Traveling Nicaragua and Honduras
Planning an adventure traveling Nicaragua and Honduras?
I cannot imagine two more different countries located next to each other! Nicaragua and Honduras are so close and yet so different between each other! There is no doubt in my mind that traveling Nicaragua and Honduras makes for the perfect trip in Central America! They are certainly a perfect match, and anyone considering an extended vacation in Central America should consider traveling Nicaragua and Honduras!
Although both countries have shores on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, they are both developed on opposite sides, so for starters, the perfect plan for traveling Nicaragua and Honduras is to focus on the Pacific coast in Nicaragua and the Caribbean Coast in Honduras.
In Nicaragua, you should make sure you visit the Pacific coast beaches. Make sure you include San Juan del Sur in your itinerary. Then of course you need to visit the colonial cities of Granada and Leon, where you will find a rich historical legacy from the colonial times. Make sure you visit the volcanoes in Nicaragua, there are many along the Pacific Coast. Concepcion and Maderas in the island of Ometepe, which by the way, is a must on your list visiting Nicaragua, this is not only a biosphere Reserve, it is also the largest fresh water lake in the World! Other volcanoes to consider are Mombacho or Masaya near Granada, and you should not miss out on Cerro Negro near Leon, site of the only regular volcano boarding tour in the World! For more information on Nicaragua visit Nicatips.
The only two UNESCO World Heritage sites in Nicaragua are located in Leon, Nicaragua. The old Cathedral in Leon, as well as the ruins of “Old Leon” the original city of Leon established on the shores of Lake Managua or Xolotlan are two sites that you should visit while in the area.
Of course, the most difficult part of traveling Nicaragua and Honduras is how to travel from one to the other. If you are set on an overland trip, then your best option is to book the shuttle between Leon and La Ceiba. There are at least two weekly departures and you can book your ticket through the offices at Bigfoot Hostel. The bus leaves way to early, but is is because it is meant to arrive in La Ceiba, at the Caribbean coast of Honduras in time to catch the afternoon ferries that travel the Bay Islands of Roatan and Utila! There is of course the option to fly. If you prefer this option, you will have to backtrack to Managua, where you can take La Costena airlines flight from Managua to Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras. The flight departs Managua at 7:00 am and arrives in Tegucigalpa 40 minutes after, giving you enough time to go through immigration in Honduras and purchase a ticket from Tegucigalpa nonstop to to La Ceiba or Roatan using either Avianca, Aerolineas Sosa or CM Airlines. This will save you a full day of traveling overland from Leon to La Ceiba!
Many tourists traveling Nicaragua and Honduras go directly to the Bay Islands and completely miss the tropical rainforests of Honduras’ Caribbean Coast. This is a HUGE mistake! The Cangrejal River Valley offers a unique window to two different national Parks in Honduras: Pico Bonito and Nombre de Dios National Parks. These two parks separated by the scenic Cangrejal River, which incidentally, is located only 5 miles, 9 km from downtown La Ceiba. You should certainly plan on spending at least a couple of days in the Cangrejal River Valley on your way to the Bay Islands of Utila or Roatan. It really does not matter if you do so before or after the Islands, as long as you leave enough time to spend a few days there.
The Cangrejal River Valley offers many different activities, such as hiking in the rain forests, white water rafting, rappelling down pristine waterfalls hidden in the jungle, and zip line canopy tours that allow you to get a “birds view” of the dense rain forests of Central America. Best of all, there are several different hotels in the area where you can stay. La Villa de Soledad B&B is one of the favorite eco lodges in the area, and offers lovely verandahs with hammocks where you will relax in nature, re connect with the tropical environment and enjoy some great birding from the comfort of your hammock. Home cooked meals are another plus of staying at this lovely boutique hotel, which is within walking distance of all the above mentioned activities!
Just as Nicaragua is perfect for surfing beaches and volcanoes, Honduras is perfect for its tropical rain forests and the magnificent barrier reefs and white sand beaches at the Bay Islands. To finish off your perfect trip traveling Nicaragua and Honduras, there is one more site you absolutely need to visit in Honduras: The Mayan archaeological site at Copan Ruinas, in Western Honduras Although at the time of posting this article the best option between La Ceiba and Copan is to use the Hedman Alas bus company, there is a new airstip under construction in Copan that is scheduled to be finished sometime in March 2015, so there will soon be air service available from both La Ceiba and Roatan to Copan Ruinas, which will certainly cut the travel time seriously. I hope the above tips about traveling Nicaragua and Honduras have been useful!
If you have any specific questions about this post, feel free to ask for more information at my personal email, info@lavilladesoledad.com
