Costa Rica & Panama: The Great Adventure

We start strong: Irazú, the country's volcanic high point at 3,432 m, its Diego de la Haya crater and its lake of shifting colors — on clear mornings, you can make out both oceans from the ridge. What follows is a life-size geography lesson: the Pan-American Highway climbs the Talamanca cordillera before a small road tumbles down toward San Gerardo de Dota. At 2,200 m, your eco-lodge borders the Savegre river; evening walk with the guide, buffet dinner, and a blanket recommended.

Waking to hummingbird song, then a photographic hunt for the most beautiful bird of the Americas: your guide, briefed by the trackers of San Gerardo de Dota on the active nests, takes you where the resplendent quetzal shows itself. In the afternoon, you follow the Savegre to its waterfall, in a setting of tree ferns and mossy trees. An evening by the fire — the Costa Rican mountains at their gentlest.

Farewell to the mountain chill: after an observation stop on the heights of the Cerro de la Muerte, the road descends to the south coast and the village of Sierpe. There you board for one of the country's most beautiful transfers: the river descent through the mangrove, to Drake Bay, reachable only by sea. Landing on the beach, two-night stay in a rustic charming inn — no television here: the show is outside.

Up at dawn and boarding for Sirena or San Pedrillo, the stations of the national park of Corcovado, the absolute sanctuary of the Osa Peninsula. All day long, guided hikes between primary forest and untouched beaches: scarlet macaws in squadrons, spider monkeys, peccaries — and the ever-present hope of a tapir. Boat back in the afternoon, a swim or a stroll in Drake village, dinner at the inn.

You head back up the river in the early morning — herons, kingfishers, and sometimes a caiman among the mangroves — before rejoining the coastal road. The afternoon is devoted to the national park of Manuel Antonio, a spectacular concentration of wildlife: three-toed sloths, pilfering capuchins, endemic squirrel monkeys above turquoise coves. In the evening, you set down your bags at a waterfront hotel on the Tárcoles side.

Two hours of gentle sailing on the Tárcoles river and the Guacalillo estuary, at the gates of Carara park: American crocodiles by the dozen, scarlet macaws crossing the sky in pairs, wading birds galore. Back for lunch, then free time: pool, beach, siesta — tomorrow, a change of country.

A last look at the crocodiles from the Tárcoles bridge, then the road to San José airport and a flight (included) to Panama City. Welcome on arrival and check-in at a 4★ hotel: a total change of scene, from the Pacific jungles to skyscrapers facing the bay.

You don't just talk about the Panama Canal : you sail it. Boarding at Gamboa, your boat enters the Culebra Cut, dug through the continental divide of the Americas, descends the Pedro Miguel then Miraflores locks — a 27-meter aquatic elevator — and finishes under the Bridge of the Americas, Panama City's skyline in sight. Lunch on board, commentary by a local guide (English/Spanish).

Optional: private French-speaking guide for the canal cruise (quote upon request).

An hour and a half from the capital, Chagres National Park protects the river that feeds the canal — and the villages of the Emberá people. After 45 minutes by dugout canoe, a musical welcome: ephemeral jagua tattoos, fine basketry, dances, and a botanical walk devoted to healing plants. For lunch, fish and plantains served in a banana leaf. A day of exchange you come back from changed.

Crossing the isthmus to the Caribbean coast and the Colón region. At the mouth of the Chagres, San Lorenzo fort has stood guard since 1598: coral walls, Spanish cannons, memories of the pirate Henry Morgan. You continue with the Gatún locks — the canal's most monumental — before returning to Panama City for the evening.

A day of history in two acts: first the ruins of Panamá La Vieja, founded in 1519 and razed by Morgan's raid; then the Old Town, a colonial gem listed by UNESCO — churches, Plaza de Francia, Plaza Bolívar, and flowered balconies. Lunch in the quarter, the canal museum if time allows, and a stop at the Miraflores platform to watch the cargo ships pass. Tonight, you pack your bags: the islands await.

A small plane from Albrook, heading for Playón Chico: beneath the wings, the coral islets of the San Blas scroll by in a gradient of blues. Your Guna host welcomes you at the airstrip and takes you by motorized canoe to the ecolodge, set on a private island: bungalows facing the sea, solar power, waterside restaurant. A first swim in waters worthy of a screensaver.

Depending on island lodge availability, this Caribbean stay may occasionally be operated in Bocas del Toro, in a stilt lodge — the current formula is confirmed with your booking.

Three timeless days in the Guna Yala archipelago, an autonomous territory where the Guna people keep their island way of life alive. Every day, your hosts offer excursions: canoe crossings to deserted islands, snorkeling over the coral heads, visits to villages and their sand-covered lanes, mola sewing demonstrations — those flamboyant embroidered textiles you won't leave without. Between outings: hammock, coconut palms, and full board at the lodge.

This portion of the trip takes place in accompanied freedom: the included excursions are guided by your local hosts, without a tour guide.

One last breakfast with your feet in the sand, canoe to the airstrip and domestic flight (included) to Panama City. You reach the international airport in the early afternoon: plan a return flight departing after 4pm. Seventeen days, two countries, an archipelago — and memories for ten years.