2017 Nicaragua

Every time I told someone I was going to Nicaragua I would hear the same thing.  “Nicaragua is what Costa Rica was 10 years ago.” Great, I thought, I was in Costa Rica about 15 years ago and I really had a great time. This trip was a combination of beautiful colonial towns and eco-lodges surrounded by nature.  Well, that was at least the plan. I did some research and I knew it was going to be hot, I didn’t realize the impact of the heat and humidity.  OK, you definitely want to find someplace shaded or air-conditioned for the early afternoon when you are in Leon or Granada as it will suck the life right out of you! Speaking of air conditioning, despite the heat and humidity, most home and buildings do not have air conditioning as the electricity is just too expensive.  Nicaragua is considered the second poorest nation in Latin America (after Haiti) so if you come during the hot and dry (dry as in no rain, but still humid) then plan your afternoons accordingly.

Nicaragua is still not high on people’s list of places to visit so their tourism infrastructure is still building and you have to expect a few bumps along the way. It is always good to know a little of the language of the country you are visiting but most places that deal with tourist understand some basic English.  Well, I wish I had brushed up on my Spanish before this trip as we often ran into instances were no English was understood. Good thing I know “cerveza por favor”.

Managua (1 Night)

The capital of Nicaragua has some beautiful areas. With only a short amount of time in town we decided to visit the Puerto Salvador Allende area. This is a redeveloped port area with plenty of restaurants and entertainment. A place for the locals to come out and enjoy their evenings.  Some of the main streets are lined with life-size tree statues of trees that light up at night, which are very attractive.

The hotel arranged for a taxi to drive us to Puerto Salvador Allende and he left us his card to call him when we were ready to come back. On the way back he became our unofficial tour guide and stopped to show us some monuments. Unfortunately, my Spanish isn’t good enough to understand everything he said, but he was enthusiastic and proud.

Leon (2 Nights)

This was the day that I first felt the heat and humidity, so glad my hotel room has air conditioning. Leon is a colonial city with some wonderful architecture and friendly people. The central square is where everything happens and the people congregate around Our Lady of Grace Cathedral.

The city is known for its art collection which was our plan for an afternoon to avoid the heat, so we went to the Centro de Arte Fundación Ortiz-Gurdián and we were surprised by just how extensive their collection was, but more so by the fact that all these pieces of art were not in an air-conditioned building and were subject to the same heat and humidity that we were trying to escape.

Matagalpa (3 Nights)

After a couple of days of the heat in Leon I was looking forward to getting to Matagalpa as it was a little higher in elevation and we would be staying in a cloud forest. I was excited to stay at the Selva Negra eco-lodge, a little cabin in the cloud forest surrounded by nature. Being an eco-lodge it was nicer than I expected but two things I wanted to point out:

1. Not many people understand English here, as mentioned earlier Nicaragua does not get many tourists and even fewer in this area. This is a resort popular with the locals and that is great. Now, I take full responsibility for not knowing more Spanish before starting this trip, but everyone was helpful and tried to understand me.
2. Everyone kept saying Nicaragua is what Costa Rica was 10 years ago. I really enjoyed my visit to Costa Rica in 2002 as there were many animal encounters. Perhaps my expectations were too high. I was thinking the calls of howler monkeys would be waking me in the mornings and exotic birds in abundance. I think I heard howler monkeys in the far distance only once and although we saw a few birds, not nearly as many or as varied as expected.

Do not get my above comments wrong, I would stay here again, it just wasn’t as wildlife filled as I expected.  Selva Negra was very relaxing, with beautiful scenery and plenty of hiking trails.

Here are the details about the hike around the eco-lodge. It was actually more of a nature walk, which was absolutely fine after a long day on the road.

Cloud Forest Hike

Distance 3.67km (2.28 miles)

Elevation Change 111m (366 feet)

The next morning we took a road trip to what we were told was going to be a pleasant hike through the cloud forest that included a few waterfalls. Well, it turned out to be a wonderful excursion and OK, I admit it, I geeked out a bit over some of the roads. Nicaragua is not a rich country, we were far from any major city, at 3,000′ elevation, in a usually wet climate. I was not expecting much in the way of road quality, so you can imagine my surprise when, in many places, the road was made from interlocking bricks. People must have thought me crazy for hanging my camera out of the car window and taking pictures of the road.  🙂

The hike was just as awesome as the roads. We met our park guide and a couple from Sweden in a large wooden cabin across from the trail-head. After brief introductions we set off. Again, this was described as a pleasant hike through the cloud forest. Given the previous days hike I was not expecting this to be strenuous but I am glad I wore my hiking shoes. Lots of wet stones to walk on and muddy inclines, gaining about 1,000′ in a mile so I got some exercise. However, it was the nature that really took my breath away. Large fig tress, ferns, a running stream and the waterfalls. The first few waterfalls were 3′-6′ in height, very nice but the last waterfall was amazing.  You come around the side of this rock and right in front of you is this magnificent waterfall, you are too close to see the entire thing.  One of the last pictures below is a shot of the waterfall from a distance as we drive back to the eco-lodge.

Waterfall Hike

Distance 3.38km (2.10 miles)

Elevation Change 337m (1107 feet)

The next day was a nature drive with a short walk to a lookout above a coffee farm. I should have known by now what “a short walk” meant, it was short but pretty steep. Worth the effort as we had a wonderful 360 degree view from the top. I was surprised by the number of animals which were visible from the road. We watched the howler monkeys for almost 30 minutes, they appeared to be curious why we were looking at them as the locals don’t pay any attention to them. Then we ran into momma two-toed sloth and her baby just hanging out in a tree. When we went by in the morning it looked like mom was asleep and the baby was a little active but on the way back after lunch the mother was awake but baby was sleeping.

Another wonderful day and finished off with multiple, uhmm, tastings, of Flor de Caña Centenario 18 Year Old Rum.

Coffee Farm Hike

Distance 1.5km (0.90 miles)

Elevation Change 100m (340 feet)

Granada (3 Nights)

Back on the road again as we head back to sea level, or rather, back to the heat and humidity. On the way back we got to stop at Masaya Volcano Park and looked into an active volcano. They take your safety seriously here, all cars must be backed in so you can get out quickly and you are only allowed to stay for 20 minutes so the fumes don’t overwhelm you.

Our first full day in Granada started with a city tour in one of their famous horse-drawn carriages. The city has a lot of colonial heritage with great architecture but very little air conditioning.  Did I mention it gets hot and humid here? Most of the restaurants and buildings are not air-conditioned, even the hotels are not air-conditioned, your hotel room will have its own air conditioning though. I really understand the tradition of the afternoon siesta, at this time of year you don’t want to be too active. When you are out it is important to stay hydrated; this gave me an excuse to try many of the local hydration formulas.

This is highlight of the trip; this is the day of the Mombacho volcano hike! In the basic trip itinerary they include the basic self-guide trail but we upgraded to the Puma trail. This is technically an active volcano and we came across a few vents with hot steam and sharp drop-offs so they also take your safety seriously. We were given wrist bands to indicate which trail we were allowed on (they had security at trail junctions) and we had to have a local guide escort us. Our guide was constantly checking in with headquarters so that they knew where on the trail we were. This sounds a little unnerving but it was done with such a casual attitude that you didn’t feel scared and in hindsight it’s nice to know that if anything did happen they knew where everybody was. When we saw that the trail was just over 4km long and would take about 4 hours I thought that sounded too long, well it took us just over 4 hours to complete.  Why? Well, there are a number of steep inclines but there are also so many beautiful views and my constantly chasing the colourful butterflies – I think they intentionally closed their wings whenever I hit the camera trigger. This hike definitely met expectations!

Volcano Hike

Distance 4.82km (2.99 miles)

Elevation Change 275m (904 feet)

Jicaro Island Eco-lodge (1 Night)

Oh wow, this is a wonderful way to end the trip.  You take a small boat from Granada (10 minutes) and arrive to this small island where a welcome drink is waiting. Definitely someplace I wish I was at for more than 19 hours. I had just enough time to enjoy my two-story luxury cabin, a swim in a wonderful infinite pool, some great food and fantastic views. Relaxing by the pool, watching the birds and having drinks and fruit snacks just show up, can you ask for anything more?  Did I mention the complimentary cookies, beer and rum in your room!!

They really know how to combine sustainability and luxury.  You order your meals for the day in advance so they only prepare what is needed but don’t worry the meals are plentiful. Drinks are even served with bamboo straws, which I think is great.

If you plan to go to Granada, I highly recommend you spend at least one night at the Jircao Island Eco-lodge.

Logistics

For this trip I did things differently than I usually do. A few other trips I looked at were not available so this is what the tour operators call a “private journey” since the only travelers were my friend and myself, plus a couple of guides. I am also trying a different tour operator for the first time in years. Why? Well, lack of availability, price and quality of service are some of the reasons I thought it was time to look around and see what the competition had to offer.

This trip, organized by Journeys International, was an 11 day itinerary that they called Grand and Gracious Nicaragua (no longer being offered). Being only two of us we got to pick the starting date and make a few alterations, specifically we wanted more time exploring the volcanoes. One thing to know about this trip is that you do not have the same guide for the entire trip. You pick up a new guide in each location and a separate driver will take you from one place to the next. It’s good to know some of the local language (Spanish in this case) as you cannot expect the drivers to speak your language.

The local tour operator in Nicaragua was VaPues Tours and I found them to be very hands on and helpful. Their office called three times during our trip to make sure everything was going well and asked that I send them feedback and suggestions upon completion of the trip. They also have a very responsive social media team. I interacted with them via Twitter and always got quick responses.

One point I think all travelers to Nicaragua should remember is that the country does not have a polished tourism industry. Some of the guides are proud of their country and want to show it off and ensure you are seeing everything. Some of the guides take you to the places you are supposed to go to, give you a good tour, then give the impression that they can’t wait to get rid of you.  Even some of our guides commented that guides in Nicaragua are known for that.  (Good to know it wasn’t just me.)  🙂

If you are a seasoned traveler or realize that the onus is on you to ask questions and not wait to be informed, then you will do fine with the guides in Nicaragua. This is something that I am sure will change with time as more and more tourist come to the area.

Cheers, Nigel