The New Golden Door To Retirement and Living in Costa Rica [Paperback]

Christopher Howard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 22, 2010

This guidebook was published to help people of all ages and budgets move to Costa Rica successfully and make their dreams come true and is a candidate for the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Award for Publishing Excellence. Christopher Howard is Costa Rica's most read authority on living and retiring in Costa Rica. He has resided in the country for 31 years and is a Costa Rican citizen. It is not surprising that he has first-hand knowledge and insight into all aspect of Costa Rica's culture, economy, language and its people He has appeared on the NBC Today Show, CNBC World News and is a frequent lecturer at international retirement seminars. People who read this book before coming here often know more about Costa Rica than many long term residents, according to the Association of Residents of Costa Rica (ARCR). For the last fifteen years Mr. Howard has also conducted award-winning relocation and retirement tours (liveincostarica.com) to supplement the information in his book and assist those interested in making the move seamlessly.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Chris is the EXPERT on relocating to Costa Rica that is clear within a few minutes of reading his book or spending any time with him. For someone with his BOUNDLESS knowledge and experience, he is also incredibly down to earth. For the neophyte, he really boils things down and takes care in answering your questions and introducing you to every major facet of life in this beautiful country. There is NO better way to get introduced, settled and assimilated in Costa Rica than to have Chris as your point man. --Peronet Despeignes, Fortune Magazine

We highly RECOMMEND this guidebook to ALL of our members and to anyone thinking of living in Costa Rica. It is by far the BEST and most COMPLETE source of information on the subject. We have observed that people who read this book before coming here actually know MORE about Costa Rica than many long-term residents. Association of Residents of Costa Rica (ARCR) --Association of Residents of Costa Rica (ARCR)

Reading this book is like having lived in Costa Rica. Mr. Howard brings his readers a book that will become a CLASSIC. --Mary Ellen Botter, Travel Editor, Denver Post

About the Author

Christopher Howard has resided in Costa Rica for over thirty years. He has an extensive foreign language background, having earned a B.A in Latin American studies and a Masters degree in Spanish from the University of California. Chris is considered by many to be a pioneer and innovator in Central America. During the time he has lived there he has written more than 10 books on living retiring and investing in several of the countries in the region. It is not surprising that he has first-hand knowledge and insight into all aspect of Costa Rica's culture, economy, language and its people. Because of his expertise, he is a frequent lecturer at investment and retirement seminars, has been a paid consultant for National Geographic, and has been interviewed on the NBC Today Show, CNBC World News, Good Morning America and in Newsweek Magazine. At present, the author writes columns titled Learning the Language for the Association of Residents of Costa Rica (ARCR) magazine El Residente, is a contributor to the news group Costa Rica Living and posts information about living in Costa Rica daily on his popular blogs at liveincostarica.com and costaricaspanish.net

Product Details

• Paperback: 680 pages
• Publisher: Costa Rica Books; 16 edition (September 22, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1881233669
• ISBN-13: 978-1881233664
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #233,634 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #46 in Books > Travel > Latin America > Central America > Costa Rica

More About the Author

Christopher Howard has resided in Costa Rica for over 30 years and is Costa Rican citizen. During this time, he has had the opportunity to gather a plethora of information about living, retiring and investing in Costa Rica. It is not surprising that he has first-hand knowledge and insight into all aspects of Costa Rica's culture and its people. Because of his expertise, he is a frequent lecturer at numerous retirement and investment seminars. He has also appeared on the NBC Today Show and CNBC World Business News and was interviewed for Good Morning America.

Mr. Howard has extensive foreign language background, having earned a B.A in Latin American studies and a Masters degree in Spanish from the University of California. The author writes columns titled "Learning the Language" for the Association of Residents of Costa Rica's magazine La Voz, "Short Cuts for Learning Spanish" for the newspapers AM Costa Rica and Inside Costa Rica and the Costa Rica Living News Group.

Christopher has written 14 language and travel guidebooks about Latin America including 16 editions of the perennial bestselling "New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica", "Official Guide to Costa Rica Spanish" and the one-of-a-kind "Guide to Real Estate in Costa Rica."

Due to a multitude of requests from the readers of his guidebooks, Christopher Howard began to offer monthly relocation and retirement tours to Costa Rica starting in 1997. Since then he has personally helped thousands of people move to Costa Rica successfully through his one-of-a-kind licensed tours, seminars and private consultation services. Please see www.liveincostarica.com for more information about his unique tours.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful country - an important book, January 30, 2011

By 

Tom North "TomN" (Bay Area, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The New Golden Door To Retirement and Living in Costa Rica (Paperback)

Costa Rica is a diverse and beautiful country with a beautiful culture. It is a wonderful place to consider for retirement and this is a very thorough book covering nearly all aspects of that important decision. My wife and I took Mr. Howard's Central Valley and Pacific tour 6 years ago and bought a charming but very simple house in the little town of Ojochal (mentioned in the book). I now have his latest revision and am amazed at the level of detailed information. This is not a book of sweeping statements. It has that as an introduction but it soon drills down to taxi fares, shipping services and rates, medical operations and costs/locations, residency requirements, and even a few recipes (Gallo Pinto - my wife's favorite - vegetarian).

The forward is a great introduction to "Why live in Costa Rica?". It introduces the options for climate (65º F days - mountain valleys verses 85º days coastal year round), economics, safety, alternative countries (not comparable), activities, medical, and US similarities that Costa Rica offers.

The first chapter of the book introduces the overall geography, culture (Pura Vida), government (4 branches - long standing democracy), and economics. This is followed by a chapter covering the 6 climate zones Costa Rica offers. Each section gives concrete examples of housing styles and costs, availability of services, a little history, and generally communicates the lifestyle advantages and disadvantages of each. Plaza Izcazu sort of a US yuppie set, Avenida Ezcazu CR's version of LA's Rodeo Drive ($$$). On the other side of San Jose but still in the very populace central valley is San Pedro, offering more of a college town atmosphere. Outside the central valley (San Jose) there are mountains and geothermal spas, costal beaches and surfing towns, further South there are remote rain forests and laid back little communities (and us).

These 6 zones are very different from each other and the descriptions are detailed including descriptions of the individual towns (a few restaurants, interesting sights / beaches / historical) and their personalities, housing costs, and and. There is enough information that you may be able to concentrate on a few for your investment / retirement (white sandy beaches, large resort hotels and condos, mountain views and cool air, or lush rainforest).

The last dozen chapters expand individual topics / considerations. The author provides a description of the lifestyle possible for different levels of income. Living on $1,000 per month is possible but limited, $3,000 per month allows travel, entertainment and house keepers. He gives budget breakdowns of these totals that include taxes (very reasonable - $175 per year), food, medical, travel, rent, utilities, and etc.

There is a great deal of detailed information that many long time residents in CR probably don't even know. For taxis he suggests the ones that are registered (painted red, yellow triangle on each door with the license number). He even gives charge details ($.85 1st KM, and $.85 after, $8.50 per hour, plus other rates outside municipalities - and important to look for the fare meter (marias)). A feature of this book that shows Howard's language interest is the inclusion of the Costa Rican Spanish translations for many topics ("Con la maria, por favor" to have the driver use the meter if you are in doubt). This level of detail permeates every subject area.

Financial information covers public bank deposits (no limit for amount insured) and private banks (higher interest), how to pay bills (internet is very common), how much to tip (waiter tip is generally included but most others are good to tip).

Making money (2 chapters) covers starting a business, investing in CR, available work (Intel, Amazon, HP, and many others are in Costa Rica), and some business Spanish.

Real Estate discusses the possibility of squatters rights (VERY rare but important), price comparisons, how to buy including financing, lawyers, and legalities, building (lots to talk about here - comment me if you like), beach zone laws, and so on for 60 pages of detailed info.

A chapter titled "Red Tape" has portions you need to know about basic auto insurance and personal property (including cars, boats, planes), and the justice system. There are notes on Wills and Estates, Embassy Service, legal terms and many less likely issues.

More in a sort of miscellaneous section - churches, pets, pharmacies (most US prescription drugs are over the counter - not barbiturates - not amphetamines), shopping, favorite restaurants (two wonderful ones that he took us to on our tour are not listed though- rats - one with coffee wood smoked chicken), and more than I can possibly include in this review.

The net result is the book contains a mountain of quality information. If you want just a beautiful book our favorite is: "Costa Rica: The Forests of Eden" by Kevin Schafer, Alvaro Ugalde, The sweetest little book covering the geological beginnings to early man is: "Costa Rica: The Last Country The Gods Made" by Adrian Colesberry, Kimberly Parsons, The best map BY FAR is: "Costa Rica: Waterproof Travel Map of Costa Rica" by Ray Krueger Koplin, Toucan Maps, and our favorite travel guide (resort listings, places to see etc. ) is: The Lonely Planet Costa Rica Guide Book.

There are two important pieces to me that have already changed since this book was printed. The new and beautiful road Howard mentions as nearly completed is now in fact completely done. This was only a few giant bridges when we were first there and now a new and wonderfully smooth highway goes all the way from San Jose out to and then down the pacific coast. Having to drive over the "Mountain of Death" is no longer necessary. The second new development may only apply to some areas but does include ours. We now have 3G phone including 3G internet service even in the little back reaches of our jungle community, WOW. It is necessary to get the chip from ICE - the CR phone company, and locally purchased 3G computer modems all work but the one I tried from here didn't. There is an ICE desk in the airport if you have an unlocked cell phone.

Nice book, nice country. Best for people who want to enjoy a new culture in a new environment, rather than just transplanting a piece of the US to a more affordable part of the world. But I'm pretty biased. Several friends have decorator homes and love the combination of comfort in exquisite natural surroundings.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The leader of the pack, April 8, 2011

By 

Irama Morales - See all my reviews

This review is from: The New Golden Door To Retirement and Living in Costa Rica (Paperback)

The 16th edition of this guide stands out high above the other books on the same subject. It answered all of my question about living in Costa Rica and left NO stone unturned. I would go so far as to call it the "bible" for expats in Costa Rica. I found it to be packed with really good advice and tips the author gathered from living in the country for more than 30 years. The book is a balanced treatment of the subject in that it contains anecdotes by people who have actually relocated to Costa Rica so that readers can get other views of the country aside from the opinions of author. I liked the fact that Christopher Howard seems to be a straight shooter and doesn't try to sugar coat anything. There is a section of ads in the book for business which cater to expats. I actually contacted a moving company and doctor and both sources proved to be very helpful. Nowadays there is a lot of inaccurate information posted on the Internet about Costa Rica by unqualified individuals lacking experience. The Golden Door is a reliable source of information and is written by someone who does know a thing or two about the country.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The "Bible" on retirement and living in Costa Rica!, January 27, 2011

By 

Barbara Branscum (Belleair, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The New Golden Door To Retirement and Living in Costa Rica (Paperback)

Chris Howard is by far the world's greatest expert on retirement and living in beautiful Costa Rica. Whether you are someone who is looking for a new incredible life in a very exciting country, or the President of that country, Chris has that quiet and unique ease of friendship and professionalism to ensure that everyone feels right at home. I have learned so much about Costa Rica real estate, investing, security, and every day lifestyle planning, that this book has paid for itself more a thousand times over. I have personally traveled this fantastic country with Chris Howard and the experiences were eye opening and incredible. Investing in this incredible guide will help guarantee you the best chance of having a successful experience in acheiving your dream at the price you can afford. Just read the table of contents to discover for yourself why Chris Howard's guide is the one "must have" book. Please consider combining this book with joining Chris on one of his world famous relocation and retirement tours. They are so carefully planned to meet his customer's needs, you will thank me many times over for reccomending both so highly. Thanks Chris for your friendship, guidance, and for introducing so many happily satisfied people to one of the most magnificant countries in the world, Costa Rica!