How are hotel stars categorized in Costa Rica?
Most hotels in Costa Rica have first been "validated" by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute as complying with international standards.
We can distinguish two types of "designation" characterizing hotels:
- The stars
- Visit CST label (Certifiacte of Sustainable Tourism)
To better understand how stars are awarded in Costa Rica, let's take a look at the criteria used to obtain the famous stars in France.
Hotel stars in France
1 star
Room with a minimum surface area of
9m²
Color TV (at least half of rooms equipped)
Breakfast served in room and on request
2 stars
Room with a minimum surface area of
9m²
Hotel reception staff must be able to speak at least one foreign language
Payment by credit card possible
3 stars
Room with a minimum surface area of
13,5m² toilet included
Reception available at least 10h/day
All rooms equipped with color TV and telephone
4 stars
Room
air-conditioned with a minimum surface area of
16m², toilet included
Internet access and international TV channels
5 stars
Room
air-conditioned with a minimum surface area of
24m², toilet included
Certain services such as safe, bathrobe, room service and minibar are essential.
We can see that the main aspect taken into account to pass from one star to another is the size of the room for 2 people.
Hotel stars in Costa Rica
How are they allocated?
This official handbook issued by ICT details all the criteria:
https://www.ict.go.cr/es/documentos-institucionales/legislaci%C3%B3n-de-empresas/manuales/577-manual-de-clasificaci%C3%B3n-hotelera/file.html
Costa Rica takes many criteria into account when awarding a hotel one or more stars:
- Architecture, gardens, green areas 5%
- Public places, lobby 5%
- Rooms 20%
- Bathrooms and sanitary 20%
- Restaurants 5%
- Play areas 5%
- Additional services 7.5%
- Cleaning 15%
- Maintenance 15%
Each category corresponds to a percentage. Depending on the inspection carried out by the Tourism Institute agent, the corresponding number of stars will be awarded.
Let's take the example of a hotel with these ratings
% No. of points Total
- Architecture, Gardens, Green Areas 5% 4 20
- Public places, lobby 5% 4 20
- Rooms 20% 3 60
- Bathrooms and sanitary 20% 3 60
- Restaurants 5% 3 22.5
- Play areas 5% 4 20
- Additional services 5% 4 30
- Cleaning 15% 3 45
- Maintenance 15% 3 45
A total of
322.5.
The corresponding number of stars is therefore 322.5/100= 3.225, i.e.
3 stars
The quality of hotels in Costa Rica is unquestionable, and the awarding of stars to hoteliers is carried out under strict, highly standardized supervision.
Other quality labels complement these requirements, including the official CST label and the Rainforest Alliance. These labels guarantee the quality of hotels and, above all, their commitment to sustainable practices that promote ecotourism.
