Central American Journey: Rainforests & Ruins - 32 Days

Arrive at any time. Head out tonight with your fellow travellers to 12th Street, where there’s tons of bars and clubs to choose from. Say cheers to new adventures with new friends! Check into our hotel and enjoy the city.

Enjoy free time to explore the Mayan ruins of Tulúm or take a ferry to nearby Cozumel. Or just play in the waves and enjoy the beach. Start your holiday off with some hardcore relaxation. Enjoy a full day of free time to fill as you wish. Get your ruin on with a visit to Tulum perched atop the sea, explore the fish- and coral-filled seas around Cozumel on a scuba dive, go swimming in a cenote or at the beach, and save some energy for a night out on the town.

Opt to snorkel with stingrays and nurse sharks at Hol Chan Marine Reserve, go diving or just chill out, Belizean style. Mention Belize and you may conjure up visions of unbelievably clear blue waters, diving and snorkelling along the barrier reef and remarkable marine life. Belize also boasts huge swaths of jungle, ancient Mayan ruins, and above all, friendly, easygoing people. Belize is all this and much more!

Opt to snorkel with stingrays and nurse sharks at Hol Chan Marine Reserve, go diving or just chill out, Belizean style.

Opt to snorkel with stingrays and nurse sharks at Hol Chan Marine Reserve, go diving or just chill out, Belizean style.

Travel by boat and bus from Caye Caulker to San Ignacio. Enjoy an included pottery demonstration and local lunch at a the tour operator-supported women's pottery cooperative. From the town of San Ignacio, opportunities abound for exploring Belize’s little known inland scenic beauty. With free time here, choose to explore the area by foot, canoe or horse, take a caving trip, or visit the Mountain Pine Ridge Area and swim in its inviting pools and rivers.

Opt to visit the sacred Mayan cave Actun Tunichil Muknal or check out the seldom-visited Mayan ruins of Xunantunich.

Learn about Mayan culture and history on a guided tour of the ruins of Tikal. Cross the border into Guatemala and you immediately notice the difference in culture, with its heavy Mayan influence and Spanish language. Here we have entered Guatemala’s northeast jungle Petén region. The descendants of the Maya of Chichén Itzá migrated to the Petén area several centuries after the collapse of the great Mayan cities in the Yucatán.

En route to Flores, stop for a guided tour of the ancient city of Tikal. Arrive in Flores, the capital of the department of Petén, a small island located on the second largest lake of Guatemala, Lake Petén Itzá.

Travel across the country towards the coast to Rio Dulce, on the shores of Lake Izabal. A travel day from Flores to Rio Dulce which is located in the department of Izabal, home of the largest lake in Guatemala, Lake Izabal was one of the most important water ways of the Spanish crown during colonial times.

We take the road past areas of dense jungle and arrive at Río Dulce, a small town on Lake Izabal and a port stop for boaters around the globe, on their way to/from Livingston and the Caribbean coast.

Travel to the Caribbean town of Livingston by scenic boat ride from Rio Dulce. Enjoy a visit to the the tour operator–supported El Manglar Restaurant for an explanation of the women-led community initiative project here. Then, walk around the grounds before a sit-down lunch of delicious local flavours.

Enjoy an orientation walk of Antigua's cobblestone streets, then opt to take a salsa lesson and practice new moves out at night. Today is a travel day from Rio Dulce to Antigua, followed by an orientation walk once you arrive. Plan your activities for the next day and enjoy some of the nightlife this beautiful colonial city has to offer.

Enjoy a free day in Antigua. Opt to relax with a massage, climb a volcano, soak up the culture in one of the city's many cafés, or explore the nearby hills and towns by bike. Get adventurous and pre-book the Pacaya Volcano Hike on the checkout page to include this optional activity on your tour or ask your GCO or travel agent for assistance.

Travel to beautiful Lake Atitlán and enjoy the views. Travel through the hills and fertile fields of the Guatemalan highlands to the shores of Lake Atitlán, one of the most beautiful spots in Guatemala. Twelve native villages, blue/grey mountains and three volcanoes line the shores of this lake resulting in a wonderful combination of unusual natural beauty and traditional culture.

The area is also ideal for outdoor pursuits like swimming, fishing, wind surfing, hiking, bird watching, kayaking, and horseback riding.

Embark on a boat ride across the lake before participating in a the tour operator-supported homestay with a local family. This area is known for stunning scenery and great shopping for Mayan handicrafts. Opt to bargain for colourful textiles and paintings at the lake's markets.

Return to Antigua, and enjoy a Big Night Out with the group. We return to Antigua to spend more time to explore the city, shop, and check out optional activities in the area.

Optional activities include visiting a macadamia nut farm, checking out a coffee plantation, biking around Antigua's surrounding hills or taking a salsa lesson.

Enjoy free time to relax with a massage, explore the nearby hills by bicycle, or visit a local macadamia nut farm. Get adventurous and pre-book the Pacaya Volcano Hike on the checkout page to include this optional activity on your tour or ask your GCO or travel agent for assistance.

Set off today on a full day of travel from Antigua across the border to neighboring Honduras, arriving to the town of Copán Ruinas in the evening. The colonial highland town of Copán Ruinas is a charming and relaxing place, set along a river in the coffee growing region close to the Guatemalan border.

The Mayan ruins of Copán are fascinating, beautiful and unique among Mayan cities. Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980, Copán contains some of the most important Mayan ruins found to date, and many unusual artistic features, including some of the most detailed carving in the Mayan world.

Free time in Copán. Opt to visit the ruins of Copán or soak in hot springs. Free time in Copan. Opt to visit the impressive Copan ruins and check out some lesser known Mayan sites along the way. Knowledgable local guides can interpret the many Mayan carvings left here over 1,000 years ago. You can also journey through the countryside to some hidden jungle hot springs for a relaxing soak.

Cross the border into El Salvador and stay in the colonial town of Suchitoto. Don't forget to try the delicious pupusas, a local Salvadorian specialty.

Enjoy a free morning in Suchitoto before heading to the coast in the La Libertad region. The sunsets in these small surfing towns are stunning. Grab a cold drink and enjoy!

Enjoy a free day in the laidback beach towns of the area to take a surf lesson, eat fresh ceviche at the fish market in nearby La Libertad, visit the Tamanique waterfalls, or chill out with a beer in hand.

Set off early for a full day of travel by land and sea to Nicaragua, finishing up in colonial León with a brief orientation walk.

Journey to Granada and see its colourful colonial buildings on an orientation walk. Enjoy a Big Night Out with the group. Granada’s colonial charm is complemented by the active volcanoes and lakes that surround it, and there are many fun easy day trips available. Hike, cruise, or just explore the city’s markets and museums.

Walking is probably the easiest way to see all the sights of Granada.

Free time to explore beautiful Granada's markets, buildings and museums. Opt to kayak in Lake Nicaragua or swim in Laguna de Apoyo. Free time to explore beautiful Granada's busy markets, colonial buildings and museums on foot or take a horse and carriage ride around town. Enjoy a meal on the "calzada", a pedestrian street that extends from the center of town down to Lake Nicaragua.

There are many optional activities to do just outside of town as well. Walk in the forest at the top of Mombacho Volcano, kayak around the isletas in Lake Nicaragua or swim in Laguna de Apoyo.

Get to know local friends during a 2-night the tour operator-supported community homestay on Ometepe. Try the local cuisine and test out some language skills. From the town of San Jorge, we cross Lake Nicaragua by ferry to arrive at Ometepe Island, formed from two volcanoes, one active and one dormant that rise out of the middle of the lake. The limited development and traditional communities create a welcoming relaxed atmosphere.

The group will be split up amongst different local families who will host you in their homes for two nights in a small community on the island. Breakfast and dinner will be provided in the home. This experience give you a chance to see how rural Nicaraguans live.

Enjoy free time to explore Ometepe. Opt to climb Volcano Concepción or Volcano Maderas, take a cultural tour, visit the beach at Santo Domingo, or visit el Ojo de Agua for a refreshing swim and lunch. You can also view pre-Columbian petroglyphs or the small museum of indigenous artifacts in Altagracia. Today is a free day in Ometepe. We get to spend more time with the local host families and see more of the island. Opt to climb either of the two volcanoes on the island, view petroglyphs left by the island's original inhabitants, walk or kayak in Charco Verde reserve, swim in clear spring water at Ojo de Agua, lay on the beach or explore the island on bicycle.

Take a ferry back to the mainland and cross the border into Costa Rica, finishing up in the cloudforest air of Monteverde. At 1,400 meters above sea level, Monteverde is literally in the clouds. The Monteverde and Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserves are home to diverse and unique flora and fauna. Sloths, monkeys, kinkajous, tapirs and large cats inhabit the area. There are more species of orchids here than anywhere else in the world.

Free day in Monteverde. Opt to visit a cloud forest reserve, fly through the jungle canopy via zipline, or tour a coffee plantation. The day is free to choose from many optional activities. Fly hundreds of meters above the trees on a zip-lining tour, hike through one of the cloud forest reserves, ride a horse in the mountains, visit a coffee/sugar cane farm, tour the cheese factory or check out the orchid garden, serpentarium, or frog pond in town.

Transfer to La Fortuna along bumpy roads, then break up the journey with a peaceful boat ride on Lake Arenal before a short ride to the town. The trip from Monteverde to La Fortuna takes us down from the cloud forest and across Costa Rica's largest lake The town of La Fortuna lies at the base of the Arenal Volcano, which dominates the landscape rising to 1670 meters high. The town has become famous as the adventure sports capital of Costa Rica.

Choose your adventure! Canyoning, white water rafting, hiking, caving, rafting, horseback riding, paddlebording, kayaking, visiting a wildlife refuge, and even more activities are all possible options for you to choose from while we're here.

Free time to enjoy the La Fortuna and Arenal area. Choose your adventure! Canyoneering, hiking, caving, rafting, horseback riding, paddleboarding, kayaking, visiting a wildlife refuge, and even more activities are all possible options for you to choose from while we're here.

Journey through the mountains to the capital for a final night out. Return to San José for our final night out.

San José has beautiful parks, museums and theatres. Enjoy the view of the surrounding lush mountains from the downtown streets.

Depart at any time.