Costa Rica welcomed 146,915 international travelers at its airports in July, the largest single-month figure since March 2020.
This continues an upward trend that has persisted through much of 2021. Each month since March has been Costa Rica’s best for international travel during the pandemic.
July featured 29,000 more air arrivals to Costa Rica than June, while June was the first month that topped 100,000 tourists during the health crisis.
The United States remains the main source market for tourists to Costa Rica. Since Costa Rica reopened its air borders in August 2020, nearly 70% of international arrivals have come from the North American country.
In July, 109,225 visitors came from the United States.
Nine airlines offer direct connections between Costa Rica and the United States: Delta, United, Alaska, American, JetBlue, Spirit, Sun Country (seasonally), Frontier and Southwest. All U.S.-based carriers that served Costa Rica before the pandemic have resumed service.
In addition, Avianca announced this week that it will launch new flights to Costa Rica, including routes to the United States, South America and Central America.
Tourism is one of Costa Rica’s principal economic drivers. Before the pandemic, it contributed to 8.2% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and created 9% of the nation’s jobs, according to the ICT.
The unemployment rate in Costa Rica is 18.1%, among the region’s highest.
While Costa Rica is welcoming tourists from anywhere in the world, measures related to the pandemic continue to complicate international travel. The United States, for example, requires a negative Covid-19 test before returning on a flight from abroad. And in Europe, the United Kingdom has added Costa Rica to its “red list.”
Costa Rica has eliminated most Covid-19 entry requirements for vaccinated travelers.
Click here to see Costa Rica’s entry requirements during the Covid-19 pandemic.
