A Day Trip to Nicaragua
A Day Trip to Nicaragua
DO: Always take a food recommendation from a local!
DON’T: Be afraid to try new things-it could change everything!
As mentioned in our About Me Page, we had one of those “life-altering” wanderlust moments. This was it! We were on our Honeymoon at Dreams Las Mareas in the Guanacaste Region of Costa Rica. (I will write a review post about this resort soon!) so it was an easy trip into the country to the North. We did this on a complete whim, so as soon as we booked the trip…for the next day!! I got on the resort’s Wifi & started doing some major research. Everything I found about Alex on the Beach, and I mean everything was positive with this company. We were so lucky to have chosen this particular tour group to go with & I knew we were going to have quite the adventure.
Below you will find:
An account of our trip to Nicaragua including stops in
Rivas, Nicaragua
Apoyo Lake
Masaya Volcano National Park
Monkey Island
Granada, Nicaragua
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Crossing the Border:
Costa Rica to Nicaragua
Our day started very early with a pickup from the lobby of the resort. We grabbed some pastries from the to-go cafe & some water for the ride. Let me tell you…it was a long & bumpy one. We got to the border, and this was where it got really interesting. A young gentleman (we later learned was Rudolpho) showed up at our van & immediately asked for our passports. We were with a group of fou total couples, and I will say that most were pretty uneasy about this. Because I had done my research, I knew that Rudolpho was legit. In many of the reviews, I had read the day before, it said he was always sporting an LL Bean “Kristin” backpack, and sure enough, the backpack was on. After (hesitantly) handing over our passports, now all we had to do was wait while he took care of everything. There were kids everywhere trying to sell us things, there were a few duty-free shops and a restroom where it cost 25 cents to use toilet paper. Let’s just say we wouldn’t really want to hang out at the Costa Rica/Nicaragua border for more than we had to. It was chaotic to say the least & when Rudolpho returned with our stamped passports & had the new van waiting, we were ready to go.
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Stop 1: Rivas
After about a 45 minute drive, we had our first stop… Rivas, Nicaragua. This was Rudolpho’s hometown & he had hired some of his friends to take us around in little rickshaw type bikes to explore the city. You can definitely see our nervouseness/excitement as we started our day!
This was really our first “travel experience” that wasn’t just hanging on the beach, and it was an eye-opener. The town was unlike anything we had ever seen before, and the streets were filled with vibrant markets & happy people. It was so fun to see a town so different than anywhere we had ever been. After Rivas, the next stop was to learn about making pottery. There was a friendly dog & we bought a few pieces for our new travel collection
Stop 2: Lunch
After this, we were ready for lunch, and Rudolpho had the perfect place planned. We drove up to Apoyo Lake Overlook-a lake formed by a volcanic eruption. We got to look out over the lake and take a few pictures before heading to Restarante Carolina for some authentic Nicaraguan cuisine, live music & great conversation. We were already so impressed with what we had seen & the day was really just beginning. We also learned one of our first travel lessons: Always order what the locals recommend. After lunch, we hit up some of the markets for some tanks and souvenirs. Everything was so cool and so reasonably priced.
Stop 3: Masaya Volcano National Park
After seeing the lake formed by the volcano… why not go see the volcano, which was, by the way, still active. We’d never been this close to a volcano, and it was pretty cool/scary. We made our way to Masaya Volcano National Park & the ride was full of legends and stories. Many Nicaraguans believed years ago that the devil himself lived at the bottom of the volcano. If they upset the devil, the volcano would erupt. To “please” him, they would make yearly human sacrifices into the volcano!!!
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Stop 4: Monkey Island
The next stop was Monkey Island-the place that truly changed everything. We took a little boat out onto another lake formed by the volcano. There were over 300 islands, and one of them happened to be the home of Lucy, the momma monkey, her baby and three other monkeys. Rudolpho had a great connection with the monkeys and knew to bring avocados. They got right onto our boat and we were able to feed them & get up close! This was the highlight of our already amazing day!
Stop 5: Granada, Nicaragua
If that wasn’t enough excitement for the day, we had one last stop: Granada. Rudolpho, once again, had everything planned perfectly. When we pulled up to the town, there was a horse & carriage waiting for us. We got to take a tour of the beautiful town as the sun was setting. It was the perfect ending to our perfect day.
Nicaragua=A really Special Place
Our day in Nicaragua had ended, but the journey had not. We had a long drive home, but Rudolpho surprised us with customized presents, and a rap of “Gangstas Paradise”-he learned his impeccable English by watching YouTube music videos. Needless to say, we’ve done quite a bit of traveling since then, and I think it’s going to be pretty tough for anyone to top him as a tour guide. When we got to the Costa Rica border, we said our goodbyes, but it was really just the start of something a whole lot bigger.
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