Casino’s in Costa Rica

The Arias (President of Costa Rica) has done a lot of good things for the country in my way of thinking, however not all things are seen as good.

The latest thing to come down from his administration, I do not see as good for the country OR good for tourism.

Arias administration took steps on Thursday to discourage the casino business in Costa Rica.

The first decree is that these new restrictions do not apply to hotels that are rated 3 stars or above.  So means that these new laws are only to affect the lower end hotels.  Not real sure why he would target the less expensive hotels and let the higher end, more financially stable  go clear on that one.

The second decree is that a special health permit for casinos will cost $5,000 a year.  That is a LOT of money for a Costa Rican or Costa Rican business if it is run by Costa Rican’s.

The third decree is the government forbids “free” alcoholic drinks in casino’s.  What is a casino if you can’t get free drinks.  Again, what are they thinking???

The fourth decree is that the casino hours are to be 6pm to 2am.  This is going to be a slam for those casino that count on the traffic during the day.

The last proposed decree is the clincher….it suggests that the casino owners and will others will have to donate for psychological help for addicted gamblers.

There are other things mentioned in this proposal like:

put the operation of slot machines under the consumer protection laws and payback of 85% by the casino to players

requires the casino owners to be the same as the owner of the hotel.

brands casinos as places that can encourage prostitution, drug addition and insecurity.

And there is so much more but I can’t cover it all here.  If you have questions about the above proposed decree or how it will affect your life in Costa Rica, email us.