My two besties, Mary and Scott, have been talking about planning a vacation for months now.  We have almost everything pinned down- time off from work has been secured and budgets are fairly well figured out.  However, there is one tiny little issue still remaining- where to go.

The original plan was Iceland, but I think we’ve all decided that we need something a little…  warmer.  We had decided on Argentina at one point, but then Scott had the nerve to get an assignment at work that kept him committed to stay in New York through March, and airfare went up by $400 or so in the meantime.  Total fail.  However, the world is a big wonderful place and we still have lots of options.  Here’s what we’re looking at right now-

• Peru- Definitely intriguing, but we are worried that we may not be able to do the Inca trail this year thanks to recent mudslides.  Lima would definitely offer some actual city life, which could be a good thing in between hiking and exploring.
• Costa Rica- I feel like everybody I know has been to Costa Rica lately, but they all seem to dig it.  Pros: We could gets lots of suggestions of what to do and where to go; also, it’s supposed to be ridiculously beautiful, it has the cheapest airfare on our list (at least for me).  Cons: Possibly too touristy, more expensive to get around.
• Panama- Mary found this awesome article that describes Panama as a “more rustic” Costa Rica.  I would love to see the Canal and do some island-hopping, but I know absolutely nothing about Panama otherwise- not that that is necessarily a bad thing.

So those are the main contenders- does anybody have any experiences or opinions?  Weigh in!  Make decisions for me!