Nicaragua

Volcano boarding down an active cone is a real activity here

Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America and one of the cheapest, with a chain of volcanoes running down its Pacific side and the biggest lake in the region in the middle of it. It has long been the budget alternative to Costa Rica next door, offering similar landscapes for a fraction of the price.

Granada and Leon are the two colonial cities and they have a long-running rivalry. Granada is prettier and more restored, on the shore of Lake Nicaragua. Leon is scruffier, more political and has the cathedral, plus Cerro Negro, an active volcano where you can toboggan down the ash slope on a plywood board at genuinely alarming speed.

Ometepe is the standout: an island in the lake formed by two volcanoes joined by an isthmus, with almost no development and a very slow pace. The Pacific coast around San Juan del Sur has the surf. Note that political unrest since 2018 has led to periodic travel advisories, so check current guidance before booking.

Annual events and festivals

• La Purisima and Griteria (7 Dec) — the biggest celebration of the year. Households build altars and give out gifts to anyone who sings.
• Santo Domingo, Managua (Aug) — a rowdy ten-day patron saint festival.
• Semana Santa (Mar-Apr) — Holy Week, with alfombras sawdust carpets in Leon and Granada.
• Independence Day (15 Sep) — marks the 1821 break from Spain, with school parades.
• Palo de Mayo, Bluefields (May) — an Afro-Caribbean maypole festival on the Atlantic coast, entirely unlike the Pacific side.
• Granada International Poetry Festival (Feb) — a surprisingly major literary event.
• San Jeronimo, Masaya (Sep-Dec) — reportedly the longest patron saint festival in the world, running around eighty days.
• Torovenado (Oct-Nov) — a satirical masked parade in Masaya mocking politicians and the powerful.
• Revolution Day (19 Jul) — marks the 1979 Sandinista victory.
• Fiestas de Santiago, Somoto (Jul) — includes traditional horse parades.