What are the best things to do in and around San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua?

San Juan del Sur is known for surfing and there are plenty of operations and surf schools to get you to the beach.
 
But one must not forget that San Juan del Sur was once a fishing village, so a trip on a panga (a type of boat) to catch your dinner is a great adventure here in San Juan del Sur.
 
For the more adventurous, there is ATV rentals, ziplining, horseback riding, stand up paddle boarding, among many other things.  How many other things?  Here’s...

San Juan del Sur is known for surfing and there are plenty of operations and surf schools to get you to the beach.
 
But one must not forget that San Juan del Sur was once a fishing village, so a trip on a panga (a type of boat) to catch your dinner is a great adventure here in San Juan del Sur.
 
For the more adventurous, there is ATV rentals, ziplining, horseback riding, stand up paddle boarding, among many other things.  How many other things?  Here’s just a short lis, "A to Z": 

San Juan del Sur is great for: 

You will find San Juan del Sur to be a very laid back town with great people, great prices and authentic Nicaraguan ambience.

San Juan del Sur is great for: 

You will find San Juan del Sur to be a very laid back town with great people, great prices and authentic Nicaraguan ambience.

San Juan del Sur has a pretty good network of tourist activities.
 
Close to San Juan Del Sur there are volcanoes and lakes. There are cool places if you go hiking.   You can check out volcanoes that are actually in the middle of the Lake Nicaragua. There are places to go do ziplining on the other volcanoes.  Nicaragua is noted as being the land of lakes and volcanoes so there’s a lot of that.
 
We mostly specialize in surfing and fishing, but we...

San Juan del Sur has a pretty good network of tourist activities.
 
Close to San Juan Del Sur there are volcanoes and lakes. There are cool places if you go hiking.   You can check out volcanoes that are actually in the middle of the Lake Nicaragua. There are places to go do ziplining on the other volcanoes.  Nicaragua is noted as being the land of lakes and volcanoes so there’s a lot of that.
 
We mostly specialize in surfing and fishing, but we will send guest out to other popular activities such as to the Mombacho Volcano. There’s a ziplining up there and coffee plantations to check out. There’s another volcano that’s active that you can go and actually look into the crater and see smoke coming out. You can visit colonial cities and markets where you can do shopping and buy artisanal crafts.
 
There are definitely lots of activities. Costa Rica may have more of the eco activities just because it’s probably a little bit more lush and tropical there than it is in Nicaragua. We’re a little bit more arid here in the southern part of Nicaragua. Also, due to the offshore wind effect it makes the weather here in southern Nicaragua a bit drier. 
 
All that said, the best thing to do in San Juan del Sur is go to one of the beachfront restaurants and get a big cold rum drink and a world famous Flor de Caña rum. You want to make sure you get the 7 year Gran Reserva because it’s the best, and sit back and watch the sunset. That’s the best thing to do in San Juan del Sur for sure.
 
San Juan Del Sur is at the southern edge of the wind effect, so there are great surf breaks around there, although not in the San Juan del Sur bay itself, which is protected from the surf.  There are also a lot of fishing operations that have started in Southern Nicaragua.  There’s some cool in shore fishing for roosterfish and mackerels and jacks. We also get shellfish, dorado and wahoo.  Fishing is good in Nicaragua but it’s not like great compared to Costa Rica or Guatemala where you can get 50 shots a day at shellfish, but Nicaragua is probably a little bit more raw and untapped, so there’s the possibility of stumbling upon a really good fishing spot that no one’s every fished before.
 
Drinking and partying is a pretty big thing in San Juan Del Sur. San Juan del Sur is kind of the epicenter of beach tourism. Someone told me there’s somewhere in the area of between 500 and a thousand new backpackers coming into San Juan Del Sur every day. So there’s a pretty big tourist town. I’d venture to say it’s the biggest tourist town in the country for people cycling through and doing hostels. In addition, San Juan del Sur has high-end hotels. They do have a cool little culture in San Juan Del Sur that’s a great starting point for anyone coming in to Nicaragua to do adventures on the coastline. You can get a good gauge things and you can go out from there fairly easily to any other part of Nicaragua.  

 

(Co-Owner of Safari Charters, Kristin Moss and a friend fishing, north of San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, pictured.)

The best thing to do in San Juan Del Sur is to go to the beach and get out on the water. There are a number of charter fishing options. There are also sailing options. Or you could also do some cruising. Some of the beaches in and out of town are incredible and gorgeous and virgin.
 
I have a young family and we go to the beach a lot. My kids love the ocean and they love digging in the sand. There are a lot of options for beaches both in the northern part and in the southern...

The best thing to do in San Juan Del Sur is to go to the beach and get out on the water. There are a number of charter fishing options. There are also sailing options. Or you could also do some cruising. Some of the beaches in and out of town are incredible and gorgeous and virgin.
 
I have a young family and we go to the beach a lot. My kids love the ocean and they love digging in the sand. There are a lot of options for beaches both in the northern part and in the southern parts of town, or you could just simply go to the beach in town. There are also nature options such as the new eco park just east of San Juan Del Sur, where there is a great opportunity to see some monkeys, sloths, toucans, snakes, bugs, iguanas, and other wildlife that kids love and enjoy seeing. It is a great educational experience to have with your kids.  

 

(A girl exploring a rock face on the beach in Nicaragua, pictured.)

Well, all activities to do with the ocean are obvious—boating, fishing, kayaking. There’s a guy that’s just starting kite surfing. Coastal activities as a group are the obvious number one things to do in San Juan del Sur —booze cruises, trips to different beaches, etc.  Watching turtle laying is very popular here.

 

San Juan del Sur is also within an hour and a half from being up in the mountains doing ziplining.   Volcanoes such...

Well, all activities to do with the ocean are obvious—boating, fishing, kayaking. There’s a guy that’s just starting kite surfing. Coastal activities as a group are the obvious number one things to do in San Juan del Sur —booze cruises, trips to different beaches, etc.  Watching turtle laying is very popular here.

 

San Juan del Sur is also within an hour and a half from being up in the mountains doing ziplining.   Volcanoes such as Ometepe are only 25 minutes away. Ometepe is a twin volcanic island in Lake Nicaragua, the largest lake in Central America.  Visiting there is like visiting “The Land That Time Forgot.”  It’s within striking distance to stay for a few days. We also have beaches, and of course, surfing. There’s a huge surfing community here. 

 

Personally, my favorite thing to do is gardening.  San Juan del Sur has lots of viveros. “Vivero” is the Spanish word for “nursery” and right now it’s so lush and green and tropical.  We’re in winter here, as they call it; the green season. I have an extensive garden so I’m busy planting more and more plants and that’s amazing. I love that. The nature here and plant life is just incredible.