Nicaragua
Nicaragua is famous for its great surf and party spots. Ometepe is a well known volcanic island and there are different hikes you can do. We skipped it due time issues but I heard nice things about it. I wouldn’t stay too long there and try to find a place that is not too remote as it’s hard to get around. In general, I can recommend travelling in Nicaragua with the yellow former school
busses which is the cheapest option аnd not dangerous. We started in San Juan del Sur, where every Sunday the “Sunday Funday” pool crawl takes place. You start drinking midday and change the location approx. every 2h (always including a pool). Little advice: I wouldn’t stay at Casa de Olas or Naked Tiger Hostel, because they are located on the hill and you will always need a shuttle
to get to town. Besides that, it gets really ghastly there during Sunday Funday.
The next days we rented scooters and visited the surrounding beaches. Playa Hermosa is one of the greatest surf spot for intermediate – begginers I’ve ever been as it’s really easy to catch waves. The other day we went to Playa Remanso. You need drive through a “jungle” which was exciting. On the way we met two guys with machetes, what is not unusual in Nicaragua. However, we
were super afraid and turned back to the entrance. In turned out, that the two guys were the security of the beach :D
You can reach Cristo de La Misericordia also by scooter and watch the sunset (it’s way cheaper than going with a tour).
Next, we headed to Granada, which is an old colonial city worth visiting. Nearby there is a tree house hostel which organizes really great parties. However, I wouldn’t sleep there because you will struggle with the bugs infestation. The last day we visited the Masaya Volcano where you get to see the crater at the top of the active volcano. It’s a quite touristic trip but really fascinating to
see lava (the photo does not do it justice). I can also recommend staying 1 night at Apoyo. It is a volcanic lake and really chilled. You can go e.g. SUP.
Finally, we visited Léon which is also an old colonial city. We went to the roof of the white church which is truly super beautiful. You can find delicious burger on the rooftop of Bar El Mirador. The best food we had at Katu! If you don’t want to stay at a party hostel, book your stay at lazybones hostels. We did a day trip to the active volcano Cerro Negro. The fun thing is, you get up there by
hiking and down by sandboarding. If you have some time left, don’t miss out to spend some nights at the surfing turtle lodge. It’s a super chilled lodge on a nearby island.
Article by Nelli
