Proficiency in the English language, tourist ethics, knowledge of the country’s legal framework, training in history, and more than two” years of service as a “street officer”, are part of the requirements that must be fulfilled by the officers of the Tourist Police.
To date, this division of the Public Force has a total of 300 officers specialized in tourism, distributed in 17 sites in the national territory. They are the staff with the best training to protect international and local tourists.
It is estimated that, just last year, three million tourists visited the country. The Director of the Tourist Police, Fulvio Hernández, acknowledged that it would be necessary that all national police (13,500 officers) specializes in tourism to be able to cope with the amount of tourist.
The director of the National Chamber of Tourism (CANATUR), Shirley Calvo, explained it is necessary to recognize that we are in the middle of a wave of violence. However, she highlighted the joint actions by businessmen, government authorities, and police authorities.
According to CANATUR, tourism generates four billion colones in foreign currency annually and represents 27% of the workforce, so in Congress they ask for the best conditions for the sector.
Some of the police tourist venues are located in Guanacaste, Central Pacific, Ballena Bay, South Caribbean, Cartago, Poás, and near Juan Santamaría Airport.