We heard about a funky, chilled-out, traditional fishing village with great surf about 30 minutes out of Leon, and decided we could do with some funky, chilled-out time on the beach, plus as a bonus, Dave could finally catch some waves.
We did a bit of research the day before leaving Leon, and stumbled across a B&B that had fabulous reviews and, surprisingly, seemed to have availability… unfortunately even their cheapest room was way above our daily budget. But the photos looked so nice, and it had air-con, and it had a pool!
Stuff it, we thought! After the sweltering heat and humidity of Leon, we were totally committed to having air-con for the rest of our time in Nica, and were keen to spend a few days in more modern surroundings, and where better for a bit of luxury but in a beachside town? So we emailed the owners, confirmed they had availability and booked their cheapest room.
Upon arrival to Las Peñitas – there was a shuttle but given a taxi would cost us less than US$10, we decided to continue the theme of splashing out and booked a cab – we noticed two main things. Firstly, the B&B was even better in the flesh than it had looked in the photographs online! And secondly the town was pretty much deserted!
Apparently we were travelling in the low season – pretty much nobody travels in May in Nicaragua because its so hot. Ummm, yep, I can understand that! Anyway, both of the above two things combined to land us a pretty sweet deal.
El Cardue del Mar
The two lovely guys who ran the B&B offered to upgrade us to THEIR BEST ROOM, at no extra charge, simply because it was available and they figured we would like it better. Oh yeah we would!
Our room was amazing, it was huge and it had a wicked air-con, the bed was HUGE and so crazy comfy we felt like royalty, the bathroom was modern and clean and the shower had HOT water – jeepers, we were really living in the lap of luxury now! And a pool!!
We also had a private patio that overlooked the pool and the bar area – and the bar was self-service and worked on an honour system. Just make your drinks whenever you feel like it, and write it in the little notebook, then they add it to your bill at the end. Cuba Libres (rum and cokes) – here we come 😉
Given it was so quiet in Las Peñitas we pretty much had the whole beach, and the town, to ourselves. Oh, and did I mention we literally had beachfront access from our B&B? Well, we did!
We spent one lazy afternoon wandering along the beach (which spanned a couple of kilometres), stopping into the little bars and restaurants for a drink more often than not.
Here is one bar where we saw the most people in our entire time there – there were some local kids swimming and bodysurfing, and a couple of other tourists in the bar.
How is the view though – this bar had tables set up and the waves from the beach were literally crashing under our feet – super cool!
As a fishing village, Las Peñitas is renowned for its cheap local seafood, and we were super excited to try some of the local specialities.
At one of the bars, El Faro, we ordered a few rounds of 2-for-1 mojitos and sampled the famous Nicaraguan speciality of tostones, which are plantain fritters that you top with fried cheese… yuummmm… the fried, melt-in-your-mouth goodness was delightful! But VERY rich. Again, note the empty seats!
To get back to our B&B we decided to walk back along the street instead of the beach, and this way we got to see more of the ‘local’ Las Peñitas instead of just the beachside tourist accommodations and bars/restaurants.
As with most of Central America, the houses were colourfully painted, if not a little rustic and more run down that we had seen previously, but it was great to feel like we were experiencing a ‘real’, traditional Nicaraguan village.
One night we went for dinner at a local restaurant called Comedor Bertha, which literally had sand for its floor and overlooked the beach. In high season, we could totally imagine that this place would be pumping – it had loads of tables, as well as hammocks (I love the idea of taking a nap before or after your meal!), and specialised in the local fish.
We ordered two whole fish specials, which each came with rice and beans, salad and plaintain chips, plus we ordered a couple of beers.
The cost – for both meals was about US$7. That’s right, SEVEN DOLLARS! And the fish was delicious, tender and had the most delectable seasoning on it… this was a winner of a dinner for sure. The only downside was that as we were the only people dining in the restaurant it lacked a bit of atmosphere, but hey, you can’t have everything!
Dave did attempt a surf one of the days and hired a board but unfortunately it was a “full tide on shore and the waves were closing out on the beach – it was shit, unfortunately” (his words, not mine!) so it wasn’t the surf break he had been hoping for. I did get some snaps of him enjoying the water though.
After that, we spent the next few days just hanging out and relaxing – it was a much needed break from rushing around sightseeing and a welcome opportunity to just chill out. Reading our books, sipping on cuba libres from our private bar and swimming in the pool – what a great mini-break this was!
Our B&B kitchen also served up some delicious Asian fusion food, something we had not eaten in the last few months, and which was a welcome change. My prawn and green mango salad hit the spot and had me craving more over the next few weeks, and Dave’s chicken crepe was creamy and full of flavour.
Overall, despite there not being blue skies and cracking surf, we had a fabulous time – due partly to the wonderful hospitality of the guys at El Cardue del Mar, and the unique, quiet vibe we enjoyed at Las Peñitas.
It is the kind of place I would love to go back to when it is a little busier to enjoy it in a different way (oh, and if the surf is good, I think Dave would be back there in a heartbeat! – easily a place you could lose yourself for a week or two I think!