Things to do in Granada & The Masaya Region
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Las Isletas
One of the most enjoyable ways to pass the time is touring this miniature archipelago of 365 (OK, maybe fewer) tiny tropical islands, topped with rare birds, colorful flowers, mansions hung with hammocks, and a few hotels and restaurants where you're welcome to sit back and enjoy it all for a while. Catch a ride with a tour company or hire a boat yourself.
There's even a Spanish fortress, the 1784 Castillo San Pablo, with great views of Granada and Volcán Mombacho, plus a fine swimming hole nearby. The residents of Isla de los Monos (Monkey Island) are friendly, but may run off with your picnic lunch!
Formed 10,000 years ago when Volcán Mombacho exploded into its current …
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Convento y Museo San Francisco
The oldest church in Central America and the most striking building in Granada (that is to say, Nicaragua) boasts the big blue birthday cake facade of Iglesia San Francisco which, incidentally, houses the region's best museum.
The museum is through the small door on the left, where guides (some of whom speak English) are available for tours; tips are appreciated. Museum highlights include top-notch primitivist art, a scale model of the city and a tribe of papier-mâché Indians cooking, relaxing in hammocks and frolicking on comelazatoaztegams, a sort of a 360-degree see-saw.
The reason why you're here, however, is the Zapatera statuary, two solemn black basalt statues car…
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Centro Turístico
Enter through the mock Spanish fortress to a long stretch of lakefront with shady paths, sandy beaches, trees that seem designed for hammocks, restaurants, picnic areas and playgrounds, and free mangoes (if you can beat the parrots and street kids to 'em) all over the place, starting in late February. The Centro is also home to some happening nightspots.
Before splashing headfirst into the water with all the smiling families, you may like to take a good look at the river draining into the lake nearby and contemplate its contents...
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Aeropuerto 79
Just south of Masaya on the main road, this fairly spectacular spot - colorful tilework, beautiful gardens, sculptures of large-breasted women - has well-prepared typical food, and specializes in exotic meat, such as armadillo, rabbit or deer. It was a Sandinista military depot during the revolution, and a nearby plane crash in 1979 inspired the peacetime name.
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Mi Museo
This brand-new museum displays an incredible private collection of ceramics dating from at least 2000 BC to the present. Hundreds of beautifully crafted pieces were chosen with as much an eye for their artistic merit as their archaeological significance, and displayed in the grand old adobe with the same aesthetic awareness.
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Plaza de la Independencia
Head north of Parque Central to Plaza de la Independencia, also known as the 'Plaza de los Leones.' The obelisk is dedicated to the heroes of the 1821 struggle for independence, while the Cruz de Siglo was erected in 1900 to mark the new century.
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Cathedral de Granada
The Cathedral de Granada, on the east side of the plaza, was originally built in 1583 but has been destroyed countless times since. This most recent version, built in 1915, has four chapels; a dozen stained-glass panels are set into the dome.
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Comidas Criollas
Right on the park, this impressive steam-table buffet serves huge portions of great food with a few solid vegetarian options.
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La Ronda
This rather tranquil and elegant spot right on the park has a good happy hour and popular Wednesday karaoke night.
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Mercado Artesanías
Masaya's main claim to fame is shopping, and savvy buyers come here to find great deals on Nicaragua's finest handicrafts. Tours and taxi drivers drop you off at the 1888 Mercado Artesanías, a somewhat incongruous, black-basalt Gothic structure with a Spanish-fortress motif, including turrets, towers and oversized gates.
Despite a major fire in 1966, it was used as a regular market until 1978, when Somoza's National Guard all but leveled it. The building, which covers an entire city block, was abandoned until renovations began in 1994.
Today it is a wonderful place to stroll, with attractive booths separated by wide and breezy walkways, showcasing the highest-quality craf…
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Los Agüizotes
Los Agüizotes is an important celebration, featuring spirits of the dead and characters from indigenous horror stories (many originating during the Spanish conquest). The Headless Priest and La Carreta Nagua (Chariot of Death) are used throughout the year to scare children into better behavior, but on the last Friday in October make their way through the streets of Monimbó and Masaya.
Costumes are prepared the night before in a ceremony called La Vela de Candil (Vigil of the Candle). They are placed on a table with a large candle in the middle, and those watching over it throughout the night keep themselves awake with fireworks, live music, alcohol and dancing, after wh…
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Cementerio de Granada
Used between 1876 and 1922, some of Granada's wealthiest decades, this beautiful cemetery has lots of picturesque mausoleums and tombs, including those of six Nicaraguan presidents. Most people come to see the 1880 Neoclassical stone Capilla de Animas (Chapel of Spirits), a justifiably famous scale replica of the French chapel of the same name.
Close by is another rather mysterious replica, of Notre Dame cathedral. No one knows who built it, as the names have been chiseled away. This is also the starting point for the two-hour walk (or much quicker bike ride) to the back of Laguna de Apoyo.
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Iglesia de la Merced
Arguably the most beautiful church in the city, this landmark fronts a plaza popular with young lovers and players after dark. Originally completed in 1539, it was razed by pirates in 1655 and rebuilt with its current Baroque facade between 1781 and 1783. Damaged by Walker's forces in 1854, it was again restored with the current elaborate interior in 1862.
Although Catholics come to see an important image of the Virgen de Fatima, anyone can enjoy climbing the bell tower. The caretaker usually takes people up late morning, but it's worth asking him any time.
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The Malecón & Laguna De Masaya
Just seven blocks west of the parque central, past hammock factories and Iglesia San Juan, is one of the most inspiring views in a region famed for the same, across Laguna de Masaya to the smoking Santiago crater. The still attractive, if crumbling, malecón was constructed in 1944, when you could still swim, drink or fish in the impressive lagoon.
Things have changed. Several trails carved into the volcanic crater millennia ago still lead from a humble collection of restaurant/bars down to the water, but hardly anyone ever uses them anymore.
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Nicaragua Butterfly Reserva
This charming mariposario is a must-see for anyone partial to a bit of a fluttery fun. Dedicated to protecting and breeding over 20 species of butterfly (around 200 of the little critters at any given time), the massive flight house is home to such exotic specimens as the Owl Butterfly, the Montezuma and the stunning Blue Morpho.
They also offer guided or self-guided nature tours through nearby walking trails, and if you don't feel like heading straight back to town, you can even rent a cabina overnight.
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Iglesia San Francisco
The oldest church in Central America and the most striking building in Granada (that is to say, Nicaragua) boasts the big robin-egg-blue birthday cake facade of Iglesia San Francisco, which, incidentally, houses the best museum in the region. Originally constructed in 1585, it was subsequently burnt to the ground by pirates and later William Walker, rebuilt most recently in 1868 and restored in 1989.
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Forteleza Coyotepe
Built in 1893 atop Cerro de los Coyotes, eerie Forteleza Coyotepe witnessed the last stand of Benjamín Zeledón, the 1912 hero of resistance to US intervention. The marines managed to take the fortress, watched all the while by a young man named Sandino, who vowed his revenge. In the end it would also be the National Guard's last stronghold, overrun during Sandinista's final 1979 offensive.
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Iglesia de San Jerónimo
Among the major buildings worst hit by the earthquake of 2000, which also destroyed about 80 homes, was 1928 Iglesia de San Jerónimo, the spiritual heart of Masaya and one of the most recognizable silhouettes on the skyline. But that hasn't stopped anyone from celebrating the longest fiestas patronales in Nicaragua, with their epicenter, as always, right here.
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Old Train Station
Nine long blocks north of town along Calle Atravesada, you'll find shadeless Parque Sandino, next to the old train station, now a technical vocational school. Built in 1882 and operational in 1886, the US marines remodeled it in 1912. There's lots of playground equipment, some with train themes, and a few well-preserved railroad cars are on display nearby.
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Fritangas
Granada has excellent street food, with bags of fruit salad and other goodies on sale between the parque central and Mercado Municipal in the morning. Just before sunset, fritangas set up in the parque central and Calle La Calzada, dishing up barbecue, gallo pinto (rice and beans) and all things fried, onto washed banana leaves for you to enjoy.
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Fortaleza La Polvora
Originally called the Fortaleza de Armas when it was constructed in 1748, this lavishly turreted Spanish fortress still has the best view in town, over ancient, water-stained church domes all the way to Lago de Nicaragua. You can also check out paintings, a few interesting artifacts and one of the better public toilets (it's hexagonal!) in Nicaragua.
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Museo & Galería Héroes y Martires
Inside the alcaldía (mayor's office), the Museo & Galería Héroes y Martires honors Masayans who gave their lives during the revolution. There are walls of photos and interesting displays of bomb-building materials and weapons, as well as personal effects including musical instruments and a few Chorotegan funeral urns. It's poignant.
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Horse-drawn Carriage Tours
The classic Granada tour takes a horse-drawn carriage from the park for an hour-long whirl past churches, the cemetery, the malecón (waterfront) and more with your Spanish-speaking guide. These guys know how to give a tour, too: this has been a family business since 1868, when carriages were first introduced here and in Masaya.
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Tourist Train
If you're here between Thursday and Sunday, consider taking the cute little tourist train from Hotel Madera's Inn on a guided tour of Masaya. Highlights include the malecón (waterfront), Iglesia de San Jerónimo and the old 1926 train station (Av Zelaya), which unfortunately remains closed to the public.
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Cafe DecArte
This restaurant serves fresh, healthy cuisine, including a recommended Caesar salad and tuna pita sandwich, plus daily vegetarian specials and fresh soups, not to mention a pretty darned spectacular breakfast buffet. The owners also offer mosaics classes to adults as well as local kids, who sell their stuff right here.
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