Hi there... how old and what make is your phone/charger....?

Most models in the last couple of years are "universal" - designed to be used in both... look underneath the charger.. there should be a label saying : input.......
output.....

Even if the input is 240 only, it'll be safe to plug into 110, but the charging time will be about FOUR times longer (don't ask me for the maths!!)

ATB,J.

will our mobile phone charger etc still work over there? I have assumed that half the voltage=double the charging time but I have no hard evidence to back this up.

Hi Corinne, you're right, that this is a good enough rule for many things but it doesn't always apply when it comes to battery charging. Cuba is also on a 110V American style 2 flat pins sockets and I have found that while my camera battery always charges up - even if it does take longer - and an ancient Nokia will usually charge up too, a much newer Siemans phone I took on one trip wouldn't. I was lucky in that the air-conditioning unit in my room was plugged into a 220v European style 2 round pin socket and I did have a suitable adaptor with me so I could use that. So even though it's an extremely basic phone, that battered Nokia is the one I always take with me to Cuba because I know that I stand the best chance of being able to charge it up again.

I don't know whether you'll find the same in Costa Rica or not but I would suggest that it would be a good idea to take a couple of different adaptors with you and a friend who has experienced problems with phone charging in Cuba now takes one of those wind-up chargers with her. It's not good enough for fully charging the battery but it was good enough for giving enough charge to then send texts. Neither of us use mobiles for making calls in Cuba - much too expensive - so I can't comment on how long the charge it gives would last if you were using the mobile to make calls but it could be a good buy if it proves impossible to charge it up any other way.

SM

@merseygull - I've checked the bottom of the adaptor and it says 110-240v so hopefully that means the adaptor is suitable for the lower voltage.

@SMa - it's one of those multi function adaptors that we can use to charge various things - more of a back up than anything else. I will make sure I charge everything fully before we go in case some items just won't charge though! And we ended up using European 2 pin plugs in some of our Cuban hotels too so I will definitely take one with me to Costa Rica just in case.

Will report back on what I find out - only 13 days to go now!