--- title: El Camino de Costa Rica: World’s Greatest Places 2026 description: Find out why El Camino de Costa Rica is on TIME’s list of the World’s Greatest Places 2026. canonical: https://time.com/collection/worlds-greatest-places/2026/el-camino-de-costa-rica/ article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-03-12T10:56:44.654Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-12T10:56:44.731Z article:section: World og:title: El Camino de Costa Rica: World's Greatest Places 2026 og:description: Find out why El Camino de Costa Rica is one of the World's Greatest Places 2026 og:url: https://time.com/collection/worlds-greatest-places/2026/el-camino-de-costa-rica/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt446b40d9955fe415/69b051101d80ac1185828a72/ElCaminodeCostaRica_WGP_2026.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: El Camino de Costa Rica: World's Greatest Places 2026 og:type: article twitter:card: summary twitter:title: El Camino de Costa Rica: World's Greatest Places 2026 twitter:description: Find out why El Camino de Costa Rica is one of the World's Greatest Places 2026 twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt446b40d9955fe415/69b051101d80ac1185828a72/ElCaminodeCostaRica_WGP_2026.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Mar 12, 2026 # El Camino de Costa Rica Costa Rica by [Laura Dannen Redman](https://time.com/author/laura-dannen-redman/) ## Laura Dannen Redman  Courtesy El Camino de Costa Rica Some people walk a _camino_ for self-reflection; others for discovery. In Costa Rica, travelers come to get their feet wet—sometimes literally—on [El Camino de Costa Rica](https://caminodecostarica.org/), a newly certified 174-mile route linking the Caribbean and Pacific coasts. The trail crosses rushing rivers, cloud-covered mountains, and dense rain forest, unfolding in 16 stages that can be tackled all at once or in sections. The reward is access to a side of Costa Rica many visitors never see. Hikers travel to a rural hamlet where a family welcomes them into their home; through the Nairi-Awari Indigenous Reserve with a local Cabécar guide; and past working banana, pineapple, cacao, coffee, and sugarcane plantations. For the full end-to-end experience, specialist outfitters like [Urritrek](https://urritrekcostarica.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoq92umLkChmKuo2dZJdYRqon8eLEKQo0DvpgeJcuSYrrA2dP8O6) handle logistics, ferry luggage, introduce trekkers to local farmers, and point out the wildlife—iguanas, toucans, spider monkeys, hummingbirds—that accompanies nearly every step. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collection/worlds-greatest-places/2026/el-camino-de-costa-rica/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collection/worlds-greatest-places/2026/el-camino-de-costa-rica/"},"headline":"El Camino de Costa Rica","datePublished":"2026-03-12T10:56:44.654Z","dateModified":"2026-03-12T10:56:44.731Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collection/worlds-greatest-places/2026/el-camino-de-costa-rica/","keywords":["World's Greatest Places","Costa Rica","list","franchise"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt446b40d9955fe415/69b051101d80ac1185828a72/ElCaminodeCostaRica_WGP_2026.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Laura Dannen Redman","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/laura-dannen-redman/"}],"creator":"Laura Dannen Redman","articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt446b40d9955fe415/69b051101d80ac1185828a72/ElCaminodeCostaRica_WGP_2026.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/worlds-greatest-places/","name":"World's Greatest Places"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collection/worlds-greatest-places/2026/el-camino-de-costa-rica/","name":"El Camino de Costa Rica"}}]}] ```