Experience the best of La Libertad

La Libertad sits on El Salvador's Pacific coast, south of the capital San Salvador, on a stretch known as the Costa del Bálsamo. The town centres on a pier where fishing boats land their catch, and the fish market beside it sells whole fish, shrimp and lobster. Punta Roca, just along the shore, is a rocky point with a long right-hand wave that has drawn surfers from many countries for decades.

Along the coast, a string of beaches of dark volcanic sand includes El Tunco, with its offshore rock and bars, and El Zonte and Sunzal, popular with surfers. Inland the road climbs through volcanic hills and coffee farms towards San Salvador, and to the north lies Joya de Cerén, a Maya farming village buried by volcanic ash around the year 600 and nicknamed the Pompeii of the Americas.

Pupusas, thick tortillas filled with cheese, beans or pork, are the national dish, and on the waterfront they sit beside ceviche, grilled snapper and coconut water drunk from the shell. The wet season runs from May to October, with sunshine across the dry months from November to April.