Nickle Tour: Ometepe is decribed as a “fairytale” place on Lago, Nicaragua – the largest lake in Central America – and it truly is.  While there isn’t much infrastructure or things to do on Ometepe, it is a must-see in our opinion.  And, interestingly enough, it reminded us of home, well the Kerrville Folk Festival of home with its eco-fincas, hippies and plenty of nature to enjoy.

Travel Tip: Make sure you have all the cash you need for your stay on Ometepe as there are no cash machines on the island and almost nobody takes plastic.  Also, we’d highly recommend renting a vehicle (read: 4 wheeler or motorbike) while you’re on the island.  You can hitchhike a ride from locals, but many know you’ll pay for a ride when it’s an hour walk anywhere in the hot, midday sun.  

See: Ojo de Agua: a river-fed swimming hole reminiscent of Barton Springs in Austin, Texas.  Hike the volcanos if you like (we had enough in Leon) to see waterfalls and wildlife.  

And, as mentioned earlier, rent a vehicle and drive the island looking for wildlife and otherwise just exploring.

Sleep:  El Zopilote is a great eco-finca where you stay in tree-house type private cabanas, get a dorm room, rent a hammock for the evening or put up your own on their campsites.

Eat: El Zopilote hosts pizza nights in their brick oven every couple of days and I’d definitely recommend the Diablo and the fresh salad from the garden (served on the pizza).  El Zopilote also infuses their own rum with coffee, vanilla and a host of other flavors – try some!  

Other than the pizza at Zopilote you’ll find the regular what-have-you on the island (beans, rice, chicken, etc).  And, we ran into a street vendor selling delicious corn tamales (our first and only tamales in Central America so far).

More: 

El Zopilote had an outdoor “Japanese Shower” (a pipe in the jungle surrounded by bamboo) and was also my first encounter with an ordinero (fancy hole in the ground for #1) and a rice-husk composting toilet (for #2).  I really enjoyed learning about this sustainable way to deal with waste with minimal water use.