Costa Rica will open its borders to residents from six US states in September

Costa Rica will reopen its borders to tourists from select US states from September, the government said on Wednesday.

Tourists from New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine and Connecticut will be permitted to enter from September and must present their driver's licence as proof of residence. "We have included the license-plate requirement to minimize the likelihood that someone from a non-authorized state be allowed to enter,” tourism minister Gustavo Segura said. "We are minimizing our epidemiological risk."

Travelers from the permitted states will not be required to quarantine upon arrival. However, under enhanced border controls travelers must present a negative PCR COVID-19 test will be mandatory in the 48 hours before the trip. When visitors arrive, they will need to complete an online health form and purchase travel insurance that covers accommodation in case of quarantine and medical expenses.

Costa Rica began a staggered reopening of its tourism industry on August 1 with travelers from countries that have "controlled the spread of the coronavirus" allowed to enter, which includes visitors from Canada, New Zealand, Japan, the UK, and countries within the EU among others. The US, which accounted for 45% of all international visitors to Costa Rica last year, was not initially included in the list.

La Fortuna waterfall, Costa Rica ©Pavel Tvrdy/Shutterstock

But now as the Central American country begins to throw its doors open a little wider, the Costa Rica Tourism Board says that it expects about four flights a week from New York City airports, including John F. Kennedy, Newark and La Guardia. "In these moments, [New York] is one of the states with best control of the pandemic," Segura confirmed.

Segura said Costa Rica is monitoring the coronavirus situation in Colorado, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania, and that residents of those states may soon be allowed to visit."We are taking very gradual and carefully analyzed steps in the direction of the revitalization of tourism that is very necessary for the protection of the social progress that Costa Rica has achieved through this industry," he added.