On my monthly relocation and retirement tours I am often asked about which foreigners find success here and those who don’t. To address this concern I give examples of those who make it here and those who do not.

Probably the most important factor in determining your success in Costa Rica is one’s attitude. If you come here and expect everything to be like States or Canada then you are deceiving yourself. The country is the way it is and it will not change despite your complaints. I don’t know how many times I have heard, “In the U.S. we do it this way.” Well I have news for you, things are not going to be the way you want them to be, so don’t have any false expectations. You have to adapt and go with the flow or you will be miserable. You have to understand that this is a different culture.

I have lost count of the number of times that I have heard Americans putting down the local culture without really understanding it. Learning Spanish and mixing with the Costa Ricans is the best way to learn about the country and its people. If you don’t follow this advice, then you will always be a foreigner or “stranger in a strange land.”

I know a few unfortunate souls who like to get on their soapbox and pontificate about what’s wrong with Costa Rica Rica and what needs to be changed. Some of them even do this on their web sites. We’ll I have news for them. It’s either the “Costa Rican way or the highway.” If you are not going adapt, then it is best to buy a ticket and move back to your home country or you will be an “unhappy camper.”