General Info

[Kid Cisco]

I think everyone know very well how I feel about these guides/pimps I think these are nothing but low life snakes.

Kid Cisco

[Prolijo]

2666,
Your post really surprises me coming from an experienced guy like you. I'd expect a question like that to come from some newbie that just fell off the turnip truck. The answer is much the same as it is to nearly all such packaged sex tour operators offering their services in countries all over the globe. Invariably once you start to read the fine print you realize if you've travelled to those countries yourself or done even a cursory amount of study on boards such as this one, that they are grossly overpriced vehicles for some, usually unscrupulous, monger to finance his own travels. Every one I have ever seen (except one) has cost at least twice as much as an equivalent trip would cost an independent monger to put together on his own.

There are several warning signs to look for and all of them relate to this site.

First, is the way they get people to come to their site. You didn't mention how you came across that website. I can tell you how I first heard about it. They placed ads on craigslist with a pic of a beautiful chica claiming to be an independent tourguide. You would think you are getting some freelancer like GFE Shirley. Unh-unh. Reply to that ad and you get an e-mail directing you to that overpriced tour organizer site. I don't know about you but I'm always more wary of any business that has to resort to such trickery. If they're dishonest in how they get you to walk in the door, you have to wonder what they'll be dishonest about next.

Secondly, they are often (though not always) somewhat vague as to exactly what you get, but they are always at least very suggestive. This is certainly the case with mike. You yourself weren't sure whether it was a sex tour company or a fantasy football camp. It seems pretty clear to me when they talk about specializing in bachelor parties and include numerous pictures of lucky mike surrounded by scores of sexy chicas who they are trying to target. The only thing from what I have read that you seem sure of receiving is 4 nights stay at a B&B(~$300 if you booked it yourself), airport pick-up and drop off (~$25) and a couple of local tours (~$100).

Which brings me to point 3, which is closely related, pictures can be deceiving. There is no assurance that any of the ladies pictured are ones you'd actually meet. I know another company that is infamous for that practice. It goes by different names such as GlobalFantasies.com or HotToGoTravel.com (another warning sign - reputable companies don't have to change names every few months). I don't know if this is the case with magicalmikes, but that provides little comfort. Besides not knowing whether any of those ladies are actually ones you would meet, even if you were introduced to them there is no mention whether the cost of any of them is included in your package or you have to pay extra. Also if some sort of "guide service" is included is it just that - guide service. My guess is if it isnt exactly specified then it probably isn't actually included and if the chicas pictured aren't specifically promised then they're probably just on the website as window dressing.

To the extent that detailed descriptions of what is or isn't included is specified that is only half of what you need to really evaluate whether it is a good value. The other half is the cost, which brings me to the 4th warning sign. Many of these sites do not post any costs. The reason is quite simple. They know it would result in such sticker shock they would lose the mark before they even really had a chance to close the deal. Often you have to either pay for a website membership charge ("which can be applied against the eventual cost of your tour if you decide to go on it" -big deal) or at least you have to send them an e-mail or fill out some form (as you do at magicalmikes). At that point they have "harvested" your e-mail address and you will receive marketing e-mails for the rest of your life or in the case of website membership gotten you to at least partially commit financially (in for a penny in for a pound). Some members of CRT filled out the free form at magical mike's just to check it out. They got an e-mail back (and are probably still getting some). Guess what the cost of that 5 day "paradise tour" ended up being. $1800! Imagine what you could do in CR in 5 days for that amount. And even the e-mail wasn't any clearer on exactly what was included for that $1800. But remember my estimates for all that was really promised only added up to ~$425. But even IF some full-service personal chica companion were also included (which I'm still not convinced it is) that would still only add at MOST $200/day. 5 days and 4 nights is really more like 3 full days and 2 half days (for the days you fly in and out) so the total package at most isn't worth much more than $1200 which still leaves a nice little $600 markup for mike. Promise a chica 4 straight nights of steady and fairly easy work and I bet you'd do much better than $200/day.

And finally just for good measure, try clicking on the "costa rica opportunities" link at that website. To give you an idea of what type of profit margin is built into those tours, magical mike is offering multi-level marketing opportunities for his little business. I guess he can't find too many suckers on his own, though just finding one would easily pay for all his marketing costs for the year. What he wants you to do is sucker a bunch of your friends into shelling out $1800 for one of mike's trips and you'll get a free ride. Personally, I'd never take advantage of a friend in that way.

[Member #2666]

crusing around on line and ran into this group

http://www.magicalmiketours.com

hard to tell whats going on here, football or dating or what.

anybody have experience with mike and his crew?

[Prolijo]

piper1,
don't get me wrong, i wasn't offended at all and everyone is entitled to their view. i was just trying to understand your reasoning, believe me, i can easily understand why someone would opt for a different destination because of pricing and quality of the girls. some guys really like the latinas in cr or prefer the personality of ticas over colombianas, or like the variety of providers they can find in sj, while others prefer the garotas of brazil or the slim and demure asians of bkk or the more cosmopolitan and refined women of moscow. everyone's different on that score. and there are certainly cheaper places to go then cr.

now that i know you live in dubai your other reason makes a lot more sense too. for me, and i'm guessing most members of this forum, one of the biggest advantages of cr is that it is so close compared to most other international monger destinations (save for tj, which imho leaves much to be desired, unless you live in s. cal.). if i lived in dubai and had to spend the time it probably took to get to cr from there, i would probably choose somewhere else as well.

i guess if anything irked me it was really the child prostitution thing. ralph's article was nothing new to me (and i'm kinda surprised it was news to him). these articles have a way of popping up periodically in the media (there was recently one about abduction of children as sex-slaves by border-hopping us ****s in tj). this is a problem, but in reality it has absolutely nothing to do with most of us and because, as you yourself have agreed, it is something that is going to exist in any country where sex is cheap and we are going to want to go, it really should not be a factor on our deciding where to go. it should be a factor for any monger that is thinking of making that jump and dabbling in **** sex themselves. we should all "just say no".

[Piper1]

Wow Chase. I didn't mean to offend. My comment about child prostitution was simply repeating a fact - I wasn't comparing it to other countries where it also occurs. My comment about the quality of girls was based on checking out the piccies and posts here and other places, and only my opinion. I'm sure there are many stars in CR.

Yes I live in Dubai, roughly 6-7 hours flight to Moscow or Bkk. I hate long flights, switching planes and waiting at airports. If it makes you feel better, my travel choice came down to Moscow or CR, and CR was my first choice, but ended up clashing with work responsibilities.

cheers

Piper

[Prolijo]

costa rica was on my possible travel agenda later this year, but now i'm leaning to moscow and bkk instead - much less travel time and the gals seem better. a few minutes research about cr made it clear that there is a big problem with child prostitution (but now they are supposedly clamping down on it).

that post really confuses me coming from a seasoned monger such as yourself. the gals may be better in those other locations. they will certainly be different which for many guys is better. but your other rationales escape me.

where are you based that moscow and bkk represent less travel time? for us us mongers at least, those places are much more trravel time not less. for example, if you were to use jfk as a base, bkk is a 20 hour flight time and a full 12 hour time difference. moscow is 10-11 hours (plus connection time) and an 8 hour time difference (though i was surprised how low the fares are right now). sjo, otoh, is a 7 hour flight and only a 1 hour time difference and if you live in fl (as i do) it is only a 3 hour flight, making it practical to even consider the trip for a long weekend.

okay, maybe you live in dubai or some other unusual location, but your other reason is just as puzzling to me. you do a whole few minutes research about cr and concluded that there is a big problem with child prostitution. what makes you think there isn't as big or perhaps even bigger problem with child prostitution and hst in places like bkk and moscow. i hate to burst anyone's bubble around here but these problems are not new and they're a big problem anywhere there is economic hardship and poverty. take a few minutes more and do even just a little more research and you will see that russia and eastern europe are major sources of child porn. criminal elements in those areas are also renowned for luring young women with false promises of gainful employment as au pairs, waitresses, maids, etc. only to find themselves in some foreign country locked away in some brothel with their passports held until they can work off their "debt".

as for costa rica, its getting some bad press in regards to child sexploitation due to pressure from us religious groups and because cr is currently so popular with 1st world tourists in general. but the sad fact, that even that article that ralph posted noted, is that the vast majority of the customers are the locals themselves. sure there are also some sick gringos that partake too, but they're a tiny minority. this is not to belittle the problem. those guys should be strung up by their testicles for what they do to those children. on a more selfish note, they're also responsible for bringing heat down on the rest of us more responsible mongers just by association. beyond that though, they're not a concern that should keep anyone from visting these countries. what should be a concern is not partaking in this trade yourself and reporting anyone you see or here about that does. in cr avoiding **** girls is very easy to do. you really have to seek out the **** providers to get involved in that. most of them either a) work in unmarked tico brothels that are well off the usual gringo travel circuit, b) work for pimps that "escort them out" and unless you're already a **** plugged into that market you'd have no way of finding out how to contact them or c) quite commonly work the streets. the solution is quite simple, a) don't call dubious escort services, b) don't listen to guys that might try to offer **** girls (its never happened to me but if it did i'd listen long enough to get the info to report his ass to the cops) and c) avoid the street market at all costs. these measures are highly recommended for other reasons anyway. escort services tend to be much more expensive than just dealing with the independent women you can easily find on your own. and streetwalkers generally won't save you much money over the women that you'll find in the various bars, mp's and strip clubs and are probably out there because they are a) drug addicted b) diseased c) rip-off artists d) men in drag or e) ****.

in summary, go ahead and write off cr because the local costs are cheaper elsewhere or the women are more to your liking in this other places or because you like other aspects of those countries, but don't write cr because of a few minutes research that led you to believe that cr is somehow special when it comes to child prostitution.

[Virg]

Gang,

I will be traveling to SJ for a week of mongering and traveling solo. Anyone else going by them selves that need company let me know and we can hook up.

I am also still looking for a place to stay but am not sure about availability, perhaps the Del Ray is open for reseverations.

Thanks Virg

PM me if you have the time.

[Kev 533]

I will be traveling to San Jose this thursday. I'm probably going to spend a week maybe more depending how much fun i have. Anyone else going by them selves that need company. I plan on having some fun at the del rey then off to jaco and then some cool volcano hiking and hot springs soaking.

[Piper1]

Costa Rica was on my possible travel agenda later this year, but now I'm leaning to Moscow and BKK instead - much less travel time and the gals seem better. A few minutes research about CR made it clear that there is a big problem with child prostitution (but now they are supposedly clamping down on it).

[Ralph Kramden]

Here is a link to an article in the 3/14 New York Times online edition. You may have to sign up for free to view the article. It tells a most unfortunate story about the thriving sex-with-children trade in Costa Rica, which was before unkown to me.

http://www.nytimes.com/financialtime...733_84080.html

The ISG certainly does not condone sex with children and neither should any of us. I urge each and everyone of you to expose and report kiddy fuckers to the authorities so they can receive their just reward, like Garry Glitter just did in Vietnam.

[R Brandon]

I need to take you to Las Margaritas as well.That is my favorite as I know special chicas there and Molino Rojo late night.rbc100

[Psychman]

RBC,

Lets make it a point to hit a clut on the night of the 30th. Arcadas and Molino perhaps?

Psychman

[R Brandon]

Hey Roberto, To try to answer some of your questions Jaco is not one of the better beaches as you have found.Quepos/Manuel Antonio is nice but touristy so hard to sty on budget but worth a Visit.Puerto Viejo and points South on the Caribean offer some of the nicest beaches by far but no action to speak of.If you speak Spainish you cances improve a lot everywhere.You might consider staying a few days in a budget place in San Jose on either end and touring the country.The public express bus system is very cheap and efficicient and will meet you needs of a budget trip quite well.You can go about anywhere.Moon travel Guide has very good bus info as far as travel guides and you can get a brochure called Hop a bus at the national travel office my the gold museum that gives all the info from San Jose.You might do some research on ************** website for beach hobying info but it is limited and often more expensive than the local scene in San Jose.
Psychman ,Good to see you here I may just cross paths in May.I leave the 31 and you get in maybe the 30th.Hope to see you again.rbc100

[Roberto Burns]

Hello all,

I haven't been on these forums in awhile but have a few questions.

Coming this May I am about to finish up a degree and have decided to treat myself to a long overdue vacation. Now I am not deadset on Costa Rica but it is my top choice so far from what I have read.

Here is the situation. I would like to leave early summer and good chance I will be departing from texas although I am currently near philly.

Let's assume I have roughly 2-3k as a budget (not including flight). I was thinking of staying for a month or two. Now I would rather not stay in San Jose but rather near or at the beach. I have read about Jaco and that doesn't sound too great as far as a beach goes. I am not going down to do the monger thing necessarily but wouldn't mind having that option as well.

Now are there any nice beach towns to stay at that have any night life besides Jaco or at least some local ticas? Any advice and ideas would be much appreciated. Again, Cr is my 1st option but if anyone knows other countries which may be better for my budget or plans I am all ears. Thanks in advance.

Robert

[Psychman]

RBC knows his stuff, trust me. The area around Oasis is a great place. You can find great quality around the $12,000 range on a consistant basis. BTW, nice seeing you here RBC .

Psychman