Green escapes that get you up close and personal with the great outdoors

BELIZE

Mama Noots Backabush, Mayflower Bocawina National Park
Price: Doubles, $90–$150
Hiding beneath the jungle canopy of southern Belize's Mayflower Bocawina National Park are stunning waterfalls, unexcavated Mayan ruins, and Mama Noots Backabush resort. This ecolodge is totally off the grid, relying on solar, wind, and hydro systems for electricity. It has six rooms, all with queen beds, ceiling fans, and verandas. Two spacious thatched-roof cabanas—one perfect for adventurous families, the other suited for lovebirds—have stunning jungle views. The restaurant cooks up fine fare using local seafood and homegrown produce, and even manages to keep vegetarians and vegans happy.
Book: The Kush Kush Tapi Cabana to feel like you're alone in the wilderness (501-670-8019; mamanoots.com).
Best for: Indulging your inner archaeologist/adventurer.
Rental car: Required—go with a four-by-four.

COSTA RICA

Finca Rosa Blanca Country Inn, Santa Bárbara de Heredia
Price: Doubles, $290–$350
This small eco-gem on seven tree-studded acres overlooks sustainable coffee farms, volcanoes, and cloud forests. The seven junior suites in the main lodge are the most affordable, but there's little sacrifice in these spacious quarters, each with arched windows, original artwork, tiled bathrooms, and gorgeous hardwood floors. For even more space and privacy, splurge on one of the two villas or the whimsical two-story master suite, where a spiral staircase leads to a window-walled tower bedroom. Owners Teri and Glenn Jampol have consistently garnered the highest eco-credentials. One of the highlights of the property is the 30-acre organic coffee farm shaded by 5,000-plus trees strategically placed to create corridors for birds and wildlife.
Book: El Cafetal, where even the bathtub has sublime views (506-2269-9392; finca-rblanca.co.cr).
Best for: Sybarites with a wild side.
Rental car: Not required and not allowed on the property.

Selva Bananito Lodge and Preserve, Bananito
Price: Doubles, $260–$280
From the ridge on which Selva Bananito has planted its 11 stilted cabins, you can peer out over dense jungle into the Amistad Biosphere, which borders this lodge's private reserve. But the view might not have been so stunning if owner Rudi Stein had followed through with his plans to log this patch of land back in the early 1990s. Instead, he built one of the country's premier ecolodges—going so far as to construct every building out of abandoned mahogany logs harvested with the aid of water buffalo. Indeed, Selva Bananito is an off-the-grid true-green experience: Oil lamps and candles replace electricity, water is solar heated, and waste is recycled or composted. But the eco-cred doesn't come at the cost of comfort. The 12 rooms are well designed and have private bathrooms and large terraces strung with hammocks. At night, candlelit dinners of locally harvested fare are served in the dining room—or for a romantic twist, on your balcony, with a symphony of birds, bats, and tree frogs as your dinner music.
Book: A Superior cabin for a view of the rain forest from your bed (506-2253-8118; selvabananito.com).
Best for: Avid campers who appreciate a little pampering.
Rental car: Not required, but recommended for exploring the area.