Getting a cell phone in Costa Rica can prove to be more of an adventure than the Country itself. Currently in Costa Rica there is one phone company called I.C.E. Thanks to the monopoly I.C.E is very strict about the regulating of cell phones. In order to get a cell phone activated you will need an electric bill to 
prove your residence. This sounds a lot harder than it actually is: if you are renting from someone just ask for a copy of the phone bill, that should be enough. So what is so hard about getting a cell phone?
Well first of all you have to buy a cell phone. Maybe you’re thinking that you will just use the same cell phone you had from your original country of residence. This isn’t a problem. Just make sure that you have the receipt of that purchase. I.C.E. will not activate a phone without receipt of purchase; they do this to prevent the stealing of cell phones. Next you will have to decide what kind of cell phone you want. This may often depend on how much you want to spend and how quickly you want service.
It is important to note that some services that are supported in other countries are not supported in Costa Rica like instant messaging, internet services and certain downloads. If you decide to use a newer brand name phone with a SIM card you may have to wait three months or more to receive service to your number and the cost of purchasing a newer phone can run over two hundred dollars.
If you decide to use a phone that is pre-SIM card you can get service to your number sometimes as quick as the same day you buy the phone. The cost of this type a phone is normally around eighty dollars. There is no online bill pay for your number with I.C.E. All bills must be paid at certified sites which are pretty much everywhere. There are no family plans either or special deals: your cell phone will cost what it costs.
The good news though about cell phone service is that you do not pay for incoming calls. You will only have to pay for outgoing calls and you are provided with sixty minutes free each month. Also text messages cost less than twenty five cents. You are provided with free voice mail which you can access from anywhere in the country. It is important to ask about how you access your voice mail because often you will not be told that you have this feature with your service. You can send international text messages which can sometimes be a lot cheaper and easier than placing an international call. There may be more competition in the tele-communications field coming soon, but for right now I.C.E. is the national provider and their service in general is very reliable.
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