The Pacuare River near Turrialba is one of the best white-water rafting destinations on the planet

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.

It´s not just the reliability of the raging rapids that secure Pacuare´s reputation.  When you´re not hanging on for dear life, this is one hell of a scenic ride, with the river rushing through canyons flanked by primary rainforest, crashing waterfalls and indigenous reserves.

Back on dry land, Turrialba has plenty to offer sightseers. The summit of the (increasingly active) Turrialba Volcano can be reached on foot or by rough road. At the top, it´s surprisingly chilly (be sure to pack a sweater), but you´ll have prime views of the volcano´s belching craters.

Plant-lovers and birders will want to head just east of Turrialba to CATIE (Centro Agronomico Tropical de Investigacion y Ensenanza), one of the world´s premier tropical agricultural research and education centres. Visitors can take both guided and self-guided tours of its 1000-hectare campus. The Botanic Gardens – thriving with all manner of exotic tropical species – has a few edible goodies, including borogo, starfruit, zapote and passionfruit. Nearly 300 of Costa Rica´s 850 species of birds have been spotted on the CATIE campus, and the lagoon here offers superb opportunities for observing rare waterbirds such as the purple gallinule. A cayman is also said to lurk beneath the lagoon´s lilly pad-strewn surface.

If your interests are far more reptilian, the Parque Viborana, 10km east of Turrialba, is one of the best snake parks in the country, with an emphasis on rehabilitating rare species and educating the public on snake safety.

Slightly further afield on the slopes of the Turrialba Volcano lies the Guayabo National Monument, Costa Rica´s most significant archaeological site. While it´s certainly no Machu Pichu, it´s a fascinating and peaceful site with partly-excavated pre-Columbian ruins strewn amid premontane rainforest. This site (which dates back to 1000BC) is thought to have at one time been home to as many as 20,000 people. The remains of houses, an impressive aqueduct system, an 8km road and Costa Rica´s oldest bridge can be found here.

If it´s high time you learnt to speak the local lingo, or just want to brush up on your Espanol, Turrialba has an excellent and reasonably-priced Spanish school, Spanish By the River. Just five kilometres out of town, you can conjugate verbs while surrounded by coffee plantations. The school can also arange volunteer opportunities in the local community.