Carrying a Spyderco Endura in Costa Rica

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seanp

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Jul 4, 2013
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Hey mods and everyone else: I posted this here because it was specific to the knife and I know that at least one person will see it and know the answer. If it more appropriately belongs in another forum, please move it. Thanks.

And on to the question:

I will be going to Costa Rica for vacation next week, and as I will be doing some kayaking and boating, I would like to take a knife with me. The one that I have selected as being my favorite for all around use is the Spyderco Endura 4 which I have been carrying as my pocket knife daily for the last while.

From the people that I have talked to and my internet searches, it does not seem like it would be a problem, but I would not like to run afoul of the law in an area that I am not familiar with.

So, for anyone that has first hand experience, would I have a problem bringing the knife into the country in my check-in bag, and once there, would every day carrying it be an issue? Thanks in advance.
 
I don't know the laws in Costa Rica, however, I wouldn't put anything of value in my luggage. There's a good chance that they'll remove it from your bag and you'll never see it again. If I were in your shoes, I'd try to find something cool while I was there and maybe ship it home.
 
Surfing Gringo can best address this but Costa Rica is a neat place!!! Probably no problem,,,I took a SAK I always take as a carry on and had no problems,,, HaHa the locals walk around with Machetes everywhere so they shouldn't care about an Endura! I wouldn't take a real high end knife to leave on its own from your check in otherwise put it in your shaving kit and should be good to go?! My son goes maybe 4 times/ year on business so I will check with him ,,,( knife Knut to):cool:most people are very well educated there and speak English ( everything else to! ) so enjoy and have a great trip!!!!:thumbup:
 
Costa Rica is an awesome place. The people are wonderful and very friendly. Keep your knife in your checked luggage till you're in country and then just be respectful and you'll be fine. No one will bother you.
Enjoy and let us know how you liked it when you return home.
 
Hey Sean, you are fine. Just use the same common sense and discretion you do at home and nobody will care.

I have never had a knife stolen when checking them but I am always careful to tuck them away good. Sometimes in socks or pants pockets. The idea isn't to hide them but simply to keep them from being too easy for a potentially sticky fingered individual to find.

Enjoy your trip. :)
 
Ditto above. I've travelled extensively and never encountered a problem with placing a folder in my checked in luggage. Just stick it some where tight like that little zipped compartment on the bottom interior or in your toiletries bag.

As for local laws I never took the time to look them up. I just stay away from the usual suspects (Autos, balisongs) and don't carry exposed(pocket clip).
 
I have not been to Costa Rica, but have traveled extensively in Central America and the Caribbean. I always pack a Spyderco or two in my checked baggage and have never had a problem. I don't usually bring hard to replace models, just out of common sense. I mostly travel with a Salt 1 SE that I've owned years and years and hundreds of thousands of miles of air travel.
 
I always assume that most countries have very restrictive knife laws, especially in the cities.

Jim
 
I have been so busy getting caught up since we got back that it slipped my mind, but I thought I really should add an update to this thread.

First of all, Costa Rica was wonderful, I can't recommend it enough. Tourism is a big industry there (it is a post secondary course of study), so most of the people I met had a vested interest in making sure that I had a good stay, but even those that didn't were very friendly and accommodating. And it's very safe. I have a pretty well developed awareness of threat and have felt (much) more sense of danger walking down 17th Ave in Calgary than I felt anywhere in CR, including after dark in Quepos half loaded on Cacique.

It was more expensive at first than I had thought it would be, but that was because I had booked the trip through a tour company and was initially located in very touristy areas, resorts, etc... Food in particular was way expensive. And as it was all in USD, it was significantly more than I would have paid at home. So much so that I immediately thought, "How can these people afford to live here if food is this expensive?" After I had time to make some friends, start seeing where the ticos went, bought their food, etc... my expenses shrank down to being reasonable.

Dressing like a normal guy also goes a long way. I had an awesome interaction with a female cashier in Monteverde in spite of my limited Espanol when I was wearing board shorts and a t-shirt. She had been much less friendly the day before when I had gone in in my Columbia River Omni-tec shirt and shorts... :D

Anyway, since this is the Spyderco forum...

I did take the Spyderco Endura 4 full flat grind plain edge with me down to Costa Rica. Put it in my check on luggage in my shaving kit with my razor. No issues coming or going, Canada, CR, or USA (where I had a layover in Houston).

In CR, the knife was in my pocket constantly, in the cloud forest, rivers, and the ocean, hiking, kayaking, rafting, swimming, etc... Alternately exposed to salt water, air, sweat, etc...

I had dithered between taking my Tasman Salt and the E4, because of the humidity and salt water, but the VG-10 E4 did not rust in any appreciable way. There were a few tiny rust pits on the blade from sitting in the pocket of my shorts after swimming all day in Manuel Antonio Park and then laying on the beach, but they wiped off with some oil and a napkin.

Was it useful?

Yeah it was, to have it. Cutting string for clotheslines to dry stuff out on. Stripping coffee beans on a tour, cutting cheese, opening packages, cutting fishing line, cutting tags off luggage.

Was it necessary?

I'm going to say no. The information that I had from the tour company indicated to me that this was basically a wilderness tour. They advise that you take a whole bunch of stuff that you really do not need. I over packed like crazy. It's not like that. You can buy anything you need down there. And first rate stuff too. I took bottled water and a backpack full of stuff on every tour I went on. The guides had tons of extra and passed it out gratis to people who didn't.

If I was going to go again (and I will) I'd say don't worry about all the extra stuff. Pack your regular toiletries, board shorts, tank tops, and towels. Have fun.
 
For sure. It wasn't absolutely needful, but it was nice to have. And no issues, so no reason not to.
 
Thanks, it's always nice to see when someone takes the time to update their thread with a conclusion. It's unlikely that I will experience a Costa Rican holiday anytime soon, since I live half a world away, so it was an enjoyable read! My travel knife is a Manix LW.
 
Glad you enjoyed Sean. You should have called...you came right through my little town. :). And yes, everyone overpacks on their first trips. You could realistically make it on 3 pair of board shorts, 3 tshirts, flip flops and maybe a pair of underwear if you are into the fancy stuff. Hah.

I still say my Pacific Salt is the best knife in the world for living on the ocean down here.
 
Surfingringo said:
Glad you enjoyed Sean. You should have called...you came right through my little town. :).
Click to expand...

:) Had I only known I would have definitely looked you up. Next time I will for sure.

I'm hoping to make a longer trip next time if I can and see more of the country on my own schedule. Having gone with the tour company was an awesome first introduction, but the pace was pretty hectic, and I'm personally more suited to "unstructured time" on vacation ;)

It's funny because I had been warned a lot about "tico time" before going. I really didn't experience that at all. Every tour or transport I had booked was either on time or early.

I was almost disappointed. Because I was in a totally relaxed frame of mind, ready for it, and kind of wanting to experience it so I would have another thing to talk about when I got back.

I think probably I was the guy that held up the buses most of the time, wanting to stop at Sodas, take pictures of crocodiles...

Yeah, can't wait to go again.
 
I took my Endura 4 SS to Los Barilles, Mexico. Great knife to travel with because it is super slim and I figured if I lost it I could easily buy a new one. My E4 is part serrated so I am looking for an excuse to buy a plain edge model.
 
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