Things to do in Leon

Leon is Nicaragua’s second largest city and the culture and political capital of Nicaragua. It’s home to some of the countries most beautiful historic buildings and the revolution that shaped Nicaragua as we know it today. Leon and Nicaragua in general has taken a downturn in tourism due to the civil unrest and street violence following the government announcement that it would reform its pension system and reduce benefits by five per cent.

The demonstrations and protests began in a peaceful manner but quickly descended in bloody and deadly protests which saw police officers brutally force protesters to their knees and brutally execute them. This made Nicaragua and it’s main cities dangerous destination for tourist and forced hostels to close their doors.

Thankfully peace has been restored somewhat and the UK, USA and Canadian governments to name a few have lifted their warning against travel to Nicaragua. During my time in Nicaragua, I found it to be very safe and peaceful, albeit sparse of many other backpackers.

Leon is a beautiful colonial city in the north of Nicaragua. I spent a wonderful two days in the city roaming around and two days on the outskirts of the city. Here are a list of the top must do things when in Leon:

1. Throw yourself down an active volcano on a piece of wood. CNN have ranked volcano boarding as the second most daring, thrilling things to do, after flying a fighter jet for a mere $70,000. Pennies sure! If you dont have a spare 70K lying about you can try number 2 for $30 in Leon. Volcano boarding in Leon is a great way to pass a morning or an afternoon. It’s an easy enough 45 min to an hour hike up the volcano followed by a 30 second descent down the active volcano Cerro Negro. The last time Cerro Negro erupted was in 1999 and apparently, this type of volcano erupts every 20 years so if you’re heading this year, perfect timing. The record speed down the volcano is 95 kph so fairly bloody quick. I booked it through my hostel Big Foot, they were epic. If you book through them you get a free nights stay and a beer at the end and some class photos of you either creaming yourself (like me) or clutching for dear life to a piece of rope attached to a piece of wood. Good craic

2. Go on the free walking tour. My ears perk up at this stage into my trip when I hear the word free. The free walking tour goes at 9 am, 12.30pm and 4 pm from beside the cathedral and lasts about two hours. On this tour, you will learn all about the current political climate in Nicaragua, sample some traditional Nicaraguan drinks and candy and learn about the revolution. It’s free but it’s only sound to give the guide a few dollars for walking around in that heat and sharing their knowledge.

3. Climb the cathedral. This is a must do in Leon. The white cathedral is the largest cathedral in Central America and definitely the most beautiful cathedral I’ve visited. For $3 you can climb to the top of the cathedral and walk on the white roof, taking in the views of Leon and the backdrop of the volcanos. It provides a slight escape from the hot sun, its pristine and cool up here compared to the sweltering streets. Leon is the second hottest city in Central America. The opening hours are Mon-Sat 8.00-12.00 and 14.00-16.00.

4. Devour the street food. The best local street food can found by the main square in the evening. You can fill up on a full meal for $3 or less. The food is damn tasty too. There is also another area of less tradition street food around the corner from the main square which are hot dog, burger and pizza trucks. Had a pizza slice from there, not exactly artisan Italian pizza but filled a hole very well for $0.80.

5. Hit the beach for sun and surf. Las Peñitas beach is about 30 mins on a chicken bus from Leon. We got a taxi to El Mercandito 40 córdoba each and then got the bus to Las Peñitasfor 16 córdoba. Alternatively, Bigfoot Hostel runs a shuttle to it on Wednesday afternoons as the activity. We stayed in Surfing Turtle Lodge for two days in hope of being able to release baby turtles into the sea but nature didn’t allow, they only had eggs in the hatchery at the time of our visit. But you could be lucky and let the little guys into the sea which is fairly special.

6. Smash some ice cream in Kiss Me. Best ice cream in Central America. You can’t miss its pastel pink walls opposite Bigfoot Hostel. Try the marshmallow and brownie flavours.

Where to eat in Leon (and where not to eat):

• Street food- cheap and great local food.
• Batidos Pitaya- amazing smoothie bowls and smoothies. If you give them a review on TripAdvisor you’ll get your next smoothie for free. Winning!
• Pan y Paz- nice desserts and sandwiches, albeit on the pricer size and small portions. Great veggie panni though with goats cheese.
• Kiss me- ice cream

I would like to be able to recommend a pizza place that we spend an hour ravenously in search of but I can’t. Unfortunately, Antonino’s pizza does not exist or if it does it’s behind a group of intimidating Nicaraguan men. One evening after volcano boarding Mike, Hanan, Aoife, John and I went in search of pizza. Hanan said he had read a blog (fucking blogs) that recommended Antonino’s for pizza. We headed in search of said establishment and apparently Hanan’s maps had been notorious for being wildly inaccurate so we trusted google maps (myself and Mike swear by it) and headed in the opposite direction. After 15 minutes or so of walking the opposite direction of the city centre and noticing the diminishing amount of street lights, we started to think we should just hit the street food again or Maccy D’s. We were quite close so I persisted on and said we might as well check it out until a local started to walk directly at me, not seeming to step to the side but rather to walk for me. Mike, who had been called Arnold Schwarzenegger earlier that day, and likened to Magic Mike by me started to get a bit anxious when a group of locals started coming towards us asking for cigarettes and money and that’s when I bolted for the nearest taxi. Hanan had already been lagging and shaking his head three blocks back. Five of us bundled into a taxi back to the city centre and the search resumed for pizza.

Hanan took the lead and smugly lead us back in the original directly only to find his pizza place was closed down. I thought Aoife and I might have to mediate a domestic between the lads but thankfully we found a truck selling pizza slices and smashed a slice each to clear yer man out of the last of his pizza.

In the end we found a fast food pizza places selling pizza with undercooked doughy crusts resembling doorsteps and bought a bottle of rum to mix into our coke cans. We came back into the hostel three hours later to find the hostel doing thin crust Italian style pizza. At least I got my steps up, managed to hit 21,000 and my faith in google maps has been questioned. Morale of the story, Antoninos does not exist, stay in the city center where the streets are lit.

Where to sleep:

We stayed in Bigfoot Hostel and did the volcano boarding through them. I stayed in Bigfoot in Antigua too and really like this hostel. It’s a bit of a party hostel and very social. It has a little pool which is needed to cool off in and the rooms are air-conditioned, at least dorm 1 and 2 are but I sweet talked (pestered) the manager to turn on the air con in the other dorm I was in without the extra charge. The food looked good here, showers are great and WiFi works. I got the second night for free with the volcano boarding so I’d recommend them.

Poco a Poca hostel and Via Via hostel came well recommended also.