• Services
• 100% Money Back Guarantee
• Before you arrive:
• Phone consultation and needs assessment (1 hour) You've got a million questions, we're sure! During this time on the phone or on Skype, we'll give you all the perspective and advice you need to start getting comfortable with the big move. This is also a great time for us to learn more about you and to tailor our services to fit your needs. That way when you arrive, we'll hit the ground running and have things in motion already.
• Pre-departure documentation checklists Starting the visa or residency process in Costa Rica requires a lot of legwork before you arrive in Costa Rica. Too many times expats arrive and decide to pursue temporary or longer term residency only to find out they need to return to the US to get required documentation in person, such as police reports from your local City or County. We've been through this process and will provide you with a detailed list of documents and steps to take in order to have everything in hand when you arrive. You will save yourself hundreds of dollars in just shipping expenses by doing this up front.
• Scouting Trip Organization You've decided you want to live in Costa Rica, but you're first going to come down and get a better sense of where to live, the distance to work or school, understand education options for your family, and just get a sense of life down here. We'll meet you at the airport, make any arrangements necessary for your scouting trip, and spend up to two days with you driving you around and orienting you to the area you have chosen to settle in. We'll even setup school and business interviews, have a range of rental options available for you to look at, and show you where the corner grocery store is and where to shop!
• School options, applications, tuition, and advice We manage and update a database of all private schooling options available in the area you choose to live in. We'll provide you with summaries of each school's philosophy, size, location, curriculum whenever available, and tuition structure. The format we provide is uniform for each school so that its easy for you to compare them at a glance.
• Pet export/import information Many families want to bring Fido and Felix with them when they move! We'll give you a clear summary of the immunization shots, documentation, and procedures necessary to bring your pets into Costa Rica when you move.
• House and apartment options Possibly one of the most time consuming aspects of moving to Costa Rica is finding housing that you are happy with. Based on the Needs Assessment that we will conduct with you as one of the first steps, we'll research, refine, and present to you a range of housing options for your consideration. Once you arrive, or during your scouting trip, we'll visit as many of these as possible so that you are comfortable making an informed housing decision.
• Costa Rica Primer - Books and Guides Books and literature
• When you arrive:
• Pickup, transportation, area orientation Its moving day and everything and everyone including the kitchen sink are on the plane! When you land, we'll be there to meet you with a nice big air conditioned van. We'll load you all up and take you to your home and get you settled in.
• Extra/Oversize luggage and customs help If you are in fact bringing the kitchen sink, or the KitchenAid for that matter, you might need help getting through customs with extra luggage or oversized items. We'd be happy to help you.
• Cell phone upon arrival Being able to communicate is critical, especially when landing in a foreign land. We'll hand you a loaner cell phone when you arrive for you to use until we find you your own phone and number!
• Orientation tours of areas you plan to live Once you're unpacked, we'll spend some more time with you orienting you to all of the essential areas of the town or city you have moved to. Things like finding the grocery store, school or work, good restaurants, health clubs, movies, hospitals, and doctors are going to be important for you to feel comfortable getting to. As we drive we'll talk and discuss best routes for driving, traffic avoidance (in San Jose!), and issues of personal safety.
• Get your Costa Rica Driver's License Getting your local "tico" driver's license is recommended for a number of reasons, and requires some local knowledge to navigate the system. We'll take you where you need to be and escort you through the process, offering translation so that you understand whats going on!
• Establish accounts and utilities, including: In the first days and weeks after arriving, you'll need to establish things like a bank account so that you can wire money from your home country, get a cell phone so you can communicate, and perhaps establish utilities in your name for the house you are renting. We're pros at getting all of this done and will help you with the paperwork and the processing of these important steps in getting settled. We'll even go so far as to have a working cell phone ready for you when you step off the plane so that you have the comfort of being able to get a hold of us or anyone else in a moment's notice.
• - Personal bank accounts
• - Cell phone service
• - Power, water, television, internet
• Car research and purchasing assistance Buying a car anywhere is a daunting task… buying one in Costa Rica is exponentially daunting! We've done it and know what to look for, and what to avoid. We'll show you around, translate, help you find what you want, and even help negotiate the purchase. Furthermore we have in-house legal services that will cost effectively do the transfer of any vehicle into your name and ensure that everything is done legally.
• School tours and interviews If you didn't have an opportunity to do this during a scouting trip, we'll setup interviews and tours of local schools that interest you and give you the chance to get comfortable with schooling options. You'll already have read through the tuition structures, history, philosophy, and curriculums (when available) as part of the initial documentation we provide, however this will be a hands-on chance for you to see each school.
• Medical Assistance: find trustworthy doctors Finding reliable and trustworthy medical care is one of the most important things you can do to feel comfortable and safe in a new place. If you have specific medical needs, you'll be looking for specialists. We'll give you names and set up interviews so that you can get comfortable with the professional medical staff available to you in your area. We also know some amazing general practitioners and pediatricians that we can recommend to keep you and your kids healthy and happy.
• Cleaning services and childcare interviews We'll find reliable, established, and vetted help for your home, childcare, and garden needs. We'll give you a chance to meet prospective employees and educate you on everything you need to know about hiring domestic help in Costa Rica.
• Security, drivers, gardeners, and garden services Need a driver? Personal security? Pool services? We can arrange it all for you and give you options to choose from.
• After you're settled in:
• 24/7 Concierge Hotline (1 month free with Platinum) Our concierge service is on call all the time. When you call, we answer and help. We provide this service to give you peace of mind after you're settled in. No matter what you need, we'll give you advice, guidance, call on your behalf, and in emergencies we'll meet you and translate for you. We're here all the time.
• Dinner reservations (1 month free with Platinum) As your concierge, we're happy to make dinner reservations on your behalf. Need theatre tickets too? We can do that… just let us know.
• Emergency Assistance (1 month free with Platinum) When things go wrong, you need a local who speaks the language, knows the hospitals, and can get you care quickly. Whether it’s a second person to help you out and coordinate your needs, or someone to take care of your kids while you run to the doctor, we are there to help.