THE FUSE

Few countries reward the independent traveller quite like Costa Rica. In a territory smaller than Scotland, you can wake up to howler monkeys on the Caribbean, lunch beside a smoking volcano, and watch the sun sink into the Pacific — all connected by roads that range from smooth highway to jungle track. That variety is precisely why this is a destination best explored on four wheels, at your own pace, with room in the itinerary for the detours that end up being the highlight of the trip.