Nicaragua was the third country of our Central America backpacking trip, having started in the easternmost country of Panama before traveling by bus across Costa Rica.
I quit my job last July and decided to take what I coined an "adult gap year", given I was taking it aged 28, instead of the typical gap year age of 18. I went back and forth for months on exactly when I would go, which countries I would visit, for how long I wanted to travel, with whom I wanted to go - if anyone...
My Central America trip would turn out to cover five countries in five weeks; the first three (Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua) with my partner Tobi and the last two (Guatemala, Belize) with Ina, a friend from Salzburg.
Having loved Panama and then been quite disappointed by Costa Rica, we were eager to see what Nicaragua would bring for us. We ended up leaving Costa Rica after just three nights of our planned eight and therefore had five extra nights in Nicaragua to explore. This was the best decision we could have made as we absolutely loved Nicaragua and are so happy we got to see more of the country than initially planned.
We crossed the border from Costa Rica at Peñas Blancas and then made our way to Laguna de Apoyo, the first stop of our time in Nicaragua, for two nights.
Although it was a lot of work, I made daily vlogs on Instagram reels of every single day of my Central America trip which I branded "the backpacking series".
→ Check out my episode of the Backpacking Series of exploring Laguna de Apoyo!
The closest city to Laguna de Apoyo is Granada and many people opt to just do a day trip to the lake. However, I can definitely recommend staying at least a night or two to properly enjoy the lake and especially sunrise, sunset and the stars of the night sky!
→ Check out my complete guide to visiting Granada!
By day trip: You can visit Laguna de Apoyo for the day from nearby Granada. While we were there, a few groups were also there with their hostels; you can arrange a day trip with your accommodation. Alternatively, you can travel to Laguna de Apoyo by yourself and then buy a day pass either from Paradiso or Coco Bay.
By bus: There is no direct bus between Granada and Laguna de Apoyo. We didn't travel by bus but my research found that you can take any bus headed to Managua or Masaya from Granada and ask to get off at the entrance to Laguna de Apoyo. From there, you can either walk an hour down to the lake, take the chicken bus at 6:30am, 11am or 4pm, or grab a taxi the rest of the way (about a six-minute drive).
By private shuttle: We left Laguna de Apoyo by shuttle heading for León, a three-hour journey north. We booked this through our hostel at the lake.
By taxi: You can take a taxi from Granada all the way to Laguna de Apoyo. It's a 25-minute drive and be sure to confirm the price before you start - no more than USD $20.
By hitchhiking: I don't really recommend this... but it did end up being the way we arrived at Laguna de Apoyo! By a pure stroke of luck, we got chatting with a British guy while crossing the border together from Costa Rica. He was meeting his Nicaraguan girlfriend and her family at the border and they offered us a lift most of the way to Guanacaste from where they helped us hail a taxi for the final bit to Laguna de Apoyo!
By flight: The closest airport is in Managua, the Nicaraguan capital. You can take the bus, a shuttle or a taxi to Granada and then follow the rest of the directions above accordingly.
Peñas Blancas border crossing between Costa Rica and Nicaragua
Laguna de Apoyo is very much a destination and we only left our hostel grounds in the evenings to walk a few minutes next door to another hostel to join in a trivia night and for dinner. A visit to Laguna de Apoyo is all about relaxing, chilling out, swimming and enjoying some down time!
Coco Bay Hostel
Paradiso
There are a number of lakeside hostels and hotels dotted around Laguna de Apoyo. Overall, we found the lake to be extremely peaceful and not at all overrun with busy toursity resorts.
We stayed two nights at the Coco Bay Hostel. We loved the location, facilities and grounds with private lake access but found the dorm rooms quite stuffy (so we moved into a private room with our own bathroom and lake view) and the overall hostel was not very social. There were a few activities we could join in at the Paradiso next door such as trivia. The property was quite busy during the day with day-trip groups coming from Granada but it was very quiet in the evenings with only a handful of people at dinner.
→ Book your stay at Coco Bay Hostel.
Paradiso was bigger and had much more going on so if you're looking for a bit of a livelier experience, you can check this out. They also get quite busy with day-trippers during the day though so I would recommend staying at Coco Bay Hostel and then walking next door when you want to join in something or grab a meal.
Coco Bay
Paradiso
Given that Laguna de Apoyo is a bit isolated, there aren't many options for eating. We ate all our meals either at our hostel, Coco Bay, or next door at Paradiso. Because the food options are limited, we also found them to be more expensive in comparison to what you might be paying in nearby Granada.
Lunch buffet at Coco Bay
Lunch at Coco Bay
Lakeside smoothies
Lunch at Paradiso
The Laguna de Apoyo has been a Nicaraguan nature reserve since 1991 and is protected from certain developments and the use of motors on the lake, making it a very peaceful, serene place to visit. The lake is a volcanic lake in the caldera of an extinct volcano making the water deliciously warm to swim in.
Whether you're here on a day pass or you're staying at the lake, the activites are all the same! Find a nice comfy beach chair or hammock to read a book or snooze in the sunshine. Get in the lovely, clear, warm lake water for a swim or borrow a kayak to explore Laguna de Apoyo further. Spot monkeys in the trees above your head.
If you're spending the night, make sure to step outside when it's dark to see the incredible night sky with stars twinkling across the lake.
Snoozing on the floating dock
Monkeys!
Spot the heron
Night sky over the lake
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Hi! I’m Jana, a Dutch-German-British-Canadian with a dream of seeing every country in the world. I am a storyteller, photographer and adventurer passionate about documenting and sharing my travels.
