Nicaragua - Volcanoes and Islands
Day 1: Arrive in Managua, pick up from the airport, and transfer to the hotel.
Day 2: Transfer to Granada, check in to hotel. Drawn by year-round warm weather, colonial-era architecture, and the freshwater Lake Nicaragua, travelers from around the world flock to Granada to soak in the blissful nature of this Central American Gem. Start the day with a horse-drawn carriage ride around the city, visit Las Isletas near the shore and finish with a delightful feast at one of the town's renowned restaurants. Abundant nightlife opportunities abound as well in this famed international destination.
Day 3: Ferry to Ometepe and transfer to beach cabanas on Playa Santo Domingo. Playa Santo Domingo's 4 km long sand beach is Ometepe's favorite vacation spot. Situated on the island's north-eastern side, Santo Domingo faces the predominant wind direction, and the constant, onshore solid breeze keeps you cool. The water is nicely warm and shallow so that it's safe for bathing and swimming. On the beach, you often see egrets and ibises. The birds have their nesting sites in the swampland of the Rio Istian whose intricate water jungle extends behind the strip of dry forest, parallel to the beach. In the dry season, you can walk on a path a few hundred meters into the swamps to watch birds - around 40 different species have been counted on the isthmus of Ometepe. To see birds and monkeys, you can also walk the 1.5 km hiking trail of Roca Inculta, an easy-to-walk path through the dry forest, part of it leading through a primary forest with giant old trees.
Day 4: 6 a.m. wake-up call by guide for transfer to the trailhead to begin hike of Volcan Conception.
The 10-hour hike on the Concepción starts at dawn and has a high degree of difficulty. The first leg of the hike leads through farmland and jungle, then later over rocks and debris. Especially towards the summit, the trail becomes steep, and there is a stiff, cold wind blowing, so proper attire is required. Once you reach the rim, you can gaze into the stony inside of the crater from where hot, sulfurous air blasts upward. On a clear day, you enjoy from the summit of the Concepción a 360-degree view from the Pacific coast of Nicaragua to the Caribbean ocean. An epic climb of an active volcano that will never be forgotten.
Day 5: Transfer to dock for ferry and transfer to Rivas on the way back to Managua. Night in Managua hotel.
Day 6: Transfer to airport and flight to Corn Island and ferry transfer to Little Corn. It's about 2 miles long and at its widest 1 mile; Little Corn has NO cars, NO motorcycles, mopeds, or any combustion engine vehicles. The island electric generator runs from about 2 pm to 6 am, and dirt paths connect various island parts. There is a small community ("the village" on the leeward side of the island) of around 1000 happy souls, a baseball diamond, diving on a barrier coral reef (if you're lucky, you might get to dive with a Hammerhead), and the friendliest, most beautiful island you could imagine. "Main Street" is a concrete path that stretches a half-mile or so along the village's waterfront.
Days 7-9: Diving, snorkeling, windsurfing, fishing, rest, relaxation.
Day 10: Fly back to Managua, transfer to Leon.
Days 11 -12: Explore Leon and Volcano Boarding.
Leon is Nicaragua's Berkley and the epicenter of its artistic, independent, and intellectual culture focusing on social movements and political change in an awe-inspiring environment with magnificent churches, unique art collections, colonial architecture, and buzzing nightlife. In addition, the area is surrounded by the most extensive mangrove forest in Central America and engulfed by burgeoning volcanoes ideal for hiking, climbing, and boarding.
Day 13: Transfer back to Managua for flight out.
OPTIONAL ADD-ONS
1. Pacific Coast Beaches - Surf Camps & Fishing
Trips to either San Juan del Sur (southern Pacific Coast near Rivas) or Poneloya (outside of Leon) and the surfing turtle lodge.
