A beachside national park swinging with squirrel monkeys elevates Manuel Antonio above the ranks of just another Pacific beach town.

Shrouded in mist and only accessible by the bumpiest roads you may ever set wheels on, the neighbouring mountain communities of Monteverde and Santa Elena are the most visited destinations in Costa Rica. 

Alright, so the town´s nothing special – a bustling, dirty agricultural centre that lies in the shadow of the Turrialba Volcano. But if you´re a white-water rafter or kayaker, you´ll definitely want to drop your anchor here.

Two nearby rivers – Rio Reventazon and Rio Pacuare – are Meccas for all manner of adrenal-fuelled water-sports, with the Pacuare considered one of the top five white-water rafting rivers in the world.

Surfing and sea turtles put this Pacific town on the map.

And its recent rapid transformation from sleepy fishing village to garish gringo beach resort is a story that is becoming all too (depressingly) common along Costa Rica's overdeveloped Guanacaste coast.

Pollution, drugs and prostitution have followed the tourists, but has done little to deter the endless stream of North Americans and Europeans from coming here.

Jutting out into the turquoise Caribbean Sea, Cahuita has come to epitomise Costa Rica's laid-back east coast.

A Rasta culture prevails in this sheltered village, with the local Afro-Caribbean immigrant community reggae-ing it down with a steady stream of backpackers.

Accessible only by boat or plane, the coastal Tortuguero National Park is one of the world´s most important nesting sites for marine turtles.

The cumbersome creatures scramble ashore in the dead of night to bury their eggs along the same sprawling black-sand beach where they themselves were born. Weeks later, the hatchlings emerge and promptly stumble towards the ocean to take refuge from predators.

Not so long ago, the neighbouring towns of Mal Pais and Santa Teresa on Costa Rica´s southern Nicoya Peninsula were little more than sleepy surfer´s hangouts.

Lots of shirtless foreign males flocked here to smoke weed, ride the waves and eat pot-fulls of pasta (usually in that order). They were living out the surfer dude dream on a rock-bottom budget.

The secret´s long been out about Montezuma. Waterfall pools, jungle-fringed surf beaches and rocky coves beckon bohemians, beach bums and the occasional Hollywood beauty to this tiny beachside town. 

It huffs and it puffs, it dribbles and it rumbles, and at night, everyone oohs and aahs as red hot glowing lava dribbles down its side.

As one of the world´s most active volcanoes, a healthy tourist industry and some of the country´s most opulent hotels have set up shop in Arenal´s shadow.

The dusty village of Cano Negro in Costa Rica´s sweltering northern lowlands is home to a wetlands refuge that is one of the top birdwatching destinations in the country.

Formed by the seasonal flooding of the Rio Frio and the Cano Negro Lagoon, the 100-square-kilometre Refugio Nacional de Vida Silvestre Cano Negro is considered one of the four most important wetland areas in the world.

Rara Avis was Costa Rica's first bona fide ecolodge and as such could be held responsible for giving birth to the country's lucrative ecotourism industry. 

Set on the edge of the massive Braulio Carrillo National Park, this 1500-acre rainforest reserve and nature lodge lies on a northeast-facing mountainside and receives the cooling tradewinds of the Atlantic Coast.

Unless you´re a dirty old North American man in search of a cheap, underage Latina prostitute, there´s no real reason to pass through Costa Rica´s frenetic capital city.

¨But,¨ I hear you cry, ¨It´s the closest city to the airport and I´ll need to stay there the night I fly into Costa Rica and the night before I fly out.¨

Jutting out into the Pacific Ocean in Costa Rica´s extreme southwest, the remote and pristine Osa Peninsula offers the country´s most magical experience for rainforest lovers.