Costa Rica

Costa Rica for First-Timers: How to See the Country Without a Package Tour

Costa Rica compresses an unusual range of ecosystems—cloud forest, rainforest, dry forest, two coastlines, active volcanoes—into a country the size of Switzerland. Getting between them takes longer than a map suggests; roads are slow and winding, which makes routing decisions critical. Two weeks is the right amount of time for independent travel; one week forces cuts that hollow out the experience.

Henrik Vinter