Central America’s 10 best tours: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Belize, Panama and beyond

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If it’s volcanoes, colonial towns, Mayan ruins and abundant nature you’re after, head to Central America. From Belize to Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama adventure is guaranteed.

1Step back in time in Nicaragua

Horse-drawn wagon in Granada (Dreamstime)

Visit the rural backwaters and remote Caribbean islands of Nicaragua on this off-the-beaten-track adventure with Journey Latin America.

This trip is designed to take you to the parts of Nicaragua few people get to see. You’ll wander through forgotten Spanish towns, clamber over frontier forts and stroll on the sands of an English-speaking Caribbean island, caught in a time warp.

Decades of civil war, geological and economic instability kept this part of Nicaragua off the tourist map, but now this is one of Latin America’s rising stars for in-the-know travelers.

2Expect the unexpected in El Salvador

Sunset at Playa El Cuco, El Salvador (Dreamstime)

3Birdwatching and beaches in Panama

A blue-gray tanager in Panama (Dreamstime)

4Conquer Nicaragua’s fiery spine

San Cristobal. Smoking. (Dreamstime)

5Snorkel the world’s other great barrier reef off Roatán

Young girl discovers a conch shell in Roatán (Dreamstime)

6Get active in Costa Rica

Canyoning in Costa Rica (G Adventures)

7Explore the ancient lands of the Maya

Mayan ruins in Copán (Dreamstime)

8Temples and beaches in Belize

Time to relax in Belize (Dreamstime)

9Experience culture and nature in Nicaragua and El Salvador

Iglesia de la Recolección in Leon, Nicaragua (Dreamstime)

10Guatemala from every angle

Colonial Antigua in Guatemala (Dreamstime)