www.CostaRicaTicas.com

the last entry in the drivers list is from last august, does anyone have any recent, reliable updates?
also, what do you guys think a fair hourly rate for a driver would be for a multiple hr. gig maybe 5-6 hrs per day.
with all the BS of dealing with cabbies and avoiding being ripped off, i am thinking of hireing a driver.
20 days and counting
thanks

Tourist,
The problems with the taxi are very minor. What's BS are you talking about? I've never had a problem with a cabbie in CR. Sure, they'll rip you off if you take the one in front of Del Rey. Easy solution: step into the street and flag down the first vacant cab you see. You will pay the metered fare. Problem solved.

In my opinion very impractical to hire a driver unless you are going out of town or you want to take a tour of the city. What's he going to be doing while you are in ZB phucking? He'll be waiting outside and charging you ($5/hr or whatever you agree on). What you'll pay him per day, you would be able to take cabs and still have 50% left over for more phucking.

Tourist,

I agree with Orange. I've been to CR a number of times and have never had a problem with any of them. I have had a couple of drivers stay with me and my group most of the night, buying them beverages and then collectively giving them a nice tip at the end of the night.

One small problem I did encounter -- the language barrier -- was quickly resolved by showing the driver the card of the hotel I was staying at.

I also agree with the statement about flagging down a vacant cab. Doing this near the DR at night, every once in awhile you'll get some people more than willing to open the cab door for you but I just tell them politely that I'm a big boy and I can open my own door.

I think your best bet is to find an English-speaking driver, preferably one associated with a hotel. Of course, you can search and find on this board many opinions on a variety of drivers.