THE RAINFOREST, SEA, AND BEACHES here brim with life — howler monkeys, jaguars, blue morpho butterflies the size of dinner plates — bisected by a canal built on a scale never before attempted by man. Mayan and colonial relics hint at past glories, shrouded in jungle and hidden deep within Belize’s limestone caves. Latin cuisines burst on the palate with the exuberance of a mariachi band. Absorb the Lost World vibe of Bahía Drake and lounge on the beach of the San Blas Islands. Meet Embera Indians in Panama and search the Costa Rican rainforest for endangered species. You are an explorer by day, with cocktails on the pool deck at 5.