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You are living in Costa Rica and need a new mailing address, which seems like a simple task. It can be a very simple task, depending on how easy you want to make it yourself.
When ordering online, you’ll find that the space for the address is very small. Some mailing addresses here will take up three or more lines since we don’t have normal street names and house numbers.
So it’s easier to understand what I’m saying, my own official home address is as follows: 300 norte, 25 este de Centro Comercial Paco, Primera casa mano izquierda con tapia blanca, San Rafael de Escazu. And I can assure you that my mailing address is easier than many. When I need to mail something, it must be sent to PO Box 287, 1250 Escazu, Costa Rica.
When I pay for something online, though, the system won’t allow me to fill out my PO box, and my street address won’t fit in the order form. So I invented my own mailing address: Multiplaza 1, Escazu.
The reason? It’s short, concise, and one I will never forget, even if it’s not my own, and it will always fit in the form. And who is ever going to figure anyway? Multiplaza is one of those places where my wife likes to spend her spare time; it is a shopping mall; I assure you I will never, ever forget what Multiplaza is all about. Companies in other countries won’t understand we don’t have street addresses and house numbers, so why even bother trying to explain? In Costa Rica Rica, we are used to MacGyvers, and this is one. Why bother doing it the difficult way if it can be done the easy way.
Do you know which mailing address to use when paying for something online? Keep it easy for yourself; just use something you like and that you will remember.
Do you like burgers? Use MacDonalds square #1.
Do you like snorkeling? Use Coral street 1.
Do you like fashion? Use Fashion Road 1.
I’m sure you get it.
Now, DO NOT use this mailing address if you’re planning to mail something to that address here because the poor mailman will spend the rest of his life looking for Fashion Road 1. Getting a mailbox in front of your house will not work; I’m pretty sure your mail will disappear from your mailbox all the time. I had to ask our newspaper boy to throw the newspaper over the gate because it kept disappearing on me. Of course, you better make sure you get it before it starts raining unless you love to read a soaked wet newspaper.
Go to the local post office (Government owned) in the city you plan to be living in Costa Rica and get yourself a post office box or P.O. box called an Apartado Postal in Spanish. The mailman will only deliver to your house if you live downtown. Check what your postcode is here, Escazu is 1250.
You can also use one of the private mailing companies available in Costa Rica, like Mailboxes Etc., Jet box, and Aerocasillas where they give you a Miami mailbox, and they will deliver to you a couple of times per week. Some charge by the month, others only when you have mail; check it out before you commit. Those private mailing companies deliver a lot quicker than the Costa Rican Post Office, and your merchandise has a much better chance of arriving.
