Ten lush rainforest-and-reef escapes for nature lovers

For some travellers the beach is only half the story — the other half croaks, chatters and swings through the canopy behind it. These ten destinations put primary rainforest and living coral within the same day's reach, so you can watch monkeys at breakfast and parrotfish by noon. Expect early starts, the odd tropical downpour and the deep satisfaction of a holiday where the wildlife documentary happens around you.

Costa Rica's smallest national park distils the whole country into a few square kilometres: sloths dozing above the trail, capuchins plotting theft on the beach and toucans yodelling at dawn. The beaches inside the park are postcard-ready, and the town runs on smoothie-and-surfboard time. December to April is driest — book park tickets ahead and hire a guide with a spotting scope.

Sabah is the heavyweight: orangutans at the Sepilok sanctuary, pygmy elephants along the Kinabatangan river and, offshore, the coral gardens of Sipadan — routinely ranked among the world's top dive sites. Add Mount Kinabalu's granite summit for the ambitious. June to September gives the best wildlife odds. It's a trip that rearranges your sense of what 'nature' means.

The twin volcanic Pitons rise straight from the Caribbean like a dare, with rainforest draped over everything between them. Hike the Gros Piton trail in the morning, soak in volcanic mud baths at Sulphur Springs after lunch and snorkel the reef at Anse Chastanet before rum punch. December to May is the dry season. Few islands pack this much drama into so little space.

The Caribbean's self-styled Nature Island has no big resorts and no interest in acquiring any. Instead: 365 rivers, boiling lakes, gorges you swim through, and sperm whales resident offshore all year — Dominica is the world's best place to snorkel alongside them (permits required). February to May is driest. Come for the hiking; stay because the island refuses to be hurried.

Tobago's Main Ridge Forest Reserve is the oldest protected rainforest in the western hemisphere — bird-filled, waterfall-laced and twenty minutes from the beach. Giant leatherback turtles nest on Turtle Beach between March and August, and the reefs at Speyside teem with life. It's the Caribbean without the polish, which is precisely its charm. Curried crab and dumplings is the essential lunch.

The Seychelles' main island hides a mountainous green interior most visitors never touch: the Morne Seychellois trails climb through mist forest with ocean views that reset your screensaver standards. Below, beaches like Anse Major — reachable only on foot or by boat — and reef snorkelling at Port Launay complete the pairing. April, May, October and November bring the calmest seas.

Nowhere else do two World Heritage sites touch: at Cape Tribulation the Daintree — the oldest rainforest on Earth — runs straight down the beach to meet the Great Barrier Reef. Cassowaries stalk the boardwalks, crocodiles patrol the estuaries and snorkel boats leave for the reef from the beach itself. Drive up from Cairns via the Daintree River ferry and stay overnight in a jungle lodge. Visit May to September, when stingers and humidity both relent.

This Caribbean archipelago off Panama's north coast alternates between rainforest and reef every few hundred metres: sloths in the mangroves at Bastimentos, red frogs on the beach that bears their name and starfish scattered across the shallows at Playa Estrella like dropped decorations. Water taxis are the buses here — negotiate the fare before boarding. Base yourself in Bocas Town for the restaurants, then day-trip. February, March, September and October are the drier windows.

Guadeloupe's butterfly shape splits the work neatly: Grande-Terre does the beaches while mountainous Basse-Terre handles the jungle, with the smoking Soufrière volcano, the triple-tiered Carbet Falls and a national park laced with swimmable pools. Offshore, the Cousteau Reserve at Pigeon Island offers the French Caribbean's best snorkelling. It's a département of France, so euros work and the cheese is serious. December to May is driest; hire a car, since buses respect nobody's itinerary.

El Yunque is the only tropical rainforest in the US national forest system — 29,000 acres of waterfalls, coquí frogs and mist an hour from San Juan — and pairing it with a reef is trivially easy. Snorkel from Culebra's Flamenco Beach, regularly voted among the world's best, or kayak the bioluminescent bay at Fajardo after dark. Reserve El Yunque and bio-bay slots online days ahead. December to April is the dry, hurricane-free season.