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Hi everyone,
I did a bit of research about Costa Rica and got my feelings all mixed up. I know that it is considered safe in comparison with the rest of SA but how safe is it? I read on a forum that you cannot walk with your backpack every day as you will probably get mugged (gunpoint included). Is this true?
I am a solo female traveler and pretty easy target Iโd guess. The other topics here on Costa Rica contain very little info. Your feedback would be much appreciated. 
Itโs okay if you stay in more resort-ey places, but it gets grimey outside there, especially at night. I was near Puerto Viejo.
I spent a year in Costa Rica, and I think it is very safe. It is like anywhere, there are places you should go and places to stay away from. Not looking like a lost rich tourist will help you. My girlfriend at the time and myself walked/bussed everywhere with our backpacks. Most all people there are friendly and helpful. In my opinon, San Jose is not the place to hang out, but most other places are great. I do know a few gringos who got robbed. One group of friends slept with their windows open which is fine but there were no bars on the windows. So, donโt rent a place without bars on the windows. The thieves snuck in when they were asleep. The other incident was when a couple of female friends had their house broken into and their computers stolen. The third incident was when the same female friend whom had her computer stolen was walking alone at night and someone came up and ripped her gold chain off her neck. Each of these incidents can easily be avoided I believe. First off, the friends whom had their houses broken into lived in an area I wouldnโt live. It was cheap and decent living, but in a crappy area of Quepos. And as a female, never walk alone late at night. As for guns, they are few and far between in CR. Almost non-existent in CR from my experience. It is good for you to know there are TONS of female solo backpackers going through CR every year. Find some others and latch onto each other for support. Use the hostel networks and recommendations of people you trust. If you have a bad feeling about somewhere or someone, get out ASAP. It is not a bad idea to carry pepper spray. There is about a 99% chance you will NOT use it, but couldnโt hurt. Costa Rica is an amazing country and a great place for digital nomads and backpackers, so have fun, enjoy yourself and soak it up. PS. CR was my first place living abroad and my family and friends had me worried to death about getting robbed. After two months of constant worry, I realized I was making myself miserable and being ridiculous, so I quit and spent another 11 months enjoying the heck out of the country. I never got robbed and loved my time thereโฆEnjoy!!!
Hi Chris,
Thank you so much for sharing! It doesnยดt sound very comforting, though :). I think I will wait a while or gather up a bit more experience first as a solo traveler and then try it out.
Safe travels!
Thank you so much, guys. I just have to be extra careful I guess. I also talked to the The Beach Office manager in Tamarindo - Leona and she basically confirmed the above adding though the positive points like nice international community, yoga, art and other activities classes. She also offered to introduce me to her friends and other nomads around. 
She was extremely nice, I must say.
Yes, there are many lovely people in CR. That area will have a lot of expats, and more modern condos, if you like that kind of thingโฆ safety level is probably fine. I havenโt been myself so have no idea about the vibe except itโs supposed to be quite busy, hot and dry until April. The natural, open-air bungalow-style living on the Caribbean side attracted me more, though the prevalence of creepy-crawlies is not for everyone. Loved waking to howler monkeys in the morning though - magical.
I spent about 4 months total in Costa Rica last year. Itโs pretty safe for a solo female traveler, but itโs got its problem spots. There is theft and on rare occasions, with guns, and targeting tourists, but you just donโt want to be on isolated roads, Iโd say, for long. Unless youโre wandering in national parks during daylight, stay around people, donโt leave belongings lying on beaches without asking someone to watch them. Thatโs pretty much the rule I follow anywhere though. I lived in San Jose a bit, walked through some sketch neighborhoodsโฆ no problems. But mostly I was just south of Puerto Viejoโฆ walking alone at night along isolated roads in the Puerto Viejo area is a NO-NO โ there have been incidents, but only in the isolated parts. If I was traveling from PV town to my bungalow in Cocles alone at night Iโd take a cab or sometimes a bike with a light, for a short distance. I had no problems and would go back. I wouldnโt advise Cahuita or Limรณn though, personally.
It depends. What backpack you have, what you carry in it, how big you look, where do you walk, at what time, how you behave with strangers etc. etc. I didnโt feel safe in Costa Rica. I didnโt feel safe in Panama or Argentina. Itโs barbed wire everywhere, steel bars on every window. Itโs just part of their culture. Did it stop me from going there? Not at all. In fact, there are many wonderful people there which will make you feel good : )
My experience with Latin America: month in Argentina, 2 weeks in Panama, 2 weeks in Costa Rica. Got back pack stolen on a beach in Manuel Antonio.
UPD So, Iโd avoid big towns at night / with backpack like San Jose or San Carlos. Stick to smaller places: Manuel Antonio, La Fortuna, Monte Verde, Puerto Viejo etc., preferably when other folks around.
Most of it is no more dangerous than anywhere else. You just have to make sure to not make a target of yourself.
What I mean is, for example, since most of the EU has banned Americans, if I live in Guatemala and will be traveling FROM Guatemala to the EU, could I get in? Or does the ban count for all Americans regardless of where they live?
My fiancรฉe and I are most likely moving to NYC (maybe DC) in August, and as a technical startup co-founder I'd love to meet new people that are also into startups. Would joining a co-working space be worth the money to do this?
I work for a big tech company that has an office in NYC, but it's mainly sales so I wouldn't be able to meet others that are related to any of my 9-5 work or likely into tech.
If co-working spaces, post covid of course, aren't a good way to meet business starting people in a new city, what is?
Hello, everyone!
My idea is to stay as low as 6 months and as long as a year (maybe, who knows) over Lisbon after doing some analysis from many cities in Europe.
I'm an Argentinian and Chilean (both nationalities) so... no Euro-pass for me (getting my Italian nationality could take 2 years easily). I'm also a remote worker and I have a really good income (I work for a Silicon Valley company) so I can show more than enough resources to stay in the country.
Everything I see online doesn't inspire me much confidence (most sites looks a bit scammy) and this is not a "vacation stay"... I want to be clear my head far away from Argentina right now. If someone has a good website, recommendations, etc I will super appreciate.
Thanks in advance!
We are hoping to become nomads soon and have booked an AirBnB in September in Goa for our first destination. We are considering what would be the best option for accommodation after that. We are trying to decide between co-living spaces, hostels, or Airbnbs.
What are your experiences of accommodation in terms of the following: reliable wifi, social aspect, pricing, cleanliness, cooking facilities?
I'm a dual citizen of America and France with my resident based in the America. Can I travel to the EU using my French passport?
I would like to avoid having to come right back home, ya know? <3
I plan to be in Bali a lot, but if this is a terrible time to go,
it could stunt my future plans of being in Bali for an extended period of time.
Would love to see you guys! <3
Iโm a big believer in co-living but Iโm finding hard to find all the options available in different cities.
I have found the major players like Roam, The Collective, and WeLive but havenโt found many others.
Has anyone seen a list or should I start making one?
I know from experience that if you have residential status in countries where IG (a broker) serves, you can buy stocks and other assets through this broker. But I wonder what doors to the stock market, asset market or broker can be unlocked with e-residency? Some banks open a terminal for customers to buy assets overseas too, is one of the e-residency friendly bank offering a good portfolio of assets to invest in?
Hey everyone,
Iโm a freelance + nomad newbie, off for my 1st proper trip in May. Iโm wanting to spend a month somewhere and go from there.
I just came back from Slovenia/Ljubljana and loved it there (just a week). I donโt mind โsleepierโ places par-say, as long as theyโre close to a beach or nature of some kind. In fact, I kinda like places less-busy and a bit smaller/cosier.
Iโm been swaying towards Porto, but have been impressed by the rave reviews Iโve seen for Valencia.
-> Have you every nomad-ed in a Spanish/Portuguese city? Iโd love to know where and what you liked/disliked 
Thanks!
I have been doing Southeast Asia during June to November for 11 years. Rainy, Typhoons - is wild - still warm but ya - getting older so not as into that. Where can go is warm and dry - not super hot like Vegas but warm and has to be DRY. Good Internet and affordable. Ty
Currently in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico and heading to Santa Teressa, Costa Rica next week.
Then Aruba in the Caribbean Sea for Christmas and New Year.
However I feel I want to head back to Central America to bring living costs down, rather than staying in the Caribbean Sea among the expensive Islands.
This means I have around 2 - 2,5 month of unplanned travelling.
Any digital nomads who have ideas about where to head in that timeframe?
Hi!
I am planning to move to Latin America for 3-4 months (Oct-January). Iโve narrowed down 6 different places that I want to visit before committing to settling down, but Iโd love to get some community input.
Here are the cities Iโm considering:
The most important things Iโm looking for:
Anyone have any experience with these places and can give some insight? Iโm also completely open to other recommendations.
Thanks!
Rose
I am a New Zealander looking to travel for a couple of years in different countries. For this purpose I would ideally like to shift my company to a lower tax territory where I will live part time, as I am currently taxed at roughly 33% in New Zealand, however itโs closer to 40% when I add in all the hidden taxes.
With a move I wonโt be living in NZ so Iโll no longer be obliged to pay any tax after 320 days.
I ideally would wish to be a tax resident of the country I incorporate in. What country is easiest to do this through? A large chunk of my business relies on PayPal which requires your bank account to be from the same country your company is registered. Thus I canโt do anything such as BVI or small islands.
Tbh my best bet looks to be Dubai Free Zones at this point and I can do some travel in europe from there.
What is your ergonomic set-up while traveling?
I personally have an external keyboard, and am currently exploring getting a laptop stand, some lumbar support, and a trackball-mouse.
What do you use? How are you balancing health / portability?
I have a month between Playa del Carmen and Medellin, and Iโm deciding which city to be. Itโs on november so itโs summer in this region, what do you guys choose?
ps. just in case, Mexico is not south american
Hi everybody,
for those who read us in the past, we made some changes to our plan for this winter.
We decided for several reasons to postpone our trip to SEA, and decided to leave for a month in Costa Rica instead. Weโll still be travelling with our 2 kids and will need to work a little as well.
This is our itinerary for the month. 
For those whoโve been there, how long do you think we should stay at each place?
We were planning roughly:
Do you think thereโs a place (among the ones we cited or else) we should consider to stay a little longer?
Thanks 
Magali and Guillaume
Iโm surprised this isnโt anywhere on the forum yet. But just a pro tip for Americans about to start a nomad adventure. T-mobile offers unlimited SMS & data in 120 countries for FREE with any of their (already pretty cheap) plans. Itโs ideal if you plan to be back in the US for any part of the year, but I honestly would consider it even if youโre going to be entirely out of the country.
You get bumped down to much slower 3G speeds, but itโs free and works as soon as you land. Can be super helpful before youโve sorted yourself out with a local SIM. I usually keep my T-mobile SIM in my iPhone all the time and then buy a local SIM and drop it in my pocket wifi for both laptop and iPhone when needed. I keep my local US number and just use it (itโs like $0.05/min in most places) for important clients calls so they donโt have to bother with Skype.
Iโm not affiliated at all, just a happy customer. Anybody found a better deal worth mentioning?
Hi Guys,
Iโm planning out my next stops after leaving Medellin, Colombia soon where I can hunker down and get some work done with fast wifi and cheap living. Will be in Mexico first so starting a look there but wondering if coming back down to South America might make more sense?
My main concerns are budget and fast enough wifi for me to work from home. Other considerations are some nomad community (ideally also some English speaking expats as my Spanish is basic) and warm enough weather.
Thanks in advance!
Hi guys!
Weโre leaving on Dec 1st for a 5-month DN experience with our kids, but we have second thoughts on our journey. We were supposed to do a trip in South-East Asia (Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia). Weโre from Canada, and our clients are all in Canada right now (weโre digital marketing consultants).
After comparing destinations, weโre starting the think Latin America may be a better choice to make sure we keep most of our clients during these 5 months (same timezone). Also, it seems Latin America fits our needs too :
So here are our 2 options ; which one would you recommend for our criteria?
A: SEA : Thailand (Chiang Mai and a couple islands in the South), Indonesia (Bali and Lombok), Malaysia (Penang)
B: Latin America : Mexico (Playa Del Carmen/Tulum), Colombia (Medellin), Peru (Lima and other TBD towns), Chile (Santiago and other TBD towns), Argentina (Buenos Aires and other TBD towns).
Thanks!
I have been a digital nomad for the last couple of years. I have always worked in tech and now run a couple of profitable online businesses that give me a reliable income and allow me to fund a nomadic lifestyle.
I recently exited one of my businesses and I am considering to invest the income from the sale in properties, mainly for 2 reasons:
a) I donโt want to keep wasting my money in renting apartments across the cities I stay
b) I believe in properties as investment and I want to diversify my investment portfolio (mainly stocks)
After years of constant wander from one place to another, now I am the type of digital nomad who sticks to few locations: I mainly rotate across 4 places each year (San Francisco, Medellin, Berlin, Bali). Buying a house in each of those location would be difficult and too expensive. Therefore, I was wondering if there was any sort of service that combines an investment opportunity with the ability to access different properties around the world (even if just for a limited time per year) ?
Imagine living in 4 cities per year and having a house in each place that you can exclusively use for 3 months and at the same time having your investment growing (this depending on the market, of course). Wouldnโt that be great? I believe it could be done via a property fund selling you a share and giving you access to some of their properties for a limited timeframe each year.
Has anyone heard of anything like that?
Thanks!
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