Destination

Facts about Nicaragua

Dry Tropical Forest - this very unique eco-system includes many beautiful flowering trees. The plant life must be able to withstand 6-7 months of hard tropical rains and then 5-6 months of almost no rain at all. Good examples are the Nicaraguan nature reserves of Chocoyero and Montibelli.

Gallery Forest - so called for its great wildlife viewing qualities. The gallery is a line of trees, often growing out of sediment build up along river banks. Behind this line of trees is wetlands that do not support forest. The river bank trees are well lit and wildlife relatively easy to spot. Good example is in the wildlife refuge Los Guatuzos.

Cloud Forest - a broad term for forest above 1,000 meters in the tropics that is often draped in clouds and is usually very diverse due to altitude variations that create specific micro-systems at each altitude. Good example is the forest reserve on the Mombacho Volcano.

William Walker - 19th century North American lawyer/journalist turned adventurer who sought to expand the pre-civil war United States into Central America by setting up a slave state in Nicaragua. He invaded with a small but well armed force in October of 1855, named himself president of Nicaragua in July of 1856, but only held control of Granada and other select parts of Nicaragua briefly before being expelled by combined Central American armies in early 1857. The first Nicaraguan victory of against Walker's army occurred on the 14th of September 1856 and is celebrated annually as a national holiday.

Mark Twain - legendary writer/humorist who traveled across Nicaragua at the end of 1866 on the way from San Francisco to New York, his views on Nicaragua and the Vanderbilt steamship line that provided the journey are recorded in the book, Travels with Mr. Brown. Twain was particularly impressed with the beauty of the Nicaraguan people, the Island of Ometepe and the San Juan River.

Rubén Darío - founder of the modernist movement that rejuvenated Spanish prose and poetry at the end of the 19th century. A child prodigy who began writing poetry at 11 years old and is now remembered as Nicaragua's greatest national hero. He has a small village named after him in the province of Matagalpa where he was born, but spent his childhood years in Leon where his house is now a museum.

Howler Monkey - called mono congo in Spanish, this vocal tree dwellers can be heard as far as 5 km away. The male is the one who actually howls. They are considered an endangered species in much of Central America. They are found in many places in Nicaragua, including the reserves of Chocoyero, Mombacho Volcano, Laguna de Apoyo, Ometepe Island's volcanoes, La Flor, Indio-Maíz, Los Guatuzos, Solentiname and over great areas of the eastern and northeastern Nicaragua. There is no better place to take monkey pictures than Nicaragua, though the challenge of backlighting and dark animals is usually a formidable one.

Cacao - the raw fruit from which chocolate is made. The seeds of the fruit are dried and crushed. Less common in Nicaragua since the war years from 1979-1989. When the Spanish arrived it was plentiful, especially in Rivas. The indigenous Nicaraguans used the fruit as their monetary unit.

Nacatamal - a traditional Nicaragua dish eaten at any time of day, though more readily available Friday-Sunday in cities. Normally made of pork (though chicken is also used), rice, corn meal and sweet peppers, then wrapped in a big plantain leaf and boiled.

Guapote - native large-mouth lake bass, found in ponds and lakes all over Nicaragua. This is perhaps the finest fish to eat in Nicaragua, usually fried whole and drenched in tomatoes and onions.

Fresco - short for refresco and usually referring to freshly made fruit drinks which consist of the fruit, water and sugar.

Indio-Maíz Biological Reserve - one of Central America's finest rain forest reserves with nearly 4,000 km2 of primary rain forest. The reserve is home to a staggering bio-diversity that only a virgin tropical rain forest can produce. Access is limited, but the reserve can be visited via the San Juan River in southern Nicaragua.

Las Isletas - located in Lake Nicaragua, a compact 354 island archipelago formed around a peninsula, both or which are products of a pre-historic eruption of the nearby Mombacho Volcano. Most are inhabited and home to a mixture of humble fishermen and some of Nicaragua's most wealthy families who have vacation or party homes there.

Los Maribios Volcanoes - western Nicaragua's most active and dense chain of volcanoes, more than 21 in all, 5 of which are active. They run from Cosigüina on the shores of the Gulf of Fonseca to Momotombito in Lake Managua. They draw their name from an indigenous group which inhabited the area at the time of the Spanish conquest.

Mombacho Volcano - long dormant, this cone shadows the colonial city of Granada and is home to a well kept cloud forest reserve and two popular canopy tours. A collapse of part of its main crater destroyed what was Granada's twin city on its south flank in the late 16th century.

Los Guatuzos Wildlife Refuge - a small and spectacular wetlands and gallery forest reserve on the southern shores of Lake Nicaragua and part of the San Juan River. The finest place to view wildlife for those short on time, it can only be accessed by boat. It names comes from the indigenous group who inhabited the rivers and forests of the reserve until the mid-19th century.

Masaya - the name of both the province and its principle city. Masaya is the most densely populated region in Nicaragua and home to some of its best kept traditions which includes the making of the world's finest hammocks. The city has a late 19th century open-air market which has been restored and is a fine place to shop for local made goods.

Masaya Volcano National Park - home to five cones and an active crater, Santiago, which last erupted in April of 2001. The park is great for hiking with sweeping vistas. The most famous of its wildlife are the crater dwelling parakeets which defy the toxic environment of Santiago crater to nest away from predators.

León - León, Nicaragua was founded in its current location in 1610. León was the colonial capital of Nicaragua until independence from Spain in 1821. Since then it has continued as a university town, home to intellectuals, revolutionaries and poets. The city of León, Nicaragua has more than a dozen charming colonial churches within 8 blocks of the city center and houses the biggest temple in Central America, the Cathedral of León, 113 years in the making.

Granada - Granada, Nicaragua, founded in 1524, is one of the oldest European settlements in the Americas. Granada was the economic capital of Nicaragua in colonial times, the scene of William Walker's failed attempt at North American re-colonization. Granada is now rapidly becoming famous on the world stage as the most important tourism destination in Nicaragua for its lake front beauty and splendid colonial homes.

Corn Island - two small islands located 20 minutes by air east of Nicaragua's Caribbean coast. Visited by Christopher Columbus in 1502, they are now inhabited by a mix of Afro-Caribbean's and Miskito Indians who live mostly from fishing for lobster. The islands are lined by fine white sand beaches and coral reefs.

Selva Negra - Spanish for black forest, a private organic coffee plantation, cloud forest reserve and hotel owned and operated by descendants of German immigrants. The reserve is home to howler monkeys and a rich bird life.

San Juan River - 190 km in length, this water passage between Lake Nicaragua and the Caribbean Sea is the closest thing to a natural canal between the world's two great oceans. The river has a 17th century Spanish fortress used to fend of pirates and the Indio-Maíz Biological Reserve as its principle attractions.

Ometepe Island - located in western Lake Nicaragua, Isla de Ometepe it is made up of two volcanic cones, one active, Volcán Concepción and the extinct Volcán Maderas. Both the cones of Isla de Ometepe have nature reserves and the isthmus connecting the two volcanoes has a long sandy beach. Isla de Ometepe has been inhabited for at least 3,000 years and houses more than 600 archeological sites.

San Juan del Sur - located on the southern shores of Nicaragua's Pacific Coast, this half-moon bay is quickly becoming the darling of foreigners escaping over-developed Costa Rican beaches just to the south. First visited in 1523 by the original Spanish expedition it is now a popular vacation spot for Nicaraguans and visitors. Nicaragua rental homes are also available near San Juan del Sur, in the nearby home rental complex of Playa El Coco.

San Jacinto, León - a small village set in the center of the Los Maribios Volcano Range with an interesting fumarolic field located right on the northern border of the settlement. Known locally as Los Hervideros de San Jacinto the fumaroles have formed micro-craters of varying size, color and shape. The village is shadowed by the active Telica Volcano, and extinct cones Volcán Santa Clara and Volcán Rota.

San Juan de Oriente - an ancient Chorotega Indian village that became a Spanish colonial settlement in the 16th century. The village is famous internationally for it fine earthenware. The population's ceramic tradition pre-dates the Conquest and their pottery can be found in stores from San José, Costa Rica to Rome. It is located in the province of Masaya and is part of the infamous Los Pueblos de la Meseta.

Pueblos Blancos - Spanish for "White Villages" most of the homes are actually painted in bright colors. Also called Los Pueblos de la Meseta or Mesa Villages. Most of these precious colonial period villages were built on top of important Chorotega Indian settlements. They are located in the provinces of Masaya, Carazo and Granada and are famous for their superb handicrafts.

Canopy Tour - use of mountaineering techniques to explore the upper reaches of the forest normally not seen by humans. The customer buzzes in between large trees landing on tree platforms and using metal cables with safety equipment. Nicaragua has three canopy tours at the moment, the best being on the Volcán Mombacho. Although many advertise that their canopy tour is in rainforest canopy, most are in either cloud forest or tropical dry forest ecosystems. In Nicaragua there are no rainforest canopy tours at the moment; though there is a rainforest bridge system recently installed high up in the canopy of the Los Guatuzos Wildlife Refuge.

Francisco Hernández de Córdoba - the Spanish military captain who defeated indigenous armies and established León and Granada in 1524. The monetary unit of Nicaragua carries his name. He was beheaded in 1526 in the Plaza Mayor of León Viejo due to suspected plotting against Nicaragua's first governor.

Nicaraos - popular term used to describe the wealthiest and most developed indigenous culture at the arrival of the first Spanish explorers in 1523. Now more frequently referred to as Nicaraguas, they were named after the royal chief Niqueragua, whose subjects populated the isthmus between Lake Nicaragua and the Pacific Ocean, today's province of Rivas, Nicaragua.

Cocibolca - the most popular of one many supposed indigenous names for the body of water known today as Lake Nicaragua. Lake Nicaragua is Latin America's second largest lake and punctuated by more than 400 islands. Its waters drain via the San Juan River to the Caribbean Sea.

Chocoyero - Nicaraguan for "place of many parakeets", a tiny tropical dry forest reserve with two cascades and a rich flora and fauna. The reserve is home to over 700 nests for Pacific green parakeets, known locally by their indigenous name Chocoyos. It is located just 40 minutes from downtown Managua, 4x4 is necessary.

La Purisima - also known as La Gritería. A religious tradition unique to Nicaragua used to pay tribute to the Virgin Mary. Believers ask for assistance from Santa María and in thanks build small altars in front of or just inside their homes on the 7th of December. Roaming groups of worshipers visits the numerous makeshift alters singing songs to the Virgin and receiving small gifts of food in return. The festival in León from the early 18th century and is now celebrated countrywide.

El Hipico - part of every patron saint festival, this is a parade of the horses carrying well dressed and heavy lubricated riders from around the province of the festival and countrywide.

White-faced monkey - mono carablanca in Spanish. This curious, intelligent monkey is found in many of the nature reserves of Nicaragua. It is most famous as "the organ-grinder monkey" and is still a very popular pet in Nicaragua. They can be spotted around the San Ramón cascade on Ometepe Island, along the river banks of the Los Guatuzos Wildlife Refuge and inside the Indio-Maíz Biological Reserve.

Augusto César Sandino - one of Nicaragua's biggest heroes, Sandino was a nationalist and early opponent of globalization. He became the namesake for the FSLN, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, Sandinista National Liberation Front. Augusto Sandino was a Liberal Party general who fought a guerilla war in the northern mountains against the occupation of Nicaragua by the US Marines from 1927-1933. He signed a peace treaty with the Nicaraguan government soon after withdrawal of the Marines, one year after signing the treaty he was abducted and killed in Managua.

Nicaraguan dress - typical Nicaraguan dress is cotton pants and shirt for men and skirt with blouse for woman. In the cities most Nicaraguan dress as elegant as possible, while more casual dress is the norm for the beaches and mountains. Our visitors are given more specific suggestions for Nicaraguan dress ideas depending on the travel itinerary chosen.

Nicaraguan animals - Nicaragua is home to many endangered species of animals, such jungle wildlife as howler, white faced and spider monkeys, jaguar, giant anteaters, crocodiles, toucans, parrots are examples, as well as a rainbow of orchid and butterflies. Being located right in the heart of the tropics at between 11°-15° north of the equator means that the jungle wildlife and Nicaraguan animals are numerous and diverse. A good example is Nicaragua's Indio Maíz rainforest biological reserve which has more than 600 species of birds, 300 species of reptiles and 200 species of mammals.

Nicaraguan dances - one of the real pleasures for the cultural visitor is the variety and popularity of Nicaraguan dances. Unlike many countries that only perform folkloric dances for nostalgia and anthropological studies, Nicaraguan dances are part of every day life for most Nicaraguans. In Masaya, for example, there are more than 100 folkloric dance companies, all performing the broad variety of traditional Nicaraguan dances. Most of the Nicaraguan dance styles are heavily influenced by the 297 year colonial Spanish period, though African and indigenous elements are present, especially in Nicaraguan dances from the Caribbean coast.

Nicaragua tourism attractions - Nicaragua has more tourism attractions that most Europeans and North Americans imagine. It would be very easy to spend 3 weeks touring Nicaragua with out boring oneself from all the tourism attractions. Please see our Country Information page on this site for information on the many tourism attractions in Nicaragua.

Surfing Nicaragua - many come to Nicaragua for its surfing. Much like Costa Rica where surfers opened up the country to international tourism, surfing in Nicaragua is now leading the way to a giant influx of international backpackers. Surfing in Nicaragua is limited to the waves of the south and central Pacific Coast, but the wave selection is truly top quality, and those who have surfed Nicaragua rave at the empty breaks, long tube rides and laid back life style along the Nicaraguan coast. The only downside to surfing Nicaragua at this point is the lack of road infrastructure to reach many of the countries best waves and breaks. Charter boat is a costly but effective solution, though there are some select spots that the waves can be surfed directly in front of decent coastal lodging. Check our surfing program, Surf Nicaragua in the Special Interest Tour section for more details.

Nicaraguan art - Nicaraguan art is little known outside of Central America but is as vibrant as the Nicaraguan landscape. Art in Nicaragua is easy for the visitor to appreciate in such Nicaraguan art galleries such as the Galería Códice in Managua. Though most modern Nicaraguan art galleries are located in Managua, Granada and León also has galleries dedicated to display of Nicaraguan art. Please ask us if you have interest in viewing Nicaraguan art and we will include it in your visit.

Flor - flor is a key word for most visitors to Nicaragua. Not only is flor (Spanish for flower) visible in all parts of the country in its natural state and the name of Nicaragua's most famous turtle nesting site Playa La Flor, but the world's best rum, Flor de Caña is made in Nicaragua, comes in 7 flavors, aged up to 21 years. Flor de Caña means Flower of the Cane, a long willowy flower that tops the sugar cane shortly before it is ready to be harvested.

Mar - mar is Spanish for sea and although the Pacific is an ocean, most Nicaraguans refer to both bodies of waters: the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean as mar. In fact it has been said that Nicaragua is pleased with three seas. As the great Lake Nicaragua was called by the Spanish El Mar Dulce or the fresh water sea.

Airline tickets Managua - the best place to buy airlines tickets in Managua is around the Plaza España shopping plaza where the offices of American Airlines, Iberia Airlines and TACA Airlines are all found. Those looking for domestic airlines tickets in Managua can find them at any travel agent, tour operator or at the domestic airlines tickets office at the Managua airport.

Hotels San Juan del Sur - San Juan del Sur has a broad selection of hoteles for everyone from the backpacker to the sophisticated ecotourist. The hotels of San Juan del Sur all raise their rates dramatically for Holy Week and Christmas periods so it would be wise to avoid visits during these holiday periods when choosing hotels in San Juan del Sur.

Nicaraguan culture - Nicaraguan culture could be described as one of the most authentic mestizo cultures in all of Latin America. While many define culture as either highbrow European culture or ethnic indigenous traditions, Nicaraguan culture is a blend of the two worlds, a mixture that has lived for many years outside of the big cultural blender called globalization. The most obvious effect of the preservation of Nicaraguan culture for the visitor is the Nicaragua people's warm hospitality and great kitchen.

Miskito Indians - Nicaragua is home to the majority of infamous Miskito Coast, home to the Miskito Indians, shared by southeastern Honduras. The Miskito Indians are thought to have originally been migrants from northern Colombia and eastern Venezuela, perhaps arriving about 4,000 years ago. Today's Miskito Indian is a mixture of Afro-Caribbean and indigenous cultures and the language of the Miskito Indians has a great number of English words adapted from the many years in which Great Britain was their trading partner.

Nicaraguan history - Nicaraguan history is full of centuries of invasions, manipulations and infighting amongst domestic and international political and economic interests. Few who have interest in world issues will find Nicaraguan history anything less than fascinating. Part of our goal as a tour operator is to share the richness of Nicaraguan history with our visitors in a clear-sighted, even-handed way, to help bring understanding to the labyrinth of intrigues which have marked Nicaragua's historical past.

Nicaragua travel - Nicaragua travel is now better than ever with increased tourism infrastructure and tourism awareness on the part of the population. The federal government has put much effort into seeing than the level of travel in Nicaragua increases on an annual basis. At the moment Nicaragua travel is increases annually at a rate of about 15%. Not the rapid growth that most in the industry would hope for, but indicators point a continued increase in Nicaragua travel volume both short and mid-term.

Nicaraguan people - Nicaraguan people are with out a doubt the main asset of Nicaragua. The Nicaraguan people are renowned across Central America for their warmth and hospitality. Though all countries have natural beauty that would impress any visitor it is the Nicaraguan people that leave the most lasting memory for many travelers.

Daniel Ortega - the new president of Nicaragua is a unique historical figure. The leader of the FSLN (Front Sandinista for Liberation National) in Nicaragua, he started his political life in the underground movement to dethrone the Somoza family dynasty rule in Nicaragua, which came to fruit in 1979. He was the leader of Nicaragua's Sandinista government from 1979-1990, becoming a player in the cold war struggle between the US and the Soviet eastern block. Defeated in the 1990 Nicaragua presidential elections, Daniel Ortega stayed on as the leader of the FSLN political organization and participated in the elections of 1996 and 2001. Daniel Ortega finally won back the Nicaragua presidential seat during the 2006 presidential elections, taking 38% of the vote. Daniel Ortega has promised to continue with Nicaragua's recent economic success with free-market policies, while at the same time trying to improve the life Nicaragua's poor majority.