Discover Costa Rica exclusively

San José is nestled in the Central Valley, surrounded by the wooded hills of the Cordillera Central and one of the largest coffee-growing regions in Central America. The mild mountain climate and the calm atmosphere of the capital set a serene beginning before the actual adventures begin. Between colonial buildings and modern city life lies the starting point for a journey that will soon become significantly wilder.

Near the Caribbean side of Costa Rica, the Pacuare River cuts through one of the country's most pristine rainforest regions – an area only accessible via the river itself. Steep, densely overgrown gorges, roaring rapids, and a constant rushing of water and jungle shape this landscape, which National Geographic counts among the most extraordinary natural regions of Central America. It is precisely this seclusion that makes the region so special: no roads, no cell reception, just forest, river, and a silence that is only occasionally interrupted by the call of toucans.

The Arenal defines the entire region around La Fortuna with its flawless cone shape – once active for decades, today mostly calm, but still omnipresent in the landscape. Around the volcano, cooled lava fields alternate with dense primary forests of the Cordillera Tilarán, waterfalls, and hot springs that are fed directly from the volcanic underground. The area is considered one of the most biodiverse in the country – sloths, toucans, and countless other animal species live here in a forest that, despite the proximity to the crater, shows surprisingly lush growth.

In the north of Costa Rica, near the border with Nicaragua, lies one of the least visited regions of the country – dense jungle, wide views to Lake Nicaragua, and eleven natural lagoons shape the landscape. Coffee and cocoa plantations stretch through the hilly greenery, while toucans and parrots compete for attention in the treetops. This seclusion makes the region so special: little infrastructure, few other travelers, but a feeling of true borderland wilderness.

Where Manuel Antonio National Park borders directly on palm-fringed bays of the Pacific, one of Costa Rica's densest natural backdrops is created in the smallest space. Capuchin monkeys, sloths, and over 100 other mammal species live in one of the most biodiverse, albeit smallest national parks in the country. The combination of jungle, white sandy beaches, and the constant concert of bird calls makes Manuel Antonio one of the most intense yet comfortable nature experiences of the entire journey.

High above the bay of Uvita, where the rainforest ends and the view extends unobstructed to the Pacific, lies one of the calmest regions on Costa Rica's southern coast. Directly below stretches the Marino Ballena National Park with its famous sandbank 'Whale's Tail' – between December and April as well as July and October, humpback whales pass by here, often recognizable from a distance. Coral reefs off the coast invite exploration of the underwater world, while from the land, one of the farthest views of the whole journey opens over the ocean – a moody, tranquil conclusion.