San Juan Del Sur
Nicaragua’s infamous “Sunday Funday”, and some local exploring.
Arriving in San Juan Del Sur was a pleasant surprise, having been pre-warned about the party vibe of this place, we thought we may be in for a shock, and that the town wouldn't be very inspiring. However, on arrival we were greeted by an array of boutique hotels, delicious restaurants and some gorgeous clothing shops.
Having met a great group of people in Antigua, we decided to look into renting an Airbnb. We opted for one with the most incredible view over the city. Having a double bed in an air conditioned room and our own kitchen felt like such a treat after being in hostel dorms for an extended period. Despite it being slightly more expensive bed wise, cooking our own food definitely made it work out around the same price as staying in a hostel. See above the image of the incredible view of the city we woke up to each morning!
The main attraction in San Juan Del Sur is Sunday Funday, the name pretty accurately describes what the day holds in store. They staff at the hostel really weren't joking when they said the day kicks off at 9am! We woke to the loudest music and were served a beer alongside our free breaky. At around 2pm you leave the hostel and go bar hopping around the town with hundreds of people, and the drinking doesn't stop until about 3/4am. Tickets for the day are 35$ which seems like a lot of money, however, we would 100% recommend doing it as it's a lot of fun, but pacing yourself is pretty key. After town you head up to a pool party at the hostel Naked Tiger to finish off the day.
There really is a lot of partying in San Juan, however we did manage to have a day well spent and squeeze in a bit of culture at the same time. We took a visit to Zen Yoga Nicaragua and did the most amazing Yoga Sculpt class, the area where the classes are taken is outside so you have a beautiful view and the occasional breeze is a life saver. San Juan Del Sur is a city strongly tied to religious values, even most of the local taxis have religious slogans or anecdotes painted on the front windows. There is also a huge statue of Christ which overlooks the city and is lit up in the evenings, similar to the one in Rio. We embarked on the trek up to the statue and the views from the top were unreal
In terms of places to stay when in San Juan Del Sur, the hostel Casa de Olas is incredible. It has the most stunning sunsets, the dorm rooms are decent and the staff members are so welcoming! You are offered free breakfast each morning which consists of either banana pancakes or scrambled egg on toast, and each evening they offer group meals for cheap prices where everyone at the hostel eats together so it's super sociable.
As we were in San Juan for a full week we found some great places to eat / drink so here's the low down for anyone heading this way.
Simon Says - trendy little cafe serving sandwiches, salads, smoothies, and it has the most beautiful interior decor
Barrio Cafe - a treat yourself kind of vibe, unreal food but not the cheapest
Taco stop - unreal burritos and tacos, and cheap
The Beach House - beach front restaurant with insane sunset views, they have a happy hour every day which is not only on drinks but also on starters/nibbles
Smoothie Time - went here pretty much every day for their banana cacao and peanut butter smoothies
Dale Pues - good value for money eat
