By Patrick Greenfield in Quepos, Costa Rica, Kenya Evelyn in New York and David Agren in Mexico City
From Costa Rica to the Caribbean, beaches are closed and carnivals called off as coronavirus takes toll
It is high season on Espadilla beach in Costa Rica’s Manuel Antonio national park. Normally, spring breakers, honeymooners and retirees from around the world would be jostling for space on the pristine white sands overlooked by rainforest-covered hills.
But Costa Rica closed all its beaches on Friday to help contain the spread of the coronavirus. Locals tell of mass sackings and the cancellation of thousands of hotel reservations. The shorefront is blocked off with yellow hazard tape and the vultures that linger on the beach each morning seem increasingly ominous.
Source: ‘If the hotels go down, everything does’: the tourism hotspots hit by slowdown
Category: Costa Rica, Mexico, Caribbean, Travel & leisure, Americas, Business, World news
