I just got back from a one week trip to Nicaragua and I am already making plans to go back. I LOVED IT SO MUCH!
Due to all of the political issues going on since 2018 many people wonder whether it is safe or not for tourists to travel there.
After a lot of research and talk with both Nicas and tourists who had recently been, I decided to go.
I will share more information on safety details in another post, but here is my post about everything I did in my week in Nicaragua!
Nicaragua is a decent sized country but at this point most of the tourist hot spots are on the Pacific Coast and I will focus this post on the 3 main areas I visited (headed from the farthest north to farthest south)- Leon, Granada and Ometepe Island.
If you have more than one week I would recommend checking out Somoto Canyon (about as close to the border between Nicaragua and Honduras as you can get) and making your way over to the incredible Corn Islands on the Carribean side.
In fact, when I was there they were just finishing up the first main road that is going to connect the Pacific to Carribean side. Very exciting!
Leon
Leon is the farthest northern city we went to, for lack of time. We wanted to simplify our trip and not spend too much time with public transportation. It is a big city in western Nicaragua filled with both baroque and neoclassical architecture. It is filled with busy workers and a ton of markets. We felt like it was a LOT bigger than Granada. We were there in October, which is rainy season. I saw some of the craziest rainstorms of my life.
We really came to Leon only to do volcano boarding, but there is a lot more to come back for, especially when it is not rainy season!
*One thing I want to do is hike the volcano (don’t remember the name) and do an overnight campout after watching the sunset.
Volcano Boarding
This is the reason we came to Leon. It’s actually about an hour’s drive away from Leon on the Cerro Negro Volcano, but Leon is where all of the tours depart from. If you go to Leon you can ask any hotel/hostel owner and EVERYONE knows of someone who can take you.
The whole tour is about $20-$25 and takes about 4 hours. There are a ton of different companies, but they are really pretty much all the same!
WHAT an experience! I love doing new and unique things. No one really knows who invented this. Some people say an Australian, some say people have been doing it for years…..no one knows for sure.
The one thing we know is that it was SO much fun!
After driving about 50 min to Cerro Negro (the last 5 km are off road), you hike up an active volcano (Cerro Negro) for 45 minutes with your board. At the top after safety instruction you throw on your meth clown suit and speed down the volcano at up to 60 mph (or so they say……We went like 5 mph hahaha).
Check out Catholic Churches
Leon has some really cool architecture and 6 large Catholic churches. You can walk around and check them all out or take a bike to get around faster.
There are vendors outside often selling local Nicaraguan food. Sasha made it her goal to try EVERYTHING haha.
There are some that you can go to the top of and they are the perfect place to watch the sunset. This was not an option for us, as in October there are torrential rainstorms every night haha.
Try Local Nicaraguan Food
Sasha’s top thing with traveling is trying all of the local dishes. I usually try to stay away from street food after having some bad experiences getting food poisoning, but she tries it all.
We went to La Cucaracha which is a LOCAL LOCAL restaurant and I got a delicious black bean soup for $2.50. the best part of this restaurant is that you can walk through the kitchen and see them cooking everything! It was so awesome.
Everywhere you turn there are people selling local dishes!
Explore the Streets and Take Pictures of the Bright Buildings
Sasha likes to try new food and I like to take pictures. She had to put up with me taking a LOT of pictures.
We asked a guy to take our picture and he said no hahaha. At that exact moment an old man SCREAMED out of his window (we had no idea how he heard our question) and said, “I WILL TAKE IT!”
Visit Las Penitas Beach
Las Penitas is a crazy beach that is only 30 minutes away from Leon. It takes about an hour by bus (but for only $1?!?!) and we had such an awesome time!
The waves were INSANE here. Even standing on the sand I could barely get out of the ocean. When my back was turned (while standing on the shore) a huge wave came and CRASHED me to the ground. It was actually pretty frightening.
A lot of people surf here but when we were there it was not good surf.
We spent the evening at an AMAZING hostel right on the beach, where I had THE BEST Acai bowl of my life (Hostal Mano a Mano). We played soccer on the beach and made new friends. The sunset was amazing!
Check out the Markets
Downtown Leon has a TON of markets! Markets for food, produce, clothing, electronics, etc.
I ended up buying Dan an awesome Jackson, WY tshirt haha and we tried some new fruit and a few local dishes.
This guy thought we looked like the type of people that wanted to buy live chickens to bring home haha. Those would have definitely fit well in our money belts haha.
Granada
Everyone has a place that just hits them differently on a trip. Granada gives me happy warm fuzzy feelings.
I love this small town with its local night life and walkable streets. It is an old colonial town that has survived pirate attacks and has the cutest city center. It was small enough that I felt at home even after just one day, but big enough that I have so many reasons to come back!
Look Into an Active Volcano
Volcano Masaya was SOMETHING ELSE! I had it written on my list of possibile things to check out but Sasha told me she had always wanted to see an active volcano so we hitched a ride with a shuttle (there are thousands of shuttles that go but ask your hotel/hostel to set you up!) and headed up to see the Masaya Volcano.
It was SOMETHING ELSE (yes, I know I already said that haha)! We drove up to the park as the sun was setting (we were told the best time to go was at night so we could see the lava better) and I will NEVER forget walking up to the edge of the lookout and down into the mouth of a volcano.
It was a surreal feeling to look down and feel like I was staring into the center of the Earth. There are only 7 places on earth that you can see lava like that (or so we were told haha).
Watching the lava rolling and splashing was just too cool. Luckily a sweet couple from the Philippines took pictures for us because my Google Pixel was not doing the job!
Spend the Morning on a Boat
An awesome Canadian guy named Darcy moved to Nicaragua years ago and never left. He has become a well-known part of the Granada community and every Sunday he offers rides on his boat that HE BUILT.
It’s not a normal boat. You can jump off of the second floor deck, go off a water slide into the lake, or order food and even sit in a hot tub.
And guess what? You can spend 4 hours on this boat for $10.
Day Trip to Laguna de Apoyo
A fun day activity from Granada is to head to Laguna de Apoyo, which is a beautiful lake only 30 minutes away from Granada.
If you have been to Guatemala, it reminded me a lot of a much smaller version of Lake Atitlan.
There are a ton of hotels and hostels around the lake. We went to El Paraiso because they supposedly have some of the best food hahaha. The first thing we did when we walked in was check out the menu (even though it was 9 am and we had already eaten breakfast).
We paid $5 for a full day pass, which included use of the kayaks and dock. The food was great and it was such a beautiful atmosphere! The only down side was the rabid possum we found in the water with us haha.
Tip: Bring a snorkel! The water is SO blue! There’s not really anything to see besides the blue water but it’s fun to see 🙂
Check out Carrerra del Darro
The Carrerra del Darro is the “main street” in Granada and is the best place for people watching, finding tours and experiencing Granada night life.
We split a lobster dinner for $10 one night. Sasha also danced with someone in a panda costume and we witnessed a street fight.
During the day this is a great place to come to find tours. You can find anyone to take you to Masaya or Mombacho volcanoes, a kayak tour of isletas, day trip to Laguna de Apoyo, or a number of other activities.
Don’t be afraid to bargain, although these people really could use the money with the extreme low rates of tourism since 2018!
Check out the Best Views of the City from a Bell Tower
I wanted to head to the Granada Cathedral (the big yellow one in the city center that you can see in the background of this picture) but Jerry told me that the best views were from La Merced.
For just one dollar you can climb to the top of this tower and see the amazing views. You can also see the man ring the bell every hour, Quasimodo style haha.
He wouldn’t let us ring it unfortunately but we were able to see the most amazing sunset!
Stay in Casa del Agua
I honestly think this hostel/hotel is the reason we loved Granada so much.
Jerry is an awesome guy from Ireland that has lived in Nicaragua for so long, he’s basically a local.
He runs an incredible place with the yummiest pancakes ever and THE BEST knowledge and inside tips on the town. He’s the reason we knew about the boat trip and he gave us all of the information on how to get around. I honestly enjoyed advise and tips from him more than anyone else we met the whole time. He knows his stuff!
Jerry is used to being booked all of the time but due to “the crisis” and the fact that we were traveling during low LOW season, we had a free upgrade to the suite with the balcony and we could NOT have had more fun with that haha.
I also have a special place in my heart for Jerry who said girls from the Midwest are just the sweetest. I was like….“I AM FROM THE MIDWEST!!!!” haha
Ometepe Island
Ometepe Island is an island in the middle of Lake Nicaragua. There are two volcanoes on it and you can hike up both of them (although you will need 6-10 hours, depending on the volcano)!
You get here by taking a ferry from San Jorge, which is a 10 min ride from Rivas, and about 40 min north of the Costa Rica/Nicaragua border.
The ferry only costs $1 and it’s a beautiful ride over! A ton of Nicas and tourists come over the weekend or just for a few days. It’s a pretty incredible place.
Cruise Around on a Scooter (And Almost Die)
Ometepe Island is 276 km (171 miles) around and it’s not really doable in a car since the southern part of the island has terrible roads.
What most people do is rent a scooter, motorcycle or ATV. Depending on the time of year, amount of tourists and who you talk to, you can get a scooter for $10-$15 a day, a motorcycle for $15-20, and an ATV for $25-$40.
Tip: Don’t rent from just anyone. I really recommend the family that rents from the shop next to the restaurant The Cornerstore (one of the most popular restaurants in the main town of Moyogalpa-where the ferry lands). Go to The Cornerstore and ask them who to rent from. They take a $100 deposit but don’t rip you off.
There are scams where people won’t take a deposit (which seems awesome-but no) and then when you return the bike they try to charge you for “damage” and end up taking you to the police for hundreds of dollars. Make sure to hire from a trusted source!
Take pictures of your scooter before you head off!
Having a scooter was the way to go on this island, but be careful. Some of the roads shouldn’t be driven on a scooter and next time I’m going to rent an ATV just to have more off-roading stability. Some of the roads are really dusty and it’s hard not to slip.
I ended up crashing my scooter because a dog ran in front of me and I slammed on the breaks. A friend we met poured rum on it to clean it out but my knee is still pretty messed up.
If you rent a scooter be careful! I didn’t get most of my deposit back (which is fair) and I could have gotten really hurt.
Ask a trusted source who to rent from, and drive carefully!
I also recommend wearing a helmet with a face cover. It’s safer and it’s more comfortable to protect from the wind and rain.
Swim at Oja del Agua
This has to be one of my favorite parts of Ometepe. It’s a natural swimming hole surrounded by trees.
You can buy coconut water with rum, swim around and go off the Tarzan swing.
I think I went off of the swing over 50 times haha. I had way too much fun!
$5 for a day pass.
Check out an Incredible Sunset
Unfortunately the first night we got there we took the last ferry (5:30 pm) and it was dark by the time we got there. The second night we missed the sunset, and the third night I left before sunset. So I never really saw the sunset that I had heard ravings about.
Sasha and I met some friends on the island, though, and they sent pictures after I left. I missed some AWESOME sunsets.
There are some popular spots to watch the sunset, but I say when you get there just ask the locals! They know best! Tardecer is the word for sunset in Spanish.
Hit up Beach Santo Domingo
This is the beach the locals call “white sand beach” and though it definitely is not The Carribean, it’s a pretty beach and it’s fun to cool off in the water.
There are several yummy restaurants right on the beach and a great view of the Concepcion volcano.
Yoga at Zopilote with Harmony
Zopilote is an awesome hostel toward the center of the island. Harmony was the yoga teacher when we were visiting and she was amazing. She spent 30 minutes after class teaching us.
She also gave me tumeric for my wounds and it hurt SO BAD but they healed faster with tumeric than anything else!
The food at Zopilote is incredible and very fresh. Get the Nica breakfast. You will not be disappointed!
Rooms are under $10 a night per person and in the middle of the jungle so it’s a pretty awesome atmosphere.
Ometepe Island is a special place. I am hoping to take my husband Dan and our son Beckham back for Christmas with my two younger brothers.
If I could change anything, I would rent a four wheeler or motorcycle instead of a scooter and I would have done another active excursion, like explore Charco Verde, kayak during the sunrise or hike to the top of Concepcion volcano.
The best meal I ate was at Cornerhouse in Moyogalpa. Mar Dulce was a big disappointment!!