Tiny Costa Rica is a volcanic country of fertile plains, rolling hills supporting acres of coffee plantations and tropical lowlands bursting with fruit. Throughout, it has a friendly, relaxed ambiance. Arriving at the modern capital San José, you’ll be taken out into the valley surrounding the city to peer into the steaming crater of Poás volcano. Move on to a wildlife lodge in an area of the Pacific coast where exotic flora and fauna is especially prolific, and follow trails through the rainforest.
Continue to Panama, an up-and-coming destination for nature lovers with some amazingly unspoilt beaches to boot. You’ll spend time in the glorious, rugged mountain landscapes surrounding Boquete, a centre for active adventures: you’ll be very tempted to pull on your walking shoes and get out on to the wooded trails in search of quetzals.
After this, travel to the Panamanian Pacific coast for a few days’ relaxation based at an intimate boutique beach hotel in low-key Boca Chica, a fishing village at the end of the road opposite a string of tiny islets. The beaches here are powder-white, backed by coconut palms and dense, untouched forest.