Madrid, Spain.
Travel Weekly awarded Costa Rica based on an annual survey among its 140,000 subscribers, among which the majority are actively involved in the U.S. tourism industry. The selection for the award considers 32 different categories and the readers selected Costa Rica as one of the easiest countries to sell and market among travelers in Central America and South America. The survey also pointed out the excellent climate conditions, its natural and adventure attractions, the availability of high quality and exotic lodging and the warm hospitality of its people. The award was received by Carlos Ricardo Benavides who is the current Tourism Minister of Costa Rica.
The organization of the Feria Internacional de Turismo (FITUR) in Madrid, Spain awards each year the best stand in the event. This year the award was won in the country category by the Instituto de Turismo Costarricense (ICT) due to its steller Costa Rica stand. The Costa Rica stand was "hands-down" the best one in the event according to voters and participants of the event. The ICT was heavily applauded by all while receiving the award due to its continuos excellent marketing campaign to promote the country. The award designation for the best stand is based on the exhibitor´s professionalism, design, communication and innovation.
This is another example of the excellent work that the ICT is peforming at the global stage in promoting our country as a leader in tourism. The ICT also recently announced that they would invest this year $14 Million in their marketing campaign which is twice as much as they invested during 2007. The ICT is aggresively trying to increase tourist arrivals to Costa Rica from 1.8 million to 2 million for this year and its focus is to attract more European travelers.
The 2008 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) managed by Yale and Columbia Universities announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland the top ten countries in the world for environmental protection. The top five ranking nations in the World were (1) Norway, (2) Sweden, (3) Switzerland, (4) Finland, and (5) Costa Rica (the U.S. placed 39th in this Index).
The EPI looks at success in environmental protection based on two objectives: reducing environmental stress on human health and promoting strong excosystems and sound natural resource management. The index measures a total of 25 indicators in six different areas: environmental health, air pollution, water, productive natural resources, biodiversity and habitat and climate change. Costa Rica came out #1 in several categories including: tackling air pollution, water stress, irrigation stress, land burning and improving forestry.
This award is a great achievement by Costa Rica whose policies have become a global example of protection of its biodiversity and continues to be a world leader in ecotourism.