The Best of Nicaragua

CR’s Northern Neighbor

It’s no secret that Costa Rica is one of our favorite countries to travel to. It’s gorgeous, the food is fantastic, the people are friendly, and it’s easy to navigate (for those with an adventurous spirit.) But having visited Central America’s most popular country four times already, we felt it was time to step off the beaten path and explore Costa Rica’s northern neighbor, Nicaragua. So we set out on a mission to find the best of Nicaragua!

Central America’s Largest Nation

Set between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, the Republic of Nicaragua is geographically Central America’s largest nation. It is known for its dramatic terrain of volcanoes, lakes, and beaches and its well-preserved colonial cities, including Granada and Leon. But, for all its natural beauty, Nicaragua still seems to bear the burden of a notorious past. Many people continue to associate Nicaragua with its 1980s reputation for drug trafficking, violence, and political unrest. While most people can’t recall the details of that shady period of the country’s history, most can remember something about Manuel Noriega and guerrilla warfare, and that seems enough.

When we told family and friends of our travel plans, more than a few raised an eyebrow, typically followed by a quick, “Y’all are crazy.” We can’t deny the allegation, but when it comes to traveling, it has been our experience that as long as you’re aware of your surroundings and make reasonable choices, most people are good, and most places are safe enough. 

Finding the Best of Nicaragua

Since this would be our first experience traveling with our boys in Nicaragua, we decided a week would be enough time to explore a few destinations and find the best of Nicaragua without biting off more than we could chew. We’d also invited a friend and his young daughter on this adventure, and we needed to be mindful of their comfort level.

Wanting to experience the best of Nicaragua’s natural beauty and colonial cities, we decided on two main destinations: Granada and San Juan del Sur, located in the southwestern portion of the country. While stark in contrast, they are similar in allure. Granada, the oldest European-founded city in the country, boasts breathtaking architecture and colorful streets that are a delight to explore. San Juan del Sur is an up-and-coming surf destination drawing the attention of tourists, expats, and digital nomads worldwide. Surely we’d find the best of Nicaragua between two!

Like most visitors to Nicaragua, our adventure began in Managua, the country’s capital city and home to Augusto C. Sandino International Airport. We had no plans to spend time in Managua, but since our flight arrived just before dark, we decided to stay one night near the airport and pick up our rental cars in the morning to avoid driving to Grenada at night. 

Fortunately, the Best Western Las Mercedes Airport Hotel is located directly across the street from the airport. While it’s very affordable, it is far more appealing and accommodating than your average BW. We were relieved to make the easy trek across the street to check in. The hotel features a modern lobby with a small bar, lovely grounds, clean and quaintly decorated rooms, and a delicious traditional restaurant. It was the perfect way to end a busy travel day and start our adventure in Nicaragua.

The Best of Nicaragua: Granada

Day 1—Our first full day in Nicaragua! After bird-watching around the hotel grounds and filling our bellies with a delicious traditional breakfast, we picked up the rental cars from the airport next door and headed to Granada. The drive to Granada takes about an hour, and the roads are surprisingly new and very well-maintained.  

Granada’s Central Park

After checking into Airbnb, Casa Diamante, in the heart of Granada’s historic district, we headed to see Granada’s most celebrated landmark, Catedral de Granada, aka Our Lady of the Assumption. The distinctive yellow facade and garnet colored dome of the Catedral dominate the city’s skyline.

Parque Central is also where Grenada’s equally iconic colorful horse and buggy tours are found. Lavishly decorated in flowers and ribbons, these beauties line the edge of the park eagerly waiting their next patrons. While our boys weren’t interested in taking a tour, our friend and his daughter couldn’t pass up the opportunity. When they returned they assured us the ride did not disappoint.

Granada’s Municipal Market

While our friends enjoyed their buggy tour of the city, we decided to check out the bustling Mercado Municipal Market. A must-see for anyone looking to experience the local culture and cuisine. Located within a short walk from Parque Central, the market is a lively hub where locals shop for a wide range of necessities. Even if you don’t need anything, wandering through the tangle of cramped stalls is eye-opening and entertaining.

Once we’d absorbed our fill of the action and picked up a few things, we headed back to our Airbnb for a refreshing dip in the pool. Nicaragua is scorching hot! Granted, it was June when we visited, but it’s warm year-round and something to consider when planning a visit. Many of the Airbnbs we considered featured small plunge pools to cool off on such days.

Granada’s Chocolate Museum

After an hour of reprieve, we returned to the city center for a bit of fun. Our next stop, the Chocolate Museum, was absolutely a pick for the kids, but we all enjoyed the experience. The small museum/gift shop offers a two-hour “Bean to Bar Workshop” teaching the chocolate-making process. The hands-on experience lets you make custom chocolates to take away. The tour guides were friendly, accommodating, and educational.

With dessert in hand, we focused on finding some legitimate food for dinner. Having researched restaurants before arriving in Granada, I suggested Boca Baco.

The menu includes everything from steak chimichurri to sushi but also offers a few Americanized options. There was something for everyone, and every bite was delicious.

Granada Day Trip to Laguna de Apoyo

Day 2 — While the kids slept in, Craig and I returned to the market to procure a few items for the next few days. One of our favorite features about Airbnb versus hotels is having a full kitchen. We endeavor to eat out only one meal a day. We travel with a collapsible cooler that allows us to purchase perishable groceries and transport them from one destination to the next. Since the last two days were hectic with commuting, waking the kids up with bacon and eggs would be a good start the day. Today is lake day, so they’ll need the energy!

Laguna de Apoyo

Laguna de Apoyo is a pristine lake located just a 25-minute drive from Granada. The lake is formed in the caldera of an extinct volcano and is one of Nicaragua’s most popular tourist destinations. The surroundings are idyllic and strictly protected. The perfect spot to have a swim. To access the lake, you can purchase a day pass to one of the local resorts.

Laguna Beach Club

We visited Laguna Beach Club and were impressed. The view of the lake is breathtaking, and the onsite restaurant was delicious. We weren’t planning to eat a full meal, but who can pass up a Tomahawk Steak with sides for $25?!?

Even on a cloudy day, describing how this gorgeous secluded location is challenging. Laguna de Apoyo is definitely a place we would all return to if given the chance. The same can be said about the Laguna Beach Club.

With such a fantastic afternoon behind us, we decided to keep what remained of the evening low-key. We took advantage of our indoor plunge pool, warm showers, and a bite to eat at a restaurant nearby.

Granada to San Juan del Sur

Day 3—We’re heading to the coast! As much as we love a packed itinerary, nothing beats a beach day with zero commitments. If possible, the last leg of most trips ends at the coast. Sometimes, our effort to “see it all” comes at the expense of exhaustion, which muddies the reality that we are, in fact, on vacation. Spending a day in the sun staring at an endless horizon is usually the perfect antidote. 

San Juan del Sur is a two-hour drive southwest of Granada. Again, the roads are surprisingly new and well-maintained. I believe this is partly due to China’s Belt and Road Initiative in Latin America, but I’ve done little research. I only mention the roads because the investment is surprising compared to the general poverty level throughout the country.

Along the way, we stopped at La Colonia Grocery Store in Rivas, the most modern grocery store in the area. It’s about 30 minutes outside San Juan del Sur (SJDS) and was the perfect place to load up on groceries and necessities before checking into our AirBnB, Casa Alegre.

Upon our arrival at Casa Alegre, we learned the house was still being cleaned and not ready for check-in, so we dropped our bags off and headed into town. 

The Best of Nicaragua – San Juan del Sur

San Juan del Sur is a quintessential Central American surf town. With just around 16,000 residents, this laid-back locale is known for its uncrowded beaches, excellent surfing, and beautiful sunsets. It also boasts plenty of restaurants, surf shops, breweries, and bars, which we wasted no time exploring. 

Cervecería San Juan del Sur

First on the list was Nicaragua Craft Beer Co—Cervecería SJDS. Located in the heart of town, this brewery has an excellent reputation for solid beers across the spectrum of styles, fantastic food, and a comfortable atmosphere. While the adults enjoyed a flight of the brewery’s flagship beers, the kids were happy playing ping-pong at the front of the taproom. 

From the Cervecería SJDS, we walked to the San Juan del Sur beachfront to put our feet in the water and look around. The mile-long beach is wide and flat, and numerous beach vendors and small cafes dot the golden sand. Colorful fishing boats bob gently atop soft turquoise waves, and the slow-rolling surf paints the shore with the sky. It makes you wonder why you live elsewhere. 

Having received notice that our Airbnb was ready, we made our way up the mountain, eager to enjoy the pool and patio view at Casa Alegre for the remainder of the day.

San Juan del Sur Day Trip to Playa Marsella

Day 4 — Beach Day! Just north of San Juan del Sur, Playa Marsella is a serene, sandy cove sheltered by rocky outcrops and dense forest. Overlooked by simple lodgings and seafood shacks, this inconspicuous destination is the perfect place to catch your breath and bask in Nicaragua’s beauty. 

The tiny thatched-roofed El Islote Bar & Grill is also worth a visit. Fresh-squeezed fruit cocktails and seafood are perfect companions for the spectacular view.

San Juan del Sur ATV – A Wild Ride

Day 5 — Rejuvenated and refreshed after our Playa Marsella beach day, the next day’s adventure warranted a little adrenaline. If you ask our boys what they want to do on vacation, ATV tours top the list. So, of course, I added it to the itinerary for Nicaragua. We have taken these tours before, but San Juan ATV Rentals was wild! In retrospect, it was hands down our favorite activity of the trip.

The 4-5 hour tour took us up mountains, through forests, alongside lakes, down beaches, and up an overlook of the Pacific for sunset. But the absolute best part of the tour was the ride. 

After an exhilarating afternoon on ATVs, we headed home for some much-needed showers and dinner at Tuani’s Restaurant. The food was fantastic, but the service was horrible. It was not the best ending to an otherwise great day.

Go Big and Go Home!

Day 6 — Our last full day in San Juan del Sur began with an 8 a.m. reservation for a half-day fishing charter, ended with a trip up to Cristo de la Misericordia (San Juan del Sur’s enormous Jesus statue), and was highlighted by a visit to Tree Casa Resort and water park in between. 

Fishing Charter in San Juan del Sur

Our middle son is an avid fisherman, and we incorporate fishing options into the itinerary whenever possible. For this trip, we booked a half-day inshore charter. The captain picked us up from the marina in town with all we needed for a beautiful morning on the water.

The deep indigo swells of the Pacific looked like an angler’s dream… Unfortunately, some of the stomachs in our family felt very differently. Thank God for Dramamine! 

TreeCasa Resort & Water Park

On our first day in San Juan del Sur, we met some expats now living in the area. They recommended restaurants, beaches, and things to do nearby. TreeCasa Resort was the place they assured us the kids would love. The resort has a small water park and a fantastic restaurant, and offers discounted day passes and pizza specials on Wednesdays. That obviously checks a lot of boxes, so we decided to make it there if possible. Well what do you know? Day 6 is a Wednesday, and our fishing trip returned to town at lunchtime!

We arrived at TreeCasa just after 1 p.m. and headed to the restaurant famished from our morning charter. The pizzas couldn’t have come out fast enough, but it was worth every second’s wait! TreeCasa has the best wood-fired pizza! I’m not sure what Nicaraguan magic they use to knead the dough, but we all agreed it was the best we’ve ever had.

After a few minutes of digesting, the kids were off to the pool. The pool is amazing! It has a tree house, slide, jumping platform, and waterfall. There are lounge chairs for those who prefer to observe, and a snack bar with seating for easy service. The kids were ecstatic. A much-needed win after a fishing trip fail. 

Cristo de la Misericordia

But wait—there’s more! No trip to San Juan del Sur is complete without a pilgrimage to the Cristo de la Misericordia, or as we anointed him, ‘Giant Jesus’—the 25-meter-high statue is perched atop the hills overlooking SJDS, the mountains, and the ocean beyond. 

The statue has one of the best panoramic views in the area and is the perfect location to watch the sunset. We spent approximately 30 minutes walking around the monument’s base, enjoying the various perspectives of the statue’s architecture and soaking in our final sunset over San Juan del Sur.

Having checked our final box of things to do in San Juan del Sur, we returned to our Airbnb to prepare a well-earned meal of fresh fish and make our final preparations for the long journey home.

San Juan del Sur to Managua

Day 6—The first leg of the trip home. The return trip to Managua from San Juan del Sur is an easy drive that takes around 2.5 hours. Exhausted from all the excitement and activities of the past week, we didn’t add anything to the itinerary for the day. Sunkissed, road-worn, and weary, we all looked forward to some downtime. 

We headed back into the Best Western Las Mercedes Airport Hotel because of its proximity to the airport and car rental return. Once checked back in, we had another delicious meal in the on-site restaurant and called it a wrap! We offically succeeded in finding the best of Nicaragua!