San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua
March 8-10, 2012
We had passed through Nicaragua several times on route to other destinations so we were excited that this time, we would finally begin exploring Nicaragua's treasures. Our first stop was the Pacific coastal town of San Juan del Sur which is a popular surfing destination for both locals and tourists alike. The once sleepy fishing village now sees a steady influx of international travelers.
Our Accommodations - Casa Maderas
We happened by chance to find a new hotel that just opened three months ago about 9 km from the town of San Juan del Sur called Casa Maderas. Its location was actually along the road to the famous surfing beach and away from the noise of town. Our room included a nice breaky in the morning, free shuttles to town and to the beaches, a sparkling pool and restaurant onsite.
The Bus Stop
In Central America, sometimes you get dropped off along the highway and then find alternate transport to your destination.
In this example, our bus stop into San Juan del Sur was sitting on the curb under a big leafy tree. Amazingly, this method usually works out and just requires a little patience sometimes.
Photo's of San Juan del Sur
It happened to be freakishly windy in San Juan del Sur while we were here, and hot and dry. We thought the crescent shape beach that the town is built along was pretty but the drawback for us was that it felt a little too commercialized because of the tourist boom in the area. However, you could still feel its charm from an earlier era and we enjoyed walking the town.
Maderas Surfing Beach
Maderas Beach is famous for surfing and has really big waves but isn't great for swimming. There were some neat rock formations that were exposed during low tide that we leisurely walked along and spent an afternoon watching the waves crash against "the shark fin" rock.