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DON'T MISS: Best Side Trips

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ISLA TORTUGA Hiking trails crisscross this 297-acre island, a 45-minute ferry ride from Puntarenas on the Gulf of Nicoya, and wind through thickets of strangler figs and cashew trees. Calypso Tours (011-506/256-2727; $89) has been doing the jaunt for years. The reefs surrounding the island are good for snorkeling, and a local fisherman dives for oysters and sells them live with lemon and hot sauce for a dollar apiece.

ISLA DEL CAÑO Twelve miles off the Osa Peninsula lies this island biological reserve, rich with marine life. Snorkelers, divers, and sunbathers can make a day trip from Corcovado National Park to take advantage of the isle's surrounding warm waters.

BOSQUE DE PAZ This high-altitude (8,000 feet) private park straddles the Continental Divide with its own 3,000-acre reserve and attracts more than 330 species of birds, including the emerald toucanet and—the birder's Holy Grail—the resplendent quetzal. The 11 rooms at the Bosque de Paz Lodge (Bajos del Toro Amarillo; 011-506/234-6676; www.bosquedepaz.com; doubles from $188, all-inclusive) have cobblestoned bathrooms and teak porches and sit right beside the gently roaring Quevrada Grande River.

HOTEL VILLA CALETAS The fiery ball sinking into the Pacific, viewed from a mini-Colosseum and accompanied by cocktails and a New Age symphony, is enough to distract guests from the mixed bag of design themes (Greco-Roman, tropical Victorian, Balinese) at the Hotel Villa Caletas (Jacó; 011-506/637-0606; www.hotelvillacaletas.com; doubles from $120; dinner for two $66), 1,100 feet above the city of Jacó.

POAS VOLCANO An hour outside San José, trails lead up to this active volcano's crater, which is filled with an opaque teal-colored sulfurous liquid and exhales grayish steam.

NICARAGUA Though one day isn't enough time to see all of Costa Rica's northern neighbor, you can at least get a glimpse of it (most companies run 12-hour trips to the colonial city of Granada). Even better: Spend the night at Morgan's Rock (San Juan del Sur; www.morgansrock.com; doubles from $302, including all meals), an eco-resort associated with Lapa Rios, north of the Guanacaste border. Set to open in July, it's Nicaragua's first luxury hotel.

Copyright © 2008, American Express Publishing. All rights reserved.