WHAT’S NEW
Brazil launches Latin America’s longest marked hiking trail
Intrepid hikers from all over the world will be excited to tackle the Trilha Amazônia Atlântica (Amazon Atlantic Trail), the longest waymarked trail in Latin America, which was officially launched at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in November 2025. Crossing the whole of the Brazilian state of Pará from west to east, this mammoth trail spans 290 miles of jungles, mountains, meadows, cities and villages, beginning in the historic centre of state capital, Belém. It passes through the lands of the Quilombolas, the descendants of enslaved Afro-Brazilians. Quilombola culture is characterised by lively samba parties and the practice of Candomblé, a fusion between Central and West African religion and Catholicism; the trail is set up to foster beneficial encounters between villagers and tourists.
trilhaamazoniaatlantica.com.br
Costa Rica expands Indigenous-led tourism experiences
Costa Rica has expanded its Raíces programme, which supports sustainable tourism in the country’s Indigenous communities. Announced in 2025, the initiative backs locally led experiences that celebrate cultural heritage while creating economic opportunities, with visits to Boruca mask-makers and Bribri chocolatiers among the ventures receiving support. It shines a spotlight on a side of Costa Rica often overshadowed by its extraordinary biodiversity. While the country has around 6% of the world’s plant and animal species, despite being almost five times smaller than the UK, it’s also home to eight Indigenous groups, including the Boruca, known for their elaborate ceremonial masks, and the Bribri, whose matrilineal society maintains traditions centred around sacred cacao.
bribricostarica.com
Peru opens the ancient desert city of Peñico to visitors
While it certainly isn’t ‘new’, the Peruvian desert city of Peñico — established around 1800 BCE — opened to the public in July 2025 after eight years of excavations and research. Built nearly 4,000 years ago on the rust-red hillsides of the Supe Valley, a four-hour drive north of Lima, it was once a thriving settlement of the Caral, one of the world’s earliest civilisations. Today, visitors can explore excavated round plazas and ritual spaces, while a new visitor centre reveals how the peaceful trading society farmed sweet potatoes and chilli peppers, carved figurines and played flute music. Highlights include the Andean Science and Technology Tunnel, which showcases the Caral people’s surprisingly advanced way of life.
zonacaral.gob.pe/ruta-caral/penico.html
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER – LATIN AMERICA COLLECTION 9
IMAGES: INTREPID TRAVEL; TRILHA AMAZÔNIA ATLÂNTICA; GETTY; ALAMY
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