The small nation with a big heart

Whether you want an adventure in the jungle or just want to admire the superb scenery, wildlife and cuisine, Costa Rica has it all, says Chris Moss

Green, serene, wild and wondrous, Costa Rica is many people’s first choice for an initial foray into Central America. Adored by intrepid travellers and those who like to combine some comfort with their hikes and horseback rides, it’s a safe and relatively small country that packs in a lot of experiences.

While all kinds of turmoil have shaped the lands to the north, Costa Rica has enjoyed peaceful elections since 1953 and has no standing army. It routinely makes headlines for green power initiatives and was the first developing country to state its aim of being carbon neutral, by 2021. Formerly a banana republic famous for fine coffee, it’s now a regional hub for technology and communications.

But if Costa Rica is a superpower in anything, it is in adventure tourism. The country pioneered the use of zip-lines and walkways to open up its jungles in the midEighties to offer visitors a window on to the teeming wildlife that inhabits the canopy.

The country’s Pacific seaboard harbours rare coastal rainforest and mangrove, complex networks of rivers and canals, and, at Tortuguero, some of the best turtle-watching sites anywhere in the world. The Caribbean coast contains swathes of unpopulated wilderness as well as tiny pockets of chic living and surfing as found on the beaches of the Nicoya peninsula.

The spine of soaring mountains and volcanoes that zigzags through the country has endowed it with a dramatic topography. Drive, trek or ride a horse through landscapes riven by deep valleys and canyons flowing with white-water rivers Clockwise from above, Costa Rica has more than 650 bird species, including the toucanet; Santa Elena reserve; walking above the forest canopy; Monteverde Cloud Forest; and surfing at Malpais and Costa Rica no longer seems the diminutive country it does on a map.

In all these environments, flora and fauna abound. The statistics impress: Costa Rica has more than 850 bird species, it has more butterflies than Europe, a quarter of its territory is protected (including 28 national parks and reserves), it has five per cent of the planet’s diversity. But that’s nothing to the wonder visitors feel on seeing a sloth, or hearing a troop of howler monkeys at dusk.

The suggested itinerary is based broadly around a fly-drive, making use of Costa Rica’s good highway network as well as visitor-friendly back roads. I have also tried to ensure you have plenty of time on foot, on boats, in the saddle and in the surf.

The accent is on active fun, and the route heads east out of capital San José to see the marine wildlife of Tortuguero and then north west to take in some of the most accessible national parks, volcanoes, cloud forests and beaches. Over 13 days, you’ll get the chance to hike, bike, go rafting and zip-lining, and to visit both coastlines.

You’ll also have the chance to sample some of the country’s culture and cuisine, soak in thermal pools, and to sip some of the world’s finest coffees. English is widely spoken, and listen out for the best-known of all local sayings: “Pura vida!” simply means that life is very good indeed.

The dry season (roughly midNovember to April) is the best time to visit. Choose November ( just after the rains) and early December and April) to avoid the boom months when Americans arrive in large numbers.

Chris Moss is Telegraph Travel’s South America expert Check in to Grano de Oro (hotelgranodeoro.com), a boutique hotel named after the “golden bean” – coffee.

San José is a small, leafy, low-slung capital, and is friendly to walkers and cyclists. You can go it alone or go with a guide; if you opt for the latter, book with Local company Chepe Cletas (00506 2222 7548).

I’d recommend walking off your flight with a stroll around historic Barrio Amón, ogling the mansions of the big coffee-growing families. Continue eastwards into Barrio Escalante, which has lots of cool bars and cafés including the Beer Factory (Calle 33, Ave 7, 00506 2234 2644). Afterwards, have dinner at Alma de Amon (Calle 5, between Ave 9 and 11; 00506 2222 3232), which serves Latin Soul food.

The wild coast

Take the 30-minute Nature Air (natureair.com) flight to Tortuguero on the Caribbean coast. It’s a short boat ride to Tortuga Lodge (tortugalodge.com), a 27room jungle retreat.

Tortuguero is very special. The whole area has national park status. Between July and October green sea turtles nest here, hatching from August through to November. Towards dusk, take the hotel’s guided nesting trip to avoid queues and to see unspoilt beaches; you also get to have an alfresco dinner on the riverbank.

After breakfast, take off on a guided river excursion, arranged by the hotel. Look out for monkeys and threetoed sloths; caiman, iguanas and turtles are routinely seen swimming from shore to shore.

After lunch at the lodge’s