Costa Rica punches far above its weight. A country of just four million people manages to contain around 5% of the world’s biodiversity, two coastlines washed by different oceans, cloud forests, volcanoes, jungle rivers and a philosophy of living - Pura Vida - that has made it one of the happiest and most visited destinations in the world. But most people only scratch the surface. In this episode of Wanderlust: Off the Page, we’re going beyond the busy seasons and well-known highlights to discover a country of distinct regions, each offering something different all year round, from the rainforests of the Osa Peninsula to the music, food and wildlife of the Caribbean coast. Joining host Aaron Millar is TV presenter and journalist Alex Outhwaite, fresh back from a trip to the Caribbean coast, where a vibrant Afro-Caribbean culture offers something entirely different from the more-visited Pacific side. Isaac Rios Orozco is a professional tour guide with the Costa Rican Tourism Institute, who knows every corner of his country inside out and has a few secrets to share. And Maggie Wolfson, travel expert at Journey Latin America, who fell in love with Costa Rica while backpacking and now sends people there for a living. This is Costa Rica: the Road Less Travelled. Let Pura Vida work its magic. Highlights include: The Caribbean coast: Costa Rica’s best-kept secret. The Afro-Caribbean food scene of Puerto Viejo, sloths listening to reggaeton outside a local restaurant, and why Cahuita National Park might be the most intimate wildlife experience in the country. Seeing the forest through indigenous eyes. Alex’s visit to the Bribri Indigenous Territory near Puerto Viejo, and a medicinal plant walk that showed her a way of reading a landscape that most of us have entirely forgotten. Tortuguero: a little piece of the Amazon. No roads in, just boat or plane. Wildlife visible from your hammock. And at the right time of year, sea turtles laying their eggs on the beach at night. Isaac’s pick for one of the unmissable experiences in the country. The Osa Peninsula and Corcovado National Park. One of the most biodiverse places on Earth, and one of the best places in the country to experience Costa Rica’s wild nature at its purest. You arrive by boat on the beach, every visitor goes in with a guide, and the stone spheres of nearby Isla del Caño - ancient, perfectly round and entirely unexplained - are a highlight of any stay. Why the green season might be the best time to go. The rain is warm, it usually comes around happy hour, and the forests turn a deeper, more luminous shade of green. Alex says if anything it makes the country more beautiful. Beyond the highlights: the places the experts go. Boca Tapada in the north, Río Celeste and the Bijagua area, the birdwatching and white-water rafting of Sarapiquí, and the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge south of Puerto Viejo, where you can spot tiny red poison-dart frogs on quiet trails with almost no one else around. Find Out More Plan your Costa Rica adventure at visitcostarica.comBook a tailor-made Costa Rica trip with Journey Latin America at journeylatinamerica.com/destinations/costa-rica Thank You to Our Guests Alex Outhwaite, TV presenter and journalist. Instagram @AlexOuthwaite. Amazon Prime Video: The WandererIsaac Rigg Orozco, tour guide and Costa Rica expert. Instagram @ironliner1979Maggie Wilson, Costa Rica travel expert at Journey Latin America - journeylatinamerica.com/destinations/costa-rica Intrepid Travel Thanks to our series sponsor Intrepid, the leading specialists in small group adventures. To plan an adventure of your own, check out their small group trips at intrepidtravel.com Wanderlust: Off the Page Take the road less travelled with us and subscribe to the show so you never miss an adventure. Wanderlust Magazine Wanderlust is the UK’s leading independent travel magazine, taking the road less travelled since 1993. Find out more at wanderlustmagazine.com Become a Wanderlust Club Member to join a community of passionate travellers, with print editions, exclusive content and more. Credits This episode was produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry. Lyn Hughes and Peter Moore introduce the show. Aaron Millar is the interviewer and script editor. Audio production by Charles Tyrie.