Friday 12 November 2010

Costa Rica Ranked not so good on "ease of doing business

A short summary of the rankings . . .
116th ease of starting a business here aprox wait 60 days
131th getting a building permit take 23 procedures and 191 days!
167th in protecting it's investors!!!
Singapore, Hong Kong, New Zealand, U.K., Denmark and Canada were the top 7

72nd place was panama
117th place nicaragua

So the survey concludes Costa Rica can be a bit of a challenge to do business in.

We have no idea how they came up with the numbers so we decided to take a shot at counting a small part of the process of getting a building permit.  The part is the one where you need to go and retrieve your building map from the "registro" (the place that keeps track of buildings, titles etc) so you can get a permit for the map alteration from the "muni" (the municipality).

I'm pretty sure a building permit doesn't take 23 tramites - it either takes more or less. We started trying to do one about 3 weeks ago (see my other posting today) and still haven't really nailed everything down for the APPLICATION . . . we were told this was a minor permit so it would be a fast track and take a week to get a PERMIT and practically speaking 4 weeks later we are no closer to getting it done.


You need to temper that bit of data with another factoid . . . we are not that interested in getting it done either so it really is of no bother.

As far as counting procedures, JUST the activity at the registro took us the following:

1) Meet the gatekeeper/triage desk who sends EVERYONE to the Stamp line.
2) Go to stamp line, pay for stamps. We needed 6.
3) Observe signs all over registro "No More then 5 Items Will Be Processed" and choose to ignore signs
4) Go to line for the "numero de finca" computer and get your number for the stamp forms acquired in Item 2.
5) Go back to Triage Desk to see how to fill in the Stamp forms (they call them Stamps but they are really forms which is why we had a hard time filling in a "stamp").
6) Get in the really long line to get your maps.

If you send 2 people to the registro you can cut the time in 1/2 by strategically putting one person in the really long line while the other does the rest.

If you send 3 people for the minor fast track permit map acquisition you could cut the time by maybe another 10% because the woman at the numero de finca computer is pretty sharp. Not much gain in this instance but see below if you are unfortunate enough to have 6 items.

If you need 5 stamps and send 2 or 3 people you will be in good shape if you use the Rohrmoser office but no amount of people can crack the Alajuela line.

I'm pretty sure the 5 stamp limit was to avoid people standing in line too long and yelling at citizens with too many tramites. The problem is a tramite in this case has a fixed number - so if you need 6 like we did you have 3 choices:

1) ignore the HUGE signs saying don't do it,
2) send a second person into line (now you need 3 people to do the registro for optimal timing or 4 for fastest possible) or
3) once you have finished the long line and got 5 done go back to the back of the line for the 1 you couldn't get done.

Berni
Observer of Tramites

Sunday 15 August 2010

Costa Rica Musings - Living with Leafcutter Ants

FROM THE GARDEN:
Around 11am I spotted a very fine thing . . . a trail of leaf cutters decimating a weed patch for the first time ever . . . dandelions, clovers and such were literally racing back to a new leaf cutter colony 20 meters away . . . I noted: "What an unusually nice change in behavior. Come look at this!"

I also observed the trait seen in previous leaf cutter colonies that, in order to protect the bigger colony from inadvertent mass destruction, they usually only bring one type of plant material down each hole in the colony. Mangos go down that hole, the herb garden goes down another hole and so on and then if they make a mistake with some poisonous tree only a small part of the colony gets killed.

Oh happiness! This lot had discovered weeds! For newbies, it should be noted there are very few weeds in Costa Rica and even the weeds sometimes have very nice pink flowers, so it's hard to be selective.

But nonetheless, it would be every gardeners joy to find an aberrant leaf cutter strain with a penchant for weeds.

2 hours later, not REALLY believing my luck I go back and check on them. Huh! They had diversified on their way back from the weed patch and now were decimating a lovely ginger plant (the greenery not the ginger) and were making inroads on a host of NEW stuff on their way back to ground zero.

I am reassured that all optimism with regards to leaf cutters is entirely misplaced (well I suppose they were here first).

Costa Rica Musings - Statistically Speaking

ZORRO COUNT
Until last week I was pretty certain that there were only 4 or 5 animals called Zorros in Costa Rica. A knowledgeable local however last week assured me here were 8 such animals. When questioned closely on the subject as to what they were exactly he calmly said "Zorros".

VOLCANO COUNT
Our local online newspaper last year reported that the 200th volcano had just been discovered in Costa Rica.  This led me to many humorous conversations with guests about "how did they miss it all that time" and such.  Then a local guide we work with was telling a guest there were only 162.  When I argued the fact that a gringo paper couldn't be wrong about something so absolute as 40 or so missing volcanoes, he assured me this was from his geologist professor and he could NOT be wrong about such matters but he would check.  Sure enough the number 162 came back.  If you look on Google you'll find any number of numbers . . . one of my faves' is this Polish web site (an expert on Costa Rica): Kosta Ryka (from a Polish perspective)

He claims the number is 112.

SAN RAFAELS
There are 47 San Rafaels in Costa Rica.
I was going to start a list but . . .
San Rafael
San Rafael
San Rafael . . .

MISTAKES HAPPEN

From the Guardian (an apology):
"In our profile of Daniel Dennett (pages 20 to 23, Review, April 17), we said he was born in Beirut. In fact, he was born in Boston. His father died in 1947, not 1948. He married in 1962, not 1963. The seminar at which Stephen Jay Gould was rigorously questioned by Dennett's students was Dennett's seminar at Tufts, not Gould's at Harvard. Dennett wrote Darwin's Dangerous Idea before, not after, Gould called him a "Darwinian fundamentalist".  Only one chapter in the book, not four, is devoted to taking issue with Gould.  The list of Dennett's books omitted Elbow Room, 1984, and The Intentional Stance, 1987. The marble sculpture, recollected by a friend, that Dennett was working on in 1963 was not a mother and child. It was a man reading a book."

COSTA RICAN MUSINGS - Right up there


RIGHT UP THERE and among my favorite headlines from our on-line newspaper AM Costa Rica:

"San José-Limón highway will not be closed this morning"

COSTA RICAN MUSINGS - On Leaks

ON LEAKS #1.

Our first big leak.

The rainy season, or as it is called locally "the temporada baja"  or if you are feeling grumpy today just the "temporada", starts in April and goes through mid November. It rains a lot in May and early June (a few hours every day) and again in September and October. July and August can be a mini high season with just a little rain in the afternoons.

In Costa Rica nearly everything leaks.

When we first got here a guest with a nice sense of humor came up to the Casa. We had a few hours earlier let them in and showed them to their Casita at the bottom of our garden - the Mariposa. A torrential rainstorm had hit for the last hour and had just stopped.

He was grinning from ear to ear and asking for some help with mops. "The water came through the front door," he said.

"Oh dear, we'll be right down."

"Well that's the bad news, the good news is it came in the front door and went right out the back like a river."

Since then we have remodeled the Mariposa and the garden in front of it so this no longer happens. As extra security we moved the front door to the side :-)

ON LEAKS #2.

"Don't leave the remote there."
"Why not?"
"That's where it leaked yesterday."
"That's why I put it there."
"Huh?"
"We fixed the roof again today."
"How do you know it won't leak there exactly?"
"It always leaks somewhere else when we do that."
"Not necessarily."
"You wait."

post script: the really big leak is now two smaller leaks either side of the remote control

ON LEAKS #3
Pondering plumbing from an entirely new perspective and the continued tales from the Temporada Baja:

I ask, "Freddy what ya doin?"

(ASIDE: Freddy is the new electrician and related to 2 of our staff and hence a protected species and tasked with sealing the rather wet junction boxes in the garden)

He says, "Fixing the garden lights."
"It's taking a long time." I note.
"Yes, the electrical conduit is full of water."
"Is that bad?"

Freddy shrugs.
"What will you do next?"
"I'll seal the box onto the conduit since you don't want me digging up more of the garden."
"Is that OK?"
Freddy shrugs and continues noodling 7 inches underground.
"OK. Hmmmm."
And I head up the hill pondering a new enlightenment.

Today I realize . . .the only thing that does not leak in our house is the electrical conduit.

Later that day. I walk back down the garden.

"Freddy, you know about that thing in the gulf where everything including the ocean floor leaks and people say that is normal?"
"No."
"Well they are drilling a hole a mile deep into a pipe a few inches wide."
"Oh."
"I wonder about such precision with all the engineering needed to cause a trillion gallons of oil to leak out, cracks in the floor and how do you do that and such. I wonder about such things."
"OK."
"Well we have an electrical conduit full of water, you see."
"Yes, I know, I just sealed it."
"What if we took a tip from the experts and we dug a hole down the hill a bit, find the conduit and make a new leak?"
"OK."

COSTA RICAN MUSINGS - Addresses, Mail or lack of

ON THE COSTA RICAN CORREO (POSTAL SERVICE).
A person considering doing business in Costa Rica wondered about using the local mail to ship stuff.  This is a subject of much debate as Costa Rica has few street names, very few street signs and no real addresses. 

If you ask a Tico when was the last  time they sent a letter, the odds on answer is "never".
Yes we do have a post office in big towns like Alajuela and they even have commemorative stamps though, who these get sent to, is a mystery.  The postal service here must have been modeled on one from a country that has actual addresses however it requires very few personnel and in a town like ours of many thousands (perhaps 70,000 - nobody really knows) we have just 2 people doing deliveries.

So many folks reaction to that is either disbelief or plain ole dumbfoundedness. 
"You mean you have no junk mail!?"
"Yup!"
What happens if you forget to pay your phone bill?"
"Um, well, it's one of the commonest reasons you don't get a phone answered here."
"Why?"
"You forgot to go down to the phone company (we only have one) and pay the bill."
"Then what?"
"The phone starts working again."
"Wouldn't it be easier for them to mail you a bill?"
"Heck no, where would they mail it to?"

This is why about one day a month you will find us scurrying around our town of Alajuela  - to ICE to pay the phone bill, the the municipality to pay the utilities and taxes, to the CAJA (health service) to pay the workers comp and insurance and to the bank to pay the rest.

Yes we do have a PO Box but most people in our town do not.  Yes occasionally someone will mail something (about the only thing now is my newsletter from PAII, the Professional Association of Innkeepers) to the hotel in Alajuela.  I will find it a day or two later among front entrance jungle, marvel at the process that got it here and scurry off to read about Innkeepers in the real world we left.
One local thought or thinks their mail they get from the US is opened from time to time.

Which reminded me of a favorite bit in a book:

"Sharing the hospital room with Yossarian are numerous others, including his friend Captain Dunbar, who has also fabricated an illness, and a man wrapped entirely in gauze and plaster. The patients, all of whom are officers and most of whom it seems are not truly ill, spend their time censoring the letters of enlisted men. Yossarian takes particular pleasure in censoring the letters in bizarre and creative ways; in one instance, he eliminates all words except "a", "an", and "the," producing what he terms "a message far more universal." Because all officers are required to sign their names at the bottom of the letters they censor, Yossarian signs his "Washington Irving."

At this point the reader is first introduced to the term "Catch-22." Yossarian uses the phrase to describe the requirement that officers sign their names at the bottom of each letter. The author doesn't explain what Catch-22 means exactly; but he does hint that it reflects a bizarre or seemingly contradictory situation.

The only person left in the ward is an under-cover C.I.D. man sent to investigate the mysterious "Washington Irving." He has caught cold and is actually sick. "

Now what's really stupid is that I borrowed this synopsis of a favorite book from "jiffynotes" designed for people who don't want to read (books).
You see how this all comes around to our beloved post office? They recently made little slogan stickers for each of the empty booths at the Alajuela post office about their excellent service. Pause for some retrospection.

When there are two guys in the office, they usually inhabit the same booth . . . I wonder about such things but say nothing. Overall, if I am not using their services, I rate them #1. And am a big fan of the commemorative stamps.

Every day the employees wake up thankful we have no army or they'd be required to deal with actual addresses. Um what else did you need to know about the postal system?
Here's a bit of trivia in a conversation the US Postal Service might have had a couple of years back when  they were looking for ways to save money (reader note: M-Bags were a fabulous system used to distribute books from countries with too many of them to countries like Costa Rica with almost none):

"We just got a call from the head of the Costa Rican Postal Service."
"About what?  I didn't know they had one?"
"The size of the M-Bags."
"What about them?"
"They complained they're too big."
"Everyone else takes em, even Lichtenstein and Kirjikstanabad!"
"Well they use scooters in CR."
"They do?"
"Ya one guy drives and the other hangs on the back holding the M-Bag."
"OK we'll just abolish the M-Bag."
"Ya, that'll work."

p.s. My Mother Once Sent me some Mail, I promptly asked her to Stop Doing That.

Costa Rican Musings - Crime Rate Plummets and Residency Renewal

From time to time we observe that things just work a little differently here.  This blog post is for those with an interest in some such diferences.
CRIME RATE PLUMMETS DURING FOOTBALL GAMES.
When interviewed from his hammock at the northern Alajuela Fuerza Publica outpost, the captain blamed it on "the world cup".

Noting dozily for the record and translated badly by google, "I hear the phenom is hitting police stations throughout centro america." "Wake me up when it's over."
JAPANESE DRIVERS LICENSE and residency RENEWAL.
Our local Costa Rican message board has many cases of inadvertent humor.  This wonderful web page covers the drivers license renewal process here in lovely detail and pictures . . . the web page is in English and "Japonese" for the 3 Japanese residents of CR. "Drivers License Renewal for Japonse Residents"

The Tanaka family also has fun with their residency renewal process here:  "Renewing a Cedula of Residence".  This process was not for the faint of heart and starts ""Yo era el No. 201.  Era un dia terrible."

Wednesday 26 May 2010

a triathalon in Costa Rica Feb 2011, register soon

The event is next year in February 2011 - details below.
From the race web site: "REV3 Costa Rica will take place in the Central Pacific region of Guanacaste. 

You will witness amazing beauty, wildlife, and terrific weather as you race.  REV3 Costa Rica will offer a series of triathlons for kids aged 9-13, Sprint Rev,  Olympic Rev, and a Half Rev.  In addition to some great racing, there will be a ton of fun things to do for the entire family.

RACE DATE: FEBRUARY 19-20, 2011
  • Kids Rev: Saturday, February 19th
  • Sprint Rev: Saturday, February 19th
  • Olympic Rev: Saturday, February 19th
  • Half Rev: Sunday, February 20th"

 Like last year the Pura Vida Hotel is happy to be the recommended hotel for arrivals and if you need any other ideas before or after the event feel free to contact the triathalon organizers here 
or contact us at the Pura Vida Hotel for trip ideas to extend your travel in our beautiful country.

Thursday 20 May 2010

“SO YOU WANNA BE A COSTA RICAN INNKEEPER?"

AN OCCASIONAL SEMINAR
It is now over seven years since we made the fateful (yet delightful) decision to run an Inn in paradise, Costa Rica - our Pura Vida Hotel.  Our only regret was “why didn’t we do it sooner?”   So this article and the 1 day seminar it relates to are intended to help the would-be Costa Rican Innkeeper get started on their dream.
The following is a summary of a seminar I now give periodically to people who have a specific interest in moving to Costa Rica AND who are considering opening a B&B or Inn but are not sure what they may face making it work in Costa Rica.

My article is guided by 3 key vantage points:
  • our experience running an Inn in Costa Rica,
  • time spent starting and running the Costa Rica Innkeepers Association and
  • the excellent book “So you want to be an Innkeeper” by Davies, Hardy, Bell and Brown as well as input from PAII – the Professional Association of Innkeepers InternationalDo not even consider running an Inn without this book and contacting PAII or some of the members.
SO YOU WANNA BE A COSTA RICAN INNKEEPER?"
“The work never seems to be done, you are plagued by phone interruptions, sporadic eating patterns, late night arrivals, a water heater that burns out when the Inn is full, the travel writer who arrives unannounced when the septic tank is being pumped”  from “So You Want To Be An Innkeeper” .
So why would ANYONE want to do it AND move to Costa Rica and collide head on with a different culture in a language you don’t understand???

There are so many questions that perplex an aspiring Innkeeper (or an old hand moving to Costa Rica).  PAII has a good list and we had many specially for the local environment:
  • What government agencies do I need to get started?
  • How can I find a manager/assistant innkeeper?
  • I keep getting bills from this international guidebook. Do I need to pay? (nope, ignore them)
  • Where/how should I be marketing on the Internet? 
  • What should I pay my staff?
  • A staff member is stealing from me, what do I do? What is the process to fire an employee?
  • We are doing a new brochure. What is it for?
  • Should I add a dinner service?
  • Should I work with travel agencies?
  • Do I need ICT? (national tourism board)
  • How do I find a good plumber? (there are none, it's better if your Inn is 1 story).
These are just a few questions that baffle some new Innkeepers anywhere on the planet.  I will try my best in this essay to separate out the specific questions and issues that a budding Innkeeper in Costa Rica is going to face
LOOKING FOR THE INNKEEPER, LOOKING FOR THE INN
Who makes a good Innkeeper?  We have met 100’s of Innkeepers from 100’s of previous careers and there is no single answer but there are characteristics that you can bring to the table that will be critical to your success in this “business”.

For a multitude of laughs you must start by reading Herman Wouk’s hilarious tale of Innkeeping in the Caribbean – “Don’t Stop the Carnival”.   From the chapter titled “The Quake”:

“ . . . On his first week of Caribbean hotel-keeping, Norman Paperman had netted thirty seven dollars and forty cents.  There were reasons for this shocking figure to be sure.  The payroll was large: cooks, maids, waitresses, steel band, and gardener: none of them were paid much but it added up to a lot.  There had been the terrible water purchase.  Money had to be set aside for the bank; and this he would have to do for some 300 weeks to pay off the loan and the notes. The revenue from the new units was supposed to balance off this drain, but they remained unbuilt.  The game room stood open to wind, moon, rain and sun, undisturbed by human hands (for weeks).  Bids to complete the job had come in.  The range of prices was imbecile.  The low bid was $1500 the high was $21,000.  Collectively the (local) contractors seemed to have as much reliability as a flock of migrant birds, and little more knowledge of construction.”
It is important to understand that Herman Wouk’s character runs into FAR fewer problems than you will.   The first and most important thing is to recognize is that this new career of yours CAN be a 24 hour shift and it is SO much easier to handle if you have a partner.  We know of many single Innkeepers but I would suggest they have some very very hard days they don’t want to talk about.
The second thing you need will be a high degree of patience and tolerance combined with the ability to enjoy interacting with strangers at 5pm AND 5am.  If this is a new move to Costa Rica, the first year will leave your patience wearing thin if all you want to do is sit on a beach and drink Mai Tais.  If you are an Innkeeper AND you don’t speak Spanish your patience will be strained to the limit.  In fact don’t even bother if one of the couple does not have some language skill!
If you think you can make it past those speed bumps, it is time to consider researching the market and pondering locations for your B&B.  This takes some travel around the country – when we moved I had already been here maybe 8 times and had a good sense of coastal vs central valley vs forest issues.  I understood something about city vs country issues and in particular the challenges of access to infrastructure in a developing country.  
For example healthcare is available everywhere at very low cost but the village clinic in the Zona Sur is no place for complicated issues.

One issue many miss is the absolute need to understand your community.  I’d ask the question “where is grandma?”  If the community you are thinking of moving to has no social fabric, has no generations of individuals living in the neighborhood you may be in for a rough time.  Where is grandma?  In some areas an active civic or business association such as exists in some beach towns is critical for the future of that community (do you really want a 10 story condo to dwarf your cute little Inn in 5 years?).  

The hotel lobby on arrival: 
 and today:
Once you have found the ideal location and a great Inn for sale, can you rent it or run it for a few months for the existing owner?  This would be ideal!  Better can you run the Inn for a month or two during Semana Santa or Christmas as a renter when the strangest things happen in some villages?
 
BED AND BREAKFAST OR AN INN?
This big question boils down to decisions you can make about doing dinner and a 6am to 11pm operation.  And another big factor is that Inn management is quite different from 1 to 3 rooms, from 1 to 10 rooms and from 10 to 30 rooms. 
As we both like to eat (and cook) we decided to call ourselves an Inn and do a nice dinner with advance reservations.  For us that is both a lifestyle issue, a successful revenue generator and a way to gain a reputation for our Inn beyond the modest concrete and bedding of the lodging we market to guests. 

But what is An Inn?  I compiled the following definitions from “So you want to be an Innkeeper” and various sources and modified them for the reality in Costa Rica.

HOMESTAY, HOST HOME
This type of establishment is an owner-occupied private home where the business of paying guests is secondary to its use as a private residence. Hosts are primarily interested in meeting new people while continuing their present employment or retirement. These are usually between 1-3 rooms.  Breakfast is the only meal served.  These are often associated with language schools in Costa Rica

B&B, BED AND BREAKFAST INN
Formerly a single family dwelling usually in the 4-5-room range but may be larger, this owner-occupied establishment is both a home and lodging. This establishment advertises publicly and posts a sign. Breakfast is the only meal served and only to overnight guests. The often-bigger B&B Inn may host events such as weddings, small business meetings, etc. Room numbers of the B&B Inn range from 4-20.  

LODGE 
A property or building with individual rooms with private and/or shared baths. A central meeting area is available for lectures or gatherings. Three meals are included or there is a restaurant on/near the premises.  May also include Cottages or Cabins, usually in a rustic/rural setting and found throughout jungle areas of Costa Rica – you’ll know it when they describe the accommodations as “rustic”. 

INN 
The Inn offers overnight lodging and meals, the owner is actively involved in daily operations, usually living on site. These establishments are, in fact, B&B Inns, which serve at least one meal in addition to breakfast, and operate as "restaurants" as well as overnight lodging accommodations. A country inn with a full-service restaurant serves these additional meals to the general public. The number of rooms tends to range from 6 to 30.
        ACQUIRING AN INN
        This question demands more than we have space for in a short essay.  I advise reading all the books in the section called “Moving Here” books on our web site.
        You will have legal, setup, insurance and other concerns and our advice is simply to find a damn good lawyer.  We went through 4 (count em 4) in our first week here.  We ran into lots of unexpected issues in the process such as previous owner terminates all employees and all are rehired on take possession day 1.  Did we mention the fun and games with Costa Rican banks?  Did you know there are no escrow services here?  How about no addresses and no mail per se?

        The details are beyond the scope of this essay so sign up for a seminar (best to do that with a list of YOUR questions).
        THE BUSINESS PLAN
        A business plan is a vital step in any business but few Innkeepers do one? I think that is NUTS!   On request I can provide an outline of the plan we used.  As my background includes a lot of marketing, I do emphasize the marketing aspects of this business.  It is MUCH harder to build it and hope guests will come!  Many Innkeepers sit there bemoaning their competition when in fact they are their worst competition.  The business plan needs to address both what you want to do and how to make that happen as well as what you don’t want to do (to avoid wasting valuable time on dead issues you already decided against).  I also urge you to spend time with your staff on the outline of the plan so everyone is in some degree of sync as you get started.
        EARLY INNKEEPER ISSUES
        What do you want your Inn to "say" to guests.  This is the biggest question you must ask.  What is "THE BIG IDEA” - “family”, “romantic getaway (adult)”, “backpacker/budget”, “jungle Lodge”, “Holiday Inn”?  Once you can answer that question you can start writing your web site text, your brochure and answer guests emails in such a way that the right person finds you AND enjoys the experience.  This “theme” of guest type must permeate every aspect of the hotel and how you market it.
        Now you must plan your next 3 years.  We chose an “internal goal” called “Quality over time”.  We made a 1 year and 3 year development plan and budget to try to improve the quality of EVERYTHING over time.  We did not have capital so we could not just knock down buildings or make new ones.  We had to remodel and we have been doing that every day since.

        Costa Rica has a very specific high season vs green season.  Some Innkeepers can go close to bankrupt in their first green season as they sit EMPTY September and October paying bills they hadn’t planned for.  You need to market for the green season 6 months or better a year ahead not IN September.  One adage a fellow Innkeeper likes to say is simply “Think Green Season and the rest of the year takes care of itself!”.

        Contracting and construction tales – we have SO many.  No advice can prepare you for the challenges and only patience and careful management will help.  Everything that can go wrong did.  As an example we went through 6 electricians before we found a good one.  Lately we got rid of him too!
        What about public spaces, disabled accommodations and can you do a green hotel? What things can you take a lead role in or be proactive in?  So many issues in the beginning!  You can get to them over time, you CANNOT get to guest satisfaction over time!

        Food & beverage service is a big issue for an Innkeeper yet some think of it as a mere afterthought.  There are breakfast issues and dinner concerns.   
        We got lucky for example when an Innkeeper friend dropped by early in our Innkeeping career and declared categorically “your breakfast is crap”.  Guests were far too polite to tell us that our reiteration of the former owner’s breakfast service was no good.  We quickly changed EVERYTHING and now get rave reviews for presentation, quality, and breakfast cakes and so on.

        Do you have what it takes to do dinner service?  This can be a grueling experience or a wonderful revenue generator.  It cannot be done if you are to be a single Innkeeper, it should not be done if one of the Innkeepers is not a great cook.   See “Marketing the Inn” below.
        About those amenities - what makes the difference in "This Costa Rican Inn”?  Amenities add value and increase revenue for a usually non capital investment.  So you need to look at the cost vs return of a phone, a TV, a new shower head, a luggage rack, a reading light, coffee in room, refrigerator, landscaping, secure parking and more.  If you add a refrigerator in the room can you add $5 to the room rate?  You can’t imagine the compliments our reading lights over the beds have received.
        We just spent thousands of $$$ remodeling our Mariposa Casita.  It will be our best yet and at a certain occupancy level we are confident in, will pay back in about 1 year.  There are no investments that you make that pay back in a year that you should not do!  A simple decision.

        New Innkeepers are faced with a big problem in Costa Rica called “Suppliers”.  For a year we looked for soap dispenser for showers – we are not in Kansas anymore!  You need to think as local as possible for supplies and support but it does not always work – we have friends now at two local hotels so we call them periodically to shoot the breeze or exchange ideas or suppliers.  Same thing for local hiring – 100% of our staff are local referrals.
        Many newbies to Costa Rica think they have some credit for their previous work or previous good credit.  Most that arrive here are however like newborns and that’s all the credit you get at Banco Nacional.  Heavy credit does not work in Costa Rica.  And it is useless with a small business like an Inn.  We do NOT advise taking on any credit load here.  We thought it is far better to start small and grow over time.  But your circumstances will be yours alone.


        MARKETING THE INN
        Who is your market?  Is it the general public or travel agents?  Travel agents usually do not work well for small Inns with specific amenities and limited resources. 

        How can you focus by region e.g. North America or “German speakers” or better still even narrower such as “teachers with groups of students from the west coast”?

        What type of guest do you want – middle aged well off couples, backpackers, Innkeepers, ornithologists, families, weddings?  Everything you do MUST now focus on one or two guest types.  You cannot be all things to all people and your Inn ratings will suffer if you try.
        What about occupancy?  10%, 30%, 50% any one can be success or failure - what is occupancy?  You start with the premise that an empty room is dead inventory and work up from there.  In our seminar we answer questions on how to optimize your occupancy without messing your rates up and undercutting yourself. 

        What about setting rates?  What are the rates in the area (visit as many small similar hotels as you can now and always).  What are the competitive issues e.g. “airport shuttle included!”. 
        What about the average revenue per room?  It is far cheaper to market extras than to build a new room but what can you sell that YOUR kinds of guests have a real NEED for?   In the seminar we examine % of closes to inquiries - if 50% today, what moves it to 60% in a month, revenue per close, length of stay, sales of tours, things the guest can do in your area, guest promotions etc and various things to increase your room occupancy, number of days and revenue per room.

        What about a name/a logo/a brand?  Gotta do it and if guests can remember you it will be easier to get your referrals coming in in the future.  Don’t use a name nobody can pronounce or is too long – your name MUST be the same as your URL.  This is why the Pura Vida Hotel has a URL of PuraVidaHotel.com!
        What about a brochure?  Some think of it as an afterthought but think of new things you can do with a brochure, how it should be designed for best effect, where and how it will be displayed etc.  Our brochure design for example has only one purpose - "to find people who need a place to stay on their last night."

        What about a Web site?  We recommend someone who has done a bunch of CR Innkeeper web sites (although we made our own web site).  You should get familiar with web editor once your initial design is done and be committed to building out content over time.  Web marketing can cost you a bundle but there are a few things you can do yourself at minimal to no cost – we examine these in the seminar.  You must be in charge of and be able to develop your own content (regularly).

        How do you get the word out?  Most people think of travel agents first – we say maybe/maybe not!  Their commissions are high and, in the beginning, you may be willing to give up some control and some revenue to get occupancy and ratings?  What about tour operators?  They do not work for a small Inn, sorry.  Big winners are guide books and travel forums as well as sites such as TripAdvisor.com.  At our seminar we can go over the many ways to use these sites and tools to help market your Inn
        At the seminar we will discuss the 4 best marketing ideas in Costa Rica (from Pura Vida Hotel - everyone else's will be different!).  By best we mean those that meet two criteria – an increase in bookings and an improvement in perception of the hotel and its services from 4000 miles away.

        THE GUEST EXPERIENCE
        This is what an Inn is really all about and you need to work EVERY detail. 
        The Pre – Arrival for example needs to weed out smokers and solve transportation questions before they are even asked if possible.  I think of it as the mental taste buds needing some preparation so that the right guest experience happens almost effortlessly (at least that’s what the guest should experience).   And your “Welcome” at 6am or at midnight – must always be “welcome”.

        The Room must always ready even if you have no reservation – fortunately we live in a country of perpetual fresh flowers.  How do you say "yes" to guests every request?  Our staff understands and has been trained that YES is the right response (the occasional havoc this causes far outweighs guest attitude to the alternative response). 
        You need to think of every interaction – for example the simple idea that staff (who meet guests) need to introduce themselves and say hi in whatever language they are comfortable with.  Even the exit needs to be thought of including how to ensure feedback & how you or your staff responds.

        You will meet our staff at the seminar and feel free to ask them for their perspective on what the guest experience should be at Pura Vida. Hotel.

        INN OPERATIONS
        This is a huge topic so, for this introduction, I’m just going to include some of the elements we deal with that make up the smooth running of our Inn.  Each Inn will have some additional ones and we can cover them in a seminar:
        • Make a list of what you LIKE to do and hope your partner can do the rest  - your partner needs to make up for all your defects and you theirs
        • Innkeeping can be a 24 hour shift (only 16 hours if no restaurant) - singles need a great manager on site
        • Staffing determines success – issues include hiring, costs, the Caja (social welfare/healthcare system),  job descriptions.  Hire the best you can afford, do not skimp on staffing but take action when they fail to perform.  Wages, 6 month raises, 13th month pay, vacations, holidays etc – we will go over hiring and development practices at the seminar.
        • Security and strategies on how to avoid internal and external losses.  The bigger the property, the more accessible the property, the more things will disappear.  Testing your security from inside and from outside.  The balance of a public space and Fort Knox
        • Reservations - examples of good and bad reservations tools.  Email is vital - samples of what we use at Pura Vida Hotel.  A good reservations log is essential as electricity is not a given in CR
        • What to do when you are not there – how to run on 1/2 speed not 0 speed
        • and other stuff like backup systems,  overflow & working with local Hotels, build relationships in the neighborhood,  the bill - cash, credit cards, travelers checks, taxes etc
        A great resource for newbies and oldies alike are the 5000 plus members of this forum: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CostaRicaLiving - a place to go with any question about Costa Rica.

        YOUR VILLAGE AND YOU
        There are two good reasons for community involvement (probably more).  You will decide what yours are.  Ours include the simple idea that working with our local public school is likely to have more positive effects on our future neighborhood than any one thing we can do.  The other is that when the weird occurs, you’ll need to be one with your community. 
        How can you get involved - paint a schoolroom, assist your local police car, show up at fund raisers, pay the little kids for whatever it is they are selling (then donate the ticket), install trash bins or bus shelters, participate in a neighborhood watch etc.  In our case we are active at our local public school and have begged and cajoled every guest who comes here to donate books to the school library – many 1000's of books now.
        Most Innkeepers we know are active in their community in some way unique to them or their skills or the needs of the neighborhood.

        TO CONCLUDE
        This is not the easiest of jobs to do in a tropical country or anywhere else.  It is harder in a country that is less developed and in areas where suppliers and contractors are thin to non-existent such as the Osa peninsular in the southern zone of Costa Rica.  Due to such challenges, we think it is critical to maintain the owner’s health and sanity.  To conclude here are things we like to do as well as some tips from other Innkeepers:
        • balance work and play - block a day a week or run low for a few days (take a break!)
        • take exercise and have an outside hobby or passion (maybe something that indirectly assists the Inn e.g. photography, cooking, underwater hockey)
        • travel to other hotels for their ideas (take another break!  We try to do one of these each month.)
        • feel good about hospitality - or you will go nuts or be driven to drink or both
        • run a professional operation (less things to go wrong, build process that stands alone so you can take yet another break!)
        There are many good days . . . from Herman Wouk’s “Don’t Stop the Carnival” again:

        “The cistern was repaired.  The dance terrace was tiled over and the railing was repaired.  The pump was working.  There was plenty of water, and electricity was restored in all rooms.  The maids were back on the job.  The lobby was straightened up, shining and clean.  All this was the doing of Hippolyte Lamartine and his strange crew.”



        The hotel Casa 7 years ago and today:

        A FEW MORE INNKEEPER SECRETS
         . . . will be included in  your seminar or just come visit and chat about the joys of tropical Innkeeping with any of us who took the plunge here in Costa Rica.  And don’t forget to take a break every now and again and explore this wonderful country we now call home (and work).