As of April 1, 2022, Costa Rica joined other nations in lifting its COVID-19 pandemic-era requirement that international tourists purchase travel insurance. For visitors from the U.S., only a passport is required to enter Costa Rica, and visas are required for stays exceeding 180 days.

Though tourists no longer have to purchase travel insurance to visit the lushly green, Central American nation, travel insurance is still essential. Allianz Travel Insurance plans with emergency medical benefits can protect you in case of medical emergencies when your domestic insurance coverage won’t. Travel insurance plans with trip cancellation benefits also guard the financial investment you made in your travel plans in the event you need to cancel your trip for a covered reason.

Here’s why you need to purchase travel insurance for your next trip to Costa Rica, even though it’s not required.

You need travel insurance in case you have a medical emergency in Costa Rica.

Did you know that most domestic health insurance policies won’t fully cover you abroad? Most healthcare providers overseas will only accept cash payments. Another reason to purchase travel insurance for your trip to Costa Rica is The U.S. Department of State recommends travel insurance to cover medical evacuation in Costa Rica.

If you love a good hike, you know that while nature is restorative, there are more safety risks in remote, outdoor places. As a leader in ecotourism, Costa Rica is one of the best places in the world to enjoy nature. The small nation devotes 28% of its land to nature preserves and national parks. Its Caribbean-facing coast is known for thick jungles, while the Pacific coast is where you’ll find tropical, dry forests and great beaches for soaking up the sun.

Let’s say you’ve taken a boat ride to see the forests of Corcovado National Park, on the Osa Peninsula. Part of the wilderness area's appeal is that it’s so remote, it’s not accessible by car. You’re hiking side-by-side with a friend and mistakenly brush against some vegetation growing beside the narrow, winding trail. You think nothing of it until your skin flares up in a rash. Minutes later, you stop moving when you develop an uncontrollable itch, and the rash begins to spread up your leg.

Luckily, both of you were hiking with a guide, who manages to get you out of the park to safety. But your skin still feels as if it is on fire. You and your friend decide you should head to the nearest hospital.

From here, your experience could go one of two ways,

1. If you have the Allyz® TravelSmart app on your phone, you can quickly pull up the location of nearby hospitals. Those with a star have been recommended as preferred providers. You head to the closest top-rated facility. When you arrive at the emergency room, you are greeted in Spanish but you don’t feel comfortable navigating a new health system in a non-native language. You call the 24/7 customer assistance line at Allianz Global Assistance and a travel expert connects you to translation services, and negotiates payment for your care.
   
   When you leave after treatment, you once again pull up the Allyz TravelSmart app for information about the nearest pharmacy at your fingertips. The instructions for how and when to apply your prescription ointment are in Spanish and the pharmacist doesn’t speak English. You call the 24/7 assistance line again and a translator is able to get details on how to administer your medication.
2. In scenario two, you didn’t purchase travel insurance and you didn’t download the Allyz TravelSmart app. You pull up a search engine on your phone to find the nearest hospital. You don’t know anything about the quality of the healthcare facility and you’re too worried about your current health status to spend time looking up reviews. You don’t have much peace of mind at the moment.

When you arrive at the closest emergency room, you’re greeted in Spanish, a language in which you’re barely conversational. You wait until the hospital’s medical translator can assist you. You’re then informed that the hospital will only accept upfront payment for care. You didn’t budget for serious accidents, but you pay out of pocket because you desperately need treatment.

When you leave the hospital, you find the nearest pharmacy using your phone’s search engine. When you receive your prescription, the instructions on how to administer the medication are in Spanish and the pharmacist doesn’t speak English. You type the text from the label into an online translation service and hope for the best.

Travel insurance with trip cancellation benefits can protect you if your trip is canceled, delayed or interrupted midway for a covered reason.

Your bags are packed for your family trip to Costa Rica. You booked an amazing beachside resort near Montezuma Beach, on the southern part of Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula. You’re ready to lounge on the beach and catch some sun, and the kids are excited about the turtles and turtle hatchery at nearby Romelia Wildlife Reserve. The best part is that you booked the resort for a steal, with the only downside being reservations are non-refundable.

Two days before your trip, your school-aged son develops a hacking cough and stomach ache, which is determined to be the flu. Your kid feels awful, you can’t endanger other plane passengers or the citizens of Costa Rica, and the pediatrician has advised that he stay home – so you have to cancel your trip. If you had an Allianz Travel Insurance plan with trip cancellation benefits, you could be reimbursed for your resort reservations and other non-refundable expenses. While it’s no fun to cancel a trip, you can simply postpone your adventure with no money lost.

As a world leader in travel protection, Allianz Global Assistance helps millions of travelers answer the call of adventure with confidence every year. Let us be there for you too.

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