Isla de Ometepe

Ometepe never fails to impress. Its twin volcanic peaks ('fire' and 'water'), rising up out of Lago de Nicaragua, have captured the imagination of everyone from precolonial Aztecs (who thought they’d found the promised land) to Mark Twain (who waxed lyrical about it in his book Travels with Mr Brown) – not to mention the relatively few travelers who make it out here. The island’s fertile volcanic soil, clean waters, wide beaches, wildlife population, off-the-beaten track farmstays, archaeological sites and dramatic profile are quickly propelling it up traveler must-see lists.