Blogs from Granada, Southern Pacific Coast, Nicaragua, Central America Caribbean

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We were not big fans of Granada at first. It seemed quite tatty except for a few streets around the cathedral and the main strip of bars and restaurants had music so loud at night that we didn't eat anywhere nearby! We stayed at url=https://www.booking.com/hotel/ni/casa-del-agua-granada2.en-gb.html?aid=1769628&sid=ef6f4c27fb07edaed3e690c1da73a6ed&all_sr_blocks=912002705_362545423_2_1_0;checkin=2024-03-06;checkout=2024-03-07;dest_id=9120027;dest_type=hotel;dist=0;group_adults=2;group_children=0;hapos=1;highlighted_blocks=912002705_362545423_2_1_0;hpos=1;matching_block_id=912002705_362545423_2_1_0;no_rooms=1;req_adults=2;req_children=0;room1=A%2CA;sb_price_type=total;sr_order=popularity;sr_pri_blocks=912002705_362545423_2_1_0__3780;srepoch=1708874140;srpvid=b3926b4b47ed0128;type=total;ucfs=1&#hotelTmplCasa del Agua,just a few steps from the main square and we were so pleased that w... read more
Cathedral
Cathedral ceiling
Horse drawn carriages


After Ometepe, I traveled to Granada, an old Colonia city known for its cobbled streets and colorful buildings. Granada came into being in the early 1500s as an economic and cultural hub (built by the Spanish and considered a sister city of Antigua in Guatemala). It was almost burnt to the ground later on but later revived itself to become the place it is today. I spent time exploring the Colonia history and the buildings around, ate almost every day at a place run by deaf people and made friends with people in the hostel. I also visited Laguna De Apoyo, a volcanic lake which was extremely peaceful and calm. But the most interesting experience was visiting Masaya Volcano National Park. It's one of the rare places on earth where you can see lava flowing in ... read more
Granada
Granada
Oasis Hostel Granada


At Granada in Nicaragua 2016 Time to explore... read more
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Granada historic center is a manicured, very colored and pleasant place. The highlight is of course the very bright painted Cathedral which sits in font of central park. Right at central park, you can rent 30 or 60 minutes for a horse carriage's ride. These tours add to the historic aspect of the visit. You have opportunity to drop at every major landmark, no problem. Between the cathedral and the lake, there's the calle la Calzada, with lots of shops, restaurants, and some spectacles on evenings. I stayed at Hotel Jardin, about 3-4 blocks North West of central park. This hotel is a 3 star, but frankly, I would give one more, at every thing there is clean, well decorated, offer good views, is quiet, has very helpful owners and was overall much better than my ... read more
street with a view
horse carriage in central's park
view from hotel


We started our day early with our driver picking us up at 515. He was 15 minutes late because he had stopped to pick up the others in our group from a different hotel, a couple from Germany and a lady from Chicago. It was about an hour and a half to the border of Nicaragua. We got dropped off there and walked across the border. Getting our exit stamp from Costa Rica and the entrance stamp to Nicaragua. Our guide for the day was very professional and has been doing the tour regularly. Our next van was waiting for us on the Nicaraguan side. We drove into Nicaragua and got a full history lesson about everything from the original people to the revolution from the dictatorship to modern recent issues. We stopped for breakfast on ... read more
Pedro In Nicaragua
Pedro talks to the guide while looking into crater San Fernando in the volcano Masaya in Nicaragua
 Crater San Fernando in the volcano Masaya in Nicaragua


Sonntag, den 15. April, sind Rebecka und ich gegen 14h, nach einer sehr ungequemen einstündigen Busfahrt in einem Chickenbus von Manágua endlich in Granada angekommen. Da wir den ganzen Nachmittag noch vor uns hatten und keine Aktivität geplant hatten, haben wir nach dem Check-in in unser Hostel Granada erkundet. Diese kleine Stadt ist wirklich super schön ; sie hat nur kleine, hübsche, bunte Gebäude im Kolonialstyle mit einem netten kleinen Park im Stadtzentrum, gegenüber der Kathedrale. Es gibt dort eine schöne, kleine, lebhafte Straße voller Bars und Restaurants und es gibt auch einen direkten Zugang zum See. Wir haben den Nachmittag also damit verbracht, durch die Straßen zu schlendern, Photos zu machen und Eis zu essen. :-) Danach sind wir zurück zu unserem Hostel gegangen (De boca en boca) und haben ein bisschen dort gechillt bevor ... read more
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On Sunday, April 15th, Rebecka and me arrived at around 2PM, after a very uncomfortable 1h ride in a chickenbus to Granada. Since we had the whole afternoon free and nothing planned, we checked into our hostel and then went to discover Granada. This small town is really beautiful, only small, cute, colourful buildings, a nice little parc in the center of town, in front of a beautiful cathedral, a lively and cute restaurant/bar street and access to the lake. We strolled around all afternoon, taking pictures and eating ice-cream. Then we went back to the hostel (de boca en boca) and relaxed for a few hours before going for dinner. There, we met Gwendoline from Brittany in France. She seemed like a very nice girl and we got along very well from the beginning. She ... read more
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Hola chicos, just a short blog to say I am still alive. So flew from Costa Rica back to Nicaragua, at the airport realised my debit card was missing! doh! Think I left it in an ATM at the supermarket in San Jose, cancelled and nothing been taken so all ok just lucky I have my credit card with me, think the first time I have ever lost a card. Unlike UK the money comes out first..... Picked up by a shuttle at Managua airport and headed back to Granada, staying in an air bnb for 30 odd days. I have a nice one bed open plan apartment, hot shower, kitchen, decent wifi and access to a real washing machine! Is in a good location only 15 min walk into centre of town and 5 min ... read more
Volcan Mombacho
Walking through Granada
Granada colonial architecture


Hola chicos y chicas, just a short blog for the last week or so.... enjoy the photos, don't forget to check all the photos after the text!! Left Isla de Ometepe, couple of chicken buses and then the ferry to San Jorge, staying one night before catching a shuttle to Granada about an hour travel North. "Granada is a city in western Nicaragua and the capital of the Granada Department. With an estimated population of 123,697, it is Nicaragua's sixth most populous city. Granada is historically one of Nicaragua's most important cities, economically and politically. It has a rich colonial heritage, seen in its architecture and structure." Not the one in Spain! But named after it. In its history it was invaded by English, French and Dutch pirates, including Captain Morgan the infamous Welsh pirate. Seems ... read more
Iglesia de La Merced
Monkey aboard
Masaya volcano lava at night


LEAVING COSTA RICA After our disastrous journey getting to Ostional we were pleased to have an uneventful journey back to San Jose and it took under 5 hours. Rolf the hotel owner of Luna Azul recommended Louis, a local driver to take us to the airport and he arrived promptly on time. As it was at least a 10 hour round trip for him he bought his wife Jessica to join him so we spent a pleasant five hours with them in their car. He stopped so Paul could get some money in Santa Cruz to pay him as we had run out of cash, not having a bank anywhere near us for the last couple of weeks. The roads were so much better leaving the area via the northern route and although there had been ... read more
Nicaragua rural homesteads
Local Bus heading into the city
Granada Street Life




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