Costa Rica and Puerto Rico are both blessed with protected tropical rainforests and diverse wildlife. Costa Rica is home to monkeys, sloths, poison-dart frogs, endangered sea turtles, and toucans. The small Central American country also has cloud forests, with 27 percent of the country's natural resources being conserved. Puerto Rico is home to El Yunque, the only tropical rainforest in the United States National Forest System. The 28,000-acre El Yunque National Forest is home to as many as 50 different species of birds including the endangered Puerto Rican parrot, as well as tree frogs. Puerto Rico's major natural attraction is its phosphorescent bays, located in the Las Cabezas de San Juan Nature Reserve, which is best toured at night.
In Puerto Rico, the northwest beaches are popular with surfers. The area of Rincón is a popular surfing destination with surf camps and a cheap hostel, a rarity for Puerto Rico, located in the small seaside city. Corona sponsors an annual surf competition in Rincón and nearby Isabela. In Costa Rica, the Pacific side of the country is especially popular with surfers, with Playa Tamarindo being the central surfing spot. For those seeking a less crowded and developed area, there are beaches all up the northwestern coast including nearby Playa Grande.
Both Puerto Rico and Costa Rica are home to spas and resorts. With Puerto Rico's temperatures rarely varying more then six degrees, staying around 80-to-86 degrees Fahrenheit year-round, and Costa Rica's proximity to the equator, both destinations are excellent destinations to escape cold autumn and winter temperatures. Costa Rica offers the opportunity to stay in a spa resort overlooking an active volcano, nestled into the rainforest, while Puerto Rico is host a golf resort and spa overlooking both the Atlantic and the Caribbean on 500 acres of land and an onsite water park.
