• Introduction
• 1. Ambergris Caye, Belize
• 2. Barra de Santiago, El Salvador
• 3. Bocas del Toro, Panama
• 4. Hopkins, Belize
• 5. Mal Pais, Costa Rica
• 6. Placencia, Belize
• 7. Roatán, Honduras
• 8. Santa Teresa, Costa Rica
• 9. San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua
• 10. San Juan del Sur (outskirts), Nicaragua

San Juan del Sur (outskirts), Nicaragua

Thirty minutes outside the village of San Juan del Sur (see no. 9) and near the Costa Rican border, Morgan's Rock Hacienda & Ecolodge—set up by a French couple as a conservation project—rests on more than 4,400 acres of protected forest, complete with an estuary and private beach. Fifteen primitive-chic bungalows blend into the jungle hillside; each is crafted from a medley of local timber and outfitted with private decks facing west to catch the sunset. Not for acrophobes, the bungalows are connected to the main lodge by a 325-foot suspension bridge that crosses a leafy canyon. Guests dine at La Bastide, which serves Nicaraguan-Asian-French fusion cuisine with many ingredients (like the brown sugar) produced on-site. To get there, fly into the cities of Liberia or San José in Costa Rica, or to Managua, and then take a 2- to 3-hour car transfer to the resort. From $241/night, all inclusive; morgansrock.com

See Belize Travel GuideSee Costa Rica Travel Guide