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This month, we’re setting our sights on Nicaragua. Can’t quite place it? Well, the Central American beauty is pounded by the Pacific on one side and caressed by the Caribbean Sea on the other, and its location makes the filling in the sandwich between Honduras and Costa Rica. It was long off the radar for travel after years of civil war, but tourism is now gathering pace, fast.

Its fascinating ecosystem is one reason we’re tipping it. Lake Nicaragua is so vast it was once home to an entire pirate colony and indigenous flowers feed off the fertile soil of long-dormant volcanoes. On the Signature Nicaragua tour by Journey Latin America journeylatinamerica.co.uk you can climb the Maderas Volcano, which is Unesco-listed and home to howler and capuchin monkeys, butterflies, orchids and unique birds. On its summit lies a crater lagoon, where you can swim in warm waters year round.

Exodus Travels exodus.co.uk offers an epic cycling trip that begins at Lake Nicaragua and moves through to Costa Rica and Panama, taking in stunning wildlife on the way. You’ll visit remote tribes on the La Chocolata road who are otherwise undisturbed by tourism, and you’ll likely spot iguanas and sloths deep in the rainforest.

Another draw is the spate of luxury eco-hotels that have opened recently. A new Alternative Nicaragua itinerary from Last Frontiers

lastfrontiers.com takes in two of the best. Ride horses through the teak plantations that surround Nekupe mountain resort, then head to Yemaya (pictured) on Little Corn Island, where you can step straight out of your villa onto some of the best beaches in the Caribbean, or spend a day sea fishing for mahi-mahi.

For untouched, tropical allure, once-in-a-lifetime adventures and fascinating culture, you can’t beat Nicaragua.