Nicaragua

Nicaragua Travel Guide

When we first decided that we were going to be travelling long-term in Central America, Nicaragua was the destination that I really had my heart set on. I heard from a good friend who had gone backpacking that way and dozens of travel bloggers that the country was incredibly beautiful and dirt cheap, especially compared to neighbouring Costa Rica. They were totally right.

Luke and I initially got caught up house sitting in Costa Rica (house sitters are in high demand there) for longer than we planned and ended up just crossing the border to Nicaragua for quick visa runs. The short pockets of time we spent in Nicaragua only made me crave more time there! Here’s our guide to travelling in Nicaragua and what to do while you’re there!

6 mins read

Taking It Slow on Little Corn Island, Nicaragua

The Corn Islands are a Caribbean cliché located 70 km off the Nicaraguan coastline, complete with virginal white beaches, trouble free skies and soothing blue waters. Shack up in a beach hut by the sea for under £14 ($20), and enjoy a carefree culture that is more Creole than Español. Whilst Big Corn Island is the first stop for travellers, the smaller and generally more loved of the two islands is Little Corn.

In most places, when you step out of the airport you are greeted by someone holding a sign with your name and a nice clean car. On Little Corn Island, you’ll jump out of a boat and be greeted by someone with a sign holding your name and a fairly heavy-duty wheelbarrow. Little Corn simply isn’t like anywhere else, and the fact that there are no cars on the island is just one of them. Don’t get too excited – that wheelbarrow’s not for you. It’s for your luggage, which will be wheeled along a dirt track to your little hut on the beach.

6 mins read

The Cult Behind Hospedaje Central on Ometepe Island

“We originally came to Ometepe to work at the Hospedaje Central,” said the homeowner, “that was before we heard the rumours of the violent cult going on behind it.”

When we arrived back on Ometepe Island, we were tired, thirsty and ready to put our feet up. We dumped our bags and headed right over to Hospedaje Central (also known as El Indio Viejo) for some passionfruit juice and cheap Tonas. The hostel is one of the bigger and more lively joints in town, attracting a lot of young, free-spirited backpackers. Rainbow coloured ribbons hang from wide basket lamp shades, the walls are shabby and the ceiling is exposed bare barn house timbers. Everything is painted in bright colours, from the bar stools to the murals on the walls.

3 mins read

Why We Came Back to Ometepe Island in a Heartbeat

This little volcanic island out in Lake Nicaragua is one of those incredible places that you think you’ll only get to see once. As it turns out, we’re here for a second time.

We have fond memories of Ometepe Island. It was our first time climbing an active volcano, our first encounter with a howler monkey, and our first opportunity to rent a scooter and relive our Taiwan scootering days. When we left, we were practically glowing with what a good time we’d had and we were pretty sure that it was one of those once in a life time visits.

4 mins read

2014 in Photos

Back in January, who knew that our 2014 would look like this…

When we came home from Taiwan at the end of 2013, Luke told me that 2014 was my year. By that, he meant it was up to me to choose what we would do. Moving to Taiwan was his idea and though I chose to follow, it wasn’t an easy decision for me. Although I loved our year away in Taiwan, I felt homesick often and that feeling was always exacerbated by the stresses of teaching.

I loved the travel, I loved weekend road trips, I loved the independence and having our own home, and I loved Luke. But I wasn’t happy as a teacher and I didn’t want to be crawling through the week, desperate for the weekend. I wanted to make changes to our lifestyle. By the end of 2013, we were both ready to leave Taiwan.

Though I don’t think about it as 2013 being Luke’s year and 2014 as being my year, there’s no doubt that this year I was the one who put forward the idea of an alternative travel lifestyle as freelancers and house sitters. Thanks to Luke’s trust, our combined determination and perseverance, and the incredible generosity of strangers, 2014 has been the happiest year of my life.

3 mins read

How Not to Get Robbed in Central America

Want to know our secret to not getting robbed while travelling in Central America and the rest of the world?

Everyone told us that as tourists, we would be obvious targets in Central America. People who had never even been to that part of the world all had horror stories and travel advice to share. From our safe, friendly and crime-free experiences in Asia, we knew to take their advice with a pinch of salt. But when we landed in San Jose, which is a jungle of razor wire and iron bars, it looked like they might be right…

8 mins read

Ometepe Island, Nicaragua – Travel Guide

Flee the really rather average Rivas by boat to the beautiful volcanic island of Ometepe. Though Ometepe is a small place, it’s very much geared up for travellers. In fact, there are probably more backpackers than locals, but once you escape into the island’s nature you won’t even remember.

6 mins read

How Much Does it Cost to Travel Nicaragua on a Budget? [Infographic]

Nicaragua was named one of the cheapest travel destinations for backpackers in 2014, so I was amped to be travelling in a country where our small travel budget would stretch further.

Nicaragua, to the north of Costa Rica, is the largest country in Central America. Before travelling there we’d only heard good things from other backpackers – and they were pretty much spot on. The country is beautiful, the people are friendly, and it’s pretty cheap for travellers.

3 mins read

Is Volcano Boarding in Nicaragua Really Awesome?

If you’re travelling in Nicaragua, everyone will tell you that the one thing you can’t miss is volcano boarding down Cerro Negro (the Black Hill) in León. Having looked at the ominous volcano from the roof of León Cathedral and after reading rave reviews from adventurous travel bloggers and TripAdvisor-happy backpackers who unanimously labelled the volcano boarding experience as AWESOME, I was still reluctant to go.

4 mins read

Granada, Nicaragua – Travel Guide

Granada is the most beautiful city I’ve ever been to, and I’ve been to a lot of beautiful cities. The streets of Nicaragua’s oldest colonial city are lined with charming yellow-painted houses, laid-back mango sellers and delicious courtyard cafés.

4 mins read

Is Indefinite Travel in Central America Going to Work For Us?

All we’ve got is a one-way ticket to Costa Rica, a house-sit lined up for the first few months, and a lot of ideas.

It’s our first time travelling indefinitely. By indefinite travel, I mean travel which is open-ended, which continues until something either goes wrong – whether that’s running out of money, being kicked out of a country because of an expired tourist VISA, or running out of ideas – or something comes up, like just deciding we want to go home to our families.

7 mins read