Budget Travel
Central America
The cheapest country in the Americas with some of its most dramatic landscapes.
The Forgotten Atlas — Field Report
The cheapest country in the Americas with some of its most dramatic landscapes.
Nicaragua is the least visited country in Central America and the cheapest. This is partly historical — the political instability of the 1980s created a reputation that has outlasted the reality — and partly the result of being sandwiched between Costa Rica (expensive, heavily touristed) and Honduras (which has its own reputation issues). The result is a country of extraordinary physical beauty — two active volcanoes you can hike and slide down, a colonial city that rivals any in Latin America, a lake containing its own freshwater sharks, a wild Caribbean coast — that sees a fraction of the tourism it deserves.
Nicaragua is what Central America was before everyone found it. The colonial cities, the volcanoes, the coast — all extraordinary, all almost entirely to yourself.
The Forgotten Atlas
Granada is one of the finest colonial cities in the Americas. Founded in 1524, it is the oldest continuously inhabited European-founded city in mainland Latin America. The coloured buildings around the main plaza, the cathedral, the churches, the lakefront — all intact and unhurried in a way that comparable cities in Mexico or Guatemala are not. You can rent a kayak and paddle through the Isletas — 365 tiny islands formed by a volcanic eruption — in the afternoon. You can take a boat to Zapatera Island and see pre-Columbian statues standing in the jungle.
Volcán Masaya is one of the few volcanoes in the world with an active lava lake accessible by car — you drive to the crater rim and look down into glowing lava. Volcán Concepción on Ometepe Island, rising 1,610 metres from a freshwater lake, is a full-day climb for experienced hikers and one of the most dramatic volcano ascents in Central America. Cerro Negro, near León, is an active black cinder cone where volcano boarding — sliding down the volcanic scree on a wooden board — has become one of the most unexpected tourist activities in the region.
Fly to Managua. Managua itself is not the destination — take a bus straight to Granada or León. Three weeks covers the country well. The political situation requires monitoring before travel.
The colonial city on the lake. The starting point for most visitors and worthy of two to three days on its own terms.
The other colonial city. More radical, more university-influenced, with the best revolutionary murals in the country and Cerro Negro nearby.
Two volcanoes rising from Lake Nicaragua. Extraordinarily beautiful and largely agricultural. Arrive by ferry and rent a motorbike.
The Pacific surf town. Good beaches, a younger crowd, and the weekend beach parties that are the social event of the Nicaraguan coast.
A comedor is the Nicaraguan equivalent of a set lunch restaurant. Three courses for two dollars. The gallo pinto (rice and beans) and the nacatamal (corn dough with pork filling) are the staples.
The best restaurant in the city. Traditional Nicaraguan food in a colonial courtyard. The churrasco and the vigorón (yuca with pork rind) are outstanding.
On the island, family-run, serving the freshest fish from the lake and vegetables from the volcanic soil. Simple and extraordinary.
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