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See our recommended resorts for
Belize and
Costa Rica.
Belize is an adventurer's paradise, located on the Caribbean Coast of Central America, south of Mexico and west of Guatemala.
With spectacular dive sites such as the famous Blue Hole, Belize is often referred to as the diving capital of the world.
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Like a gigantic, living wall, Belize's extraordinary Barrier Reef is a complicated system of individual reefs that
parallels the nation's coastline, stretching 185 miles from Yucatan to Central America.
The cayes (pronounced keys), are a chain of offshore islands that range from small uninhabited isles,
to large tropic islands, complete with outstanding resort facilities.
| Relative cost: |
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| Currency: |
Varies - exchange rates |
| When to go: |
anytime; but May - November is the "green" season* |
| Known for: |
Eco-tourism; diving and snorkeling; birdwatching; jungle tours; archaeological and natural parks |
| Languages: |
English is spoken at most resorts |
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The cayes span 3,000 square miles of
protected water, scattered inside and outside the magnificent Barrier Reef.
Costa Rica has something for everybody!
Eco-tourism, bird watching, adventure tours, fishing, diving, and rafting are all reasons why Costa Rica's
one of the hottest destinations today.
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Costa Rica's boundaries are natural, conventional and mixed.
On the east and northeast it's bounded by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west and south by the Pacific Ocean;
on the southeast it borders the country of Panama. Costa Rica is separated from its northern neighbor, Nicaragua,
by natural boundaries: the little Sapoa River, the southern shore of Lake Nicaragua and the San Juan River.
Roughly 18% of Costa Rica's territory is constituted as National Park or Reserve, including two parks declared
World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
This means most National Parks and Reserves are easily accessible from anywhere in the country,
making Costa Rica an ideal destination if you want to be surrounded by natural settings.
Guatemala lies in the Mayan heartland of Central America.
Highlights for visitors include the ancient ruins of Tikal, the Mayan/ Catholic rituals and open market of Chichicastenango,
and the blazing colors of everyday Mayan dress.
Lake Atitlan is viewed by many as the most beautiful lake in the world.
Peru is home to the famous Inca fortress of Machu Picchu, situated far above the Urubamba River at an elevation of 7,700 feet.
At 12,600 feet lies Lake Titicaca in the heart of the Andes. Peru is also where the Amazon begins its 4,050 mile journey to the Atlantic Ocean.
Brazil is a tropical paradise, perhaps best known for the intense passion of Carnival and its participants.
Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world, is also the home for the immense Amazon Rain Forest.
The beauty of Brazil is evident in the 44 national parks that preserve the ecosystem, in the palm trees that stretch as
far as the eye can see along the coast of Alagoas, in the majestic mountains of Minas Gerais and in the
startling wave formed by the noisy meeting of the waters from the States of Amapá and Pará.
Ecuador straddles the equator in western South America, with territories in both the Northern and the Southern hemispheres.
It borders Colombia to the north and shares a border Peru to the south and to the east.
The Pacific Ocean is Ecuador's western border. Ecuador is geographically divided into four regions: the Amazon,
the Highlands, the Coast, and the famous Galapagos Islands.
Among the sports you can enjoy in Ecuador are: mountain biking, trekking, hiking, bungee jumping, climbing in Ecuador volcanoes (in the Ecuadorian Andes), rafting and kayaking in the springs of the mountains, diving, snorkeling, surf in some of the best beaches of South America, windsurf in the lakes, jet ski, paragliding, fishing, horseback riding.
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