Protected Areas in Central America

Los Quetzales National Park encompasses what was formerly the Los Santos Forest Reserve, stretching across 12,355 acres of both rain forest and cloud forest, encompassing fourteen different ecosystems. The park is named for the colorful Resplendent Quetzal which is found here.

Manuel Antonio National Park is a small national park in the Central Pacific Conservation Area located on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, just south of the city of Quepos, Puntarenas. It is well known for its beautiful beaches and hiking trails and includes 12 small islets just off the coast.

Masaya Volcano National Park, consisting of a volcanic caldera with two volcanoes and five craters, was established in 1979 as Nicaragua's first national park. Volcán Masaya is one Nicaragua's most popular tourist attractions due to the opportunity of direct contact with the crater.

The Maya Biosphere Reserve in the Petén region of northern Guatemala, together with the Maya Forest of Belize and Mexico, represents one of the largest areas of tropical forest north of the Amazon and the northernmost in the Western Hemisphere.

The Maya Mountains are a range of hills in west-central Belize that take their name from the Maya people who built great centers in the region. The Cockscomb Range is a spur of the Maya Mountains and includes Victoria Peak, a national monument of Belize.

Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is a Costa Rican protected area located along the Cordillera de Tilarán. Named after the nearby town of Monteverde and extending over 35,000 acres, the cloud forest reserve is visited by roughly 70,000 visitors a year.

Chirripó National Park is named for its most prominent feature, Cerro Chirripó, the highest mountain in Costa Rica. The park hosts important areas of Talamancan montane forest and Costa Rican páramo, with high endemism and extremely high biodiversity.

Ometepe Island is located in southwest Nicaragua, formed by two volcanoes rising out of Lake Nicargua. It is the lake's largest island. The two imposing volcanoes, Maderas and Concepcion, define its topography. The island was designated a Biosphere Reserve in 2010.

Palo Verde National Park contains much of the area of the valley of the Tempisque River in Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica. The park protects one of the most endangered ecosystems. It is one of the last remaining tropical dry rain forests that once covered most of Central America.

Piedras Blancas National Park, located in southern Costa Rica, protects over 34,000 acres of evergreen primary forest, indigenous plants and wildlife. The park is home to a number of rare tropical trees and is the habitat for many species of birds, reptiles and mammals.