The watery “Golden Route” through southern Lake Cocibolca and down the Río San Juan is unquestionably worth a visit, especially the photogenic fort and river town at El Castillo. Once you reach San Carlos, public boat transportation is regular and cheap. To explore this region, plan on spending about a week, though choosing just one of these places for a three-day trip is feasible.
The Solentiname Islands in southern Lake Cocibolca. Photo © Dick Culbert, licensed Creative Commons Attribution.
Fly from Managua to San Carlos. Catch a boat taxi to Solentiname, where you can find a place to sleep for the next few nights. If you go by bus, stay the night in San Carlos and leave the next morning.
This archipelago is best explored by kayak. Don’t miss San Fernando’s sunset or the artist colony on Mancarrón. Sleep in Solentiname.
Charter a boat direct to Papaturro, or get an early panga back to San Carlos, and another to Los Guatuzos. Settle in to your lodgings in Los Guatuzos and pull on some boots for a night tour.
Solentiname and the Río San Jaun
Explore Los Guatuzos in the daylight, or get up early and make your way back to San Carlos to get a boat upstream to Boca de Sábalos, where you can find a bed for the night.
Take a chocolate tour at Buena Vista in the morning and catch an afternoon boat east to El Castillo, where you’ll spend the next two nights.
Visit the old Spanish fort and Mariposario El Castillo, a nearby butterfly reserve.
The next day, get a boat back to San Carlos for a flight to Managua, or with an extra couple of days, head out to the historic Creole, indigenous, and mestizo settlement of San Juan de Nicaragua, then fly back to Managua from there.
Excerpted from the Sixth Edition of Moon Nicaragua.
