lucycan

Planning a (first time) trip to Nicaragua in early NOV and looking for a relaxing place to stay on/near the beach. Flying in/out of MGA so something within a decent distance from there is appreciated. Thank you.

ambyr

What sort of beach experience are you looking for? I found Poneloya on the Pacific relaxing and low-key; Las Peńitas, a little further south, is more developed (if you prefer your hotel less rustic). If you're okay with lakefront instead of ocean, Ometepe has a long sandy beachfront around Santo Domingo. And if you want to party, I gather San Juan el Sur is the place to be.

I think it will be easier to get hotel recommendations once you narrow down where you want to be.

lucycan

Hi ambyr! Good question. Really looking for relaxation, someplace with decent rooms and good food. Not too big. I found the HulaKai hotel near San Juan del Sur. But if thats a total 20s party spot, its probably not for me.

Any other suggestions? Pretty open other than on the beach and AC would be nice.

ambyr

I'm basing my assessment on San Juan el Sur purely on a very long bus ride spent inadvertently eavesdropping on a group of loud 20-something Canadian women recounting in detail every drug they'd used and every guy they'd slept with while visiting there (and every drug and guy they planned to try on their return), so if someone has actually been there and wants to contradict my impression, believe them over me. But it was enough to convince me that I'm probably way too old and square to hang out there. (Well, okay, not purely on that--also on my guidebook reading.)

The only beachfront hotel I've actually stayed at is Villa Paraiso on Ometepe. It's definitely on the beach and I recall the AC (and the hot water) working pretty well. The food was fine if not exciting, and there's a couple other restaurants (associated with other hotels, mostly) that you can walk to easily for variety. (We were pretty charmed when we asked for a to-go bag for leftovers at one and were told to just take the food with us bowl and all, on the honor system to return the bowl by the following evening.) That said, the property was a little run-down--all the charm is in the setting, not the buildings. And since it's on an island, it's not the quickest trip from Managua. You can fly to Ometepe from Managua, but flights are extremely limited (I think twice a week?). Otherwise you're looking at ground transportation, a ferry, and more ground transportation, and should probably plan on it being a full-day affair. Poneloya and Las Peńitas, on the Pacific coast up by Leon, would be a shorter trip.

lucycan

Thanks for the comments! Looks like Las Penitas has some great options as well. Perhaps a bit more laid back than San Juan del Sur. Reading more online that its the party hub.

ricktoronto

Managua is well away from any oceans so you will be renting a car or some sort of bus no matter what. Though what a decent distance actually is would be helpful.

Western type experience you can stay at Barcelo Montelimar which is all inclusive and to me, horrible. I went once and that was enough and was at the request of my friend.

However they might have some sort of transport available as routine.

San Juan del Sur is youngster country (though frankly the all types of drug talk sounds like they were bragging - it's actually not that common here. I am in Managua now on maybe my 60th visit since 2004 and I have seen MJ exactly once and hard drugs never).

Apart from SJDS you have the Pochomil area (Barcelo and some small others), Poneloya (if you stayed where I took a room for a day I am in the register as Bill Clinton, Washington DC), but I think there is a quite costly eco resort or two.

It might be helpful understanding cost barriers, your Spanish, and how you'd plan to get around here.

rhivolution

A few months back I "won" a 3 night stay at this place: http://mesonnadi.com/the-hotel/

It's in Popoyo on the Pacific coast of Nicaragua. It doesn't seem like there's much around, and the beach/ocean is more geared towards surfing than swimming etc, but it looks like a lovely place to stay. We are staying here as part of a wider Central America trip in November. I will report back if you are still looking for recommendations.

leland

Where did you end up booking? Would love your report. Consider the corn islands or caribbean at all?

lucycan

Timely reply! Just stayed here: www.elcardhudelmar.com in Las Penitas. It was great but had a few major faults (namely poor AC). Check out my full review on TA under my same name. That said it is the nicest place on that beach.

Also spent a day in Leon which was quite nice, but our favorite is Granada where we are now.

leland

Great, thanks @lucycan.

Poor ac definitely wouldn't work for me!

mike2003242

where y'all staying in Granada and what all are you doing? Planning a trip now!

jarnov

You can find Aqua Wellness Resort near the beach ,which is well known.

rhivolution

I really liked this place but unless you're a surfer, there isn't a huge amount of things to do around. The beach is nice enough, but rocky and you can't really swim. If you're just looking to chill by the pool with good food and drinks, though, Meson Nadi is perfect. Superb food, great cocktails and happy hour, nice but small pool, and good quality rooms / accommodation (for an independent Nicaraguan beach hotel, anyway, probably not by Caribbean standards). It's a bit of a trek to get there. We paid for a taxi from Managua.