It depends on what you mean by the rain forest. If you mean a tropical forest near a beach, fine, but I went to a Guatemalan beach near a rain forest and it was SO hot and there were unbearable mosquitoes and overall it was not an enjoyable experience. If I were you I would just go to the beach and then go to a forest / mountain situation. A rainforest right by a beach is by definition sticky and mosquito ridden.

Kauai, if you can handle the flight and time zones with young kids. It has lovely beaches, and easy to get to the rainforest on the north side of the island. Small towns, very relaxed and chill kind of vibe.

But some caveats: you have to be careful with the beaches, especially in winter. Some are well protected and safe, others can be more treacherous than you'd think by looking at them. Do your homework and pay attention to warnings. Also, the north side can be quite rainy (hence the rainforests) - it's still warm, and we mostly encountered passing showers that didn't really bother us, but don't expect rainforest with perfectly sunny skies all the time. However, when it does rain, it's an easy one-hour drive to the east or south side of the island where it'll almost certainly be sunny when you're ready for a day of sun.

Anonymous wrote:Belize was a great rainforest and beach combination. But the best parts wouldn't be accessible (or fun) with a toddler.

Agree. I would wait for a few years before doing this trip.

Anonymous wrote:We are looking to book a beach-rainforest combo trip with 2 under 3 for next winter. We have looked into Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, and Panama. Are we missing any other good options to investigate? We would like to minimize car travel, if possible. Maybe that isn't an option and we should stick to a more typical beach trip. Welcome suggestions!

Northeastern Australia. No I'm being serious- it will be summertime there, and there are gorgeous rainforests and gorgeous beaches. You'll thank me. Maybe not on the plane trip, but, later.

Anonymous wrote:I was going to say if you do Panama to skip San Blas - we were terribly bored. Heard better about Bocas del Toro. Also Belize and CR.

Really? We loved it but were treated to boat rides in traditional dug out canoes but motorized and had tour guides explaining some of the rich native traditions on different islands. Also they have some unique colorful art made out of cloth. Plus the fresh seafood was yum.

But it is clearly not for everyone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you done with having kids? I wouldn’t go anywhere with Zika until I knew I wouldn’t have any more kids.

The travel vaccines for Costa Rica would make me pause, as would the anti malarial treatment. Just adds more logistical hurdles to plan.

Wait what? People take anti malaria drugs to go to Costa Rica? Is that for real? Well cross that off my list.

I went to Costa Rica and there were no travel vaccines or anti-malarials involved.

I was going to say if you do Panama to skip San Blas - we were terribly bored. Heard better about Bocas del Toro. Also Belize and CR.

Anonymous wrote:That sounds like a nightmare trip!

It sounds heavenly to me and it was for us. We did such a trip in Panama with a toddler and all went very well. The ecotourism lodges near rainforests can be very comfortable and there are usually toddler friendly places to stay near nice beaches. The place where we stayed on a San blas island even caught fresh seafood to eat every day and you could hear the waves lapping underneath the cabin rooms on stilts.

Please let us know where you decide on OP and how your trip goes.

That sounds like a nightmare trip!

Anonymous wrote:We are looking to book a beach-rainforest combo trip with 2 under 3 for next winter. We have looked into Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, and Panama. Are we missing any other good options to investigate? We would like to minimize car travel, if possible. Maybe that isn't an option and we should stick to a more typical beach trip. Welcome suggestions!

We had a fabulous family holiday with then toddler in Panama. There are ecotourism type rainforests only an hour or two out of Panama City and some spectacular places in San blas islands (also a lot of indigenous cultures/ art and fresh seafood there)

Anonymous wrote:Winter break (Dec) is not rainy season in CR
If you go to Manuel Antonio, you can do beach + rain forest.

Except this year its rained everyday it seems since December 20th

Xcaret

with a toddler i'd opt for puerto rico. The distances are relatively small. We did this with 2 and 6 year old, and it was great.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you done with having kids? I wouldn’t go anywhere with Zika until I knew I wouldn’t have any more kids.

The travel vaccines for Costa Rica would make me pause, as would the anti malarial treatment. Just adds more logistical hurdles to plan.

We went to Costa Rica last summer and needed zero travel vaccines and no anti-malarial treatment. Don't go to Costa Rica if you don't want to, but don't make things up.

I went there, and some vaccines were recommended for some regions (not the capital). The anti malarials could have been due to other countries on our itinerary, but some regions of CR had recommended vaccines for sure. I am sure people skip them and are fine, but that’s not my style with young kids.

With ES kids, it was incredible though! It’s a great trip, just a bit much for preschoolers. PR is logistically easier for sure.

Sorry that should not have said we also went there - that was a weird typo. I think I meant i also looked there. I've been to Puerto Rico. I think of it more beach than rain forest.. I guess I've been ziplining in the rain forest there. I think it as good for an all inclusive or if you want to go to san juan it is a fun little town. I've been to Costa rica as well, it is fantastic and is usually a great place to travel all around and visit different places in but with young kids I wanted a place we could plop down and stay but still see a lot. Tulemar seemed to check those boxes.