Escazu, Costa Rica

"Expats and digital nomads living in Escazu enjoy the city's close proximity to San Jose, the country's capital, as well as its easy access to the rest of the country. They also appreciate the city's vibrant nightlife, its many restaurants and cafes, and its beautiful parks and gardens. Additionally, the city's low cost of living and its friendly locals make it an attractive destination for expats and digital nomads. On the other hand, some expats and digital nomads may find the city's traffic and pollution to be a downside," wrote one expat in Escazu.

"The weather is absolutely perfect in Escazu! Much better then San Diego even. What has been the best is it does not rain as much as we were led to believe it would. It might say 100% chance of thunderstorms each day but then there is no rain. Love it! No need for heat or A/C ever. The town has everything that is familiar to being in the US. You can even see movies at the MultiPlaza in English! Some of the best Italian food we have ever had is here. We are close to the international airport which allows us to make our regular forays to Europe and Caribbean easy. It is also a relatively quick trip back to the US to see our large families and grandkids (and for them to come stay with us here). The closeness to the US, weather and cheap housing was why we chose CR, and once we spent time at the VERY hot and humid beaches, easily settled on the weather in Escazu. Everyone we have met is Pura Vida and so friendly and helpful, so different then the US. Yes we are probably being taken advantage of but we have so much and they have so little so that is not a negative to us. Yes you have to be very patient for anything involving citizenship, money transfers, setting up local bill paying and banking - not easy at all. And the language challenge is significant but Goggle Translator is an amazing help for this. Without it it would have been much more frustrating. And yes traffic and the condition of the roads are a negative compared to the US including how long it takes to get from Point A to Point B even though it is technically only 20 miles. We have yet to use a bus but love that they have Uber here and used it a lot until we bought a car. That purchase in itself was challenge but we used a English speaking service via our attorney group (Outlier Legal) and went well. We have used Outlier Legal for so many things. They have been (and continue to be) amazing. They even sent an agent with us to open a bank account 3 years ago! We could go on and on...," explained one expat living in Escazu.