6 countries, 92 day and unlimited number of experiences and crazy travel adventures – this is how my Central American backpacking could be summed up.
In 2015 I also travelled through 7 countries of South America within 5 months and you can also read about my budget for South America. However, in this article I would like to show you places which I visited during my 3 month crazy backpacking journey across 6 countries of Central America – Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Salvador and Guatemala. You can also read my article about my budget for this crazy 3 month backpacking journey through Central America.
So let´s have a look at my 3 month itinerary for these 6 countries of Central America. Countries which are very often associated with poverty, high criminality and danger. Countries of the third world. Countries which left me speechless and made me fall in love with them. Countries where I return one day for sure. 🙂
1. Ciudad de Panama
2. Island Mamey – my highlight of Panama
3. Valle de Anton
4. Villages Las Tablas, La Palma
5. Beach Venao – great spot for surfers
6. Boquete – nice hikes to rainforests
1. Drake Bay – on the Pacific coast
2. San Isidro / San Gerardo
3. San Jose – cpaital
4. Cartago + volcano Irazu
5. Heredia + volcano Barva
6. Las Vegas de Rio Frio – great local experience
7. Puerto Viejo / Manzanillo / Cahuita – on the Caribbean coast
8. San Ramon
9. La Fortuna & Rio Celeste – amazing place where I lived and did volunteering for 3 weeks
1. San Juan del Sur – great spot for surfers
2. Ometepe island + volcano Concepcion – my highlight of Nicaragua
3. Granada + village Katarina & lagoon Apoyo
4. Leon + volcano Cerro Negro – awesome volcano boarding
1. Choluteca
2. Island Amapala – super nice island in the Pacific ocean
1. Chirilagua + San Miguel + Playa de las Flores
2. La Libertad + El Tunco
3. San Salvador
4. Casa Crystal + volcano Santa Ana – my highlight of Salvador
5. Santa Ana a surrounding, so called Ruta de las Flores (hot waterfalls Salto Malacatiupan, villages Chalchuap & Ataco, waterfalls Los Chorros de Calera)
1. Ciudad de Guatemala
2. Community 29th of December & Zaragoza & Chimaltenango
3. Lake Atitlán & village Panajachel
4. Antigua + volcano Acatenango & Fuego – volcano with lava eruption
5. Cobán
6. Lagoon Lachua – almost untouched by tourism – my highlight of Guatemala
7. Lanquin & famous Semuc Champey
8. Flores & famous ruins Tikal
In Central America I spent in total 92 days. Before coming to Panama I travelled through the Caribbean coast of Colombia and after Guatemala I went to Mexico where I finished my great journey. Afterwards, I moved to Canada with Working Holiday Visa to start new chapter of my adventures. In case you have more questions for Central America, please don´t hesitate and ask. Feel free to share the article further and help me inspire as many people as possible. 🙂
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And if you are interested in more articles on CENTRAL AMERICA – click HERE. On SOUTH AMERICA click HERE. 🙂
PS: Looking for great travel insurance with great prices? Insurance which you can book even when your journey has already started? Have a look at The True Traveller. I am more than happy with them. 🙂
Hi Mili,
Loved stumbling upon your site and have found it very helpful! I am heading to Costa Rica for a month late November, and in trying to be spontaneous I only bought a one way ticket, which now I have learned will be a problem during departure. I have no idea where I will be going after my month or for how long, but I don’t expect to come back to Canada until the winter is over! I also was really wanting to explore Nicaragua but it doesn’t seem to be getting any safer to travel there right now.
Any tips on a travel plan around Nicaragua, as well as how to ensure I have onward travel plans in place before I head out?
Thanks for any insight! Your pictures are so beautiful and making me excited 🙂
Hi Carrie, thanks for your comment 🙂 First of all, you need to have proof of onward travel out of Costa Rica, they will check it even before boarding your plane, you can make a reservation for a flight out of country in a way to cancel it without any fees (you have to google it out which airlines allow that) or book a bus ticket out of country. I had similar issue in Costa Rica while entering it over land from Panama, I had no onward proof of travel and they didnt let me in until I booked a flight which I cancelled immediately after entering. It was through Slovak website pelikan.sk 🙂
Regarding Nicaragua, go to my section of “Nicaragua” and you will find many useful and inspirational articles about this country but MUST SEEN place is definitely island Ometepe 🙂
Mucha suerte and enjoy it! Btw, I am living now in Canada, Vancouver 😉
Hi!
This article made me decide to book a ticket to costa rica. I am 22 years old student and a girl. I was wondering how safe and easy Costa Rica is to travel? You took local buses?
I just traveled 3 months in Indonesia and it was the easiest way of traveling, but I’m a bit worried Costa Rica (and Nicaragua…) are more difficult.
Thank you in advance!
Axelle Weekx
Hi Axelle, travelling across Costa Rica was very safe, I even hitchiked from place to place but no worries, buses work more or less perfectly, sometimes you need to take more of them in order to get where you need to but everything there is easy and people are amazing 🙂 I even took bus to get to border with Nicaragua and from there other buses to travel across rest of Central America 🙂