Costa Rica Travel Posts

Costa Rica Travel Guide and Tips – Important Phone Numbers in Costa Rica

By Patrick Brunelle ⋅ May 25, 2009 ⋅  Email this post ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

It is always important to carry a list of important phone numbers while traveling in a different country, and Costa Rica is no different. Also, of important note, there are no area codes in Costa Rica, hence all calls from within the country are considered local. This makes borrowing someone’s cell for a call much easier and less imposing. Also, although there are lots of great services in Costa Rica, it can be quite difficult to speak to an actual person, even for the emergency number. Here is a list of what I consider to be the most important phone numbers for Costa Rica.

Vital Numbers
Emergency Number: Dial 911
Fire Department: Dial 118
Police for non emergency calls: Dial 2222-1365The emergency number is not always quick for service, and you may be better off calling the non emergency number.

OTHER HELPFUL NUMBERS

To find the phone number of a restaurant or hotel, just dial 113
To hear the messages on your local Costa Rican phone, dial 190

Embassies:
• USA – 2220-3939
• France – Dial 2223-1156
• Great Britain – Dial 2221-5816
• Canada – Dial 2296-4149

Credit Cards
If you need to contact your credit card provider or bank, the best option is to call them collect. To do this you will need to dial 175. Most of the time a Spanish operator will come on, and it may prove to be difficult to find someone who speaks English. Once you speak to someone, give them the non toll free number of your bank and they will connect you. Most banks automatically accept collect calls making this an easy process.

It’s a good idea to have this number somewhere other than on the back of your card in case of it getting lost or stolen.

Airport
Although a phone number would be nice, the best option for flight information is found directly on this handy site: http://www.flightstats.com/go/Airport/airportDetails.do?airportCode=SJO