Isla de Ometepe Transportation

1 more image

While I was having coffee in the bar next to the ferry terminal a guy came to me asking if I needed a taxi from San José del Sur to my accommodation. He wanted 20 US $ which I found too expensive. I intended to wait for the bus instead. Later on he came back telling me there was a small group of people (a family of four) that was going to do a day tour on the island. I could join them to Finca El Porvenir where I was staying and we agreed on the price of 10 US $. A visit of El Porvenir and the petroglyphes was on their itinerery anyway, they just did it at the beginning instead of at the end of their tour.

To get from San José del Sur to Finca El Porvenir it was a pleasant one hour ride. On the way the driver explained things about the island and he told us some interesting stories. And it was very convenient to have a transportation right to the place where I was staying. Actually, I was quite lucky :)

2 more images

There is a good bus connection between Granada and Rivas. Chicken buses leave from a block south of the market, across from the Shell station. I left my hotel at 5:30 in the morning with the intention to catch the earliest bus to Rivas. The first one only left at 6:30am so I had enough time to wander around the market which was becoming lively with people bringing large heaps of fruits and vegetables for sale.

The bus was rather full when we left. With many stops on the way, after 1,5 hours we finally arrived to the bus terminal in Rivas. It's a rather bustling terminal and it took a while until I found a taxi to San Jorge. The taxi driver dropped me off at the ferry terminal from where the ferries leave to Isla de Ometepe. There are two ports to land on Isla de Ometepe, Moyagalpa and San José del Sur. I took a 9:30am ferry to San José del Sur. The ticket was 50 córdobas (December 2010) and I bought it on board. The journey took one hour.

Normally there will be a bus waiting for passenger at Moyogalpa whenever the boat or ferry arrive.So if you don't want to stay in Moyogalpa,don't waste time,just follow the local .Almost all of them will take the bus .The bus parking not far from the pier.Driver will honk when they ready to leave.Tell them where you will go.That bus may not reach your final destination but most bus will go to Altagracia.I suggest to take that bus anyway and try to catch another bus from Altagracia or what ever you can find,because there are not much frequent bus on the islands.If you miss a bus ,you have to wait for another hour or more. On this islands ,we have to plan the time of travelling well,especially on weekend which there are much less bus.

1 more image

From Granada ,take the bus from bus station opposite to shell station near mercado to Rivas.Bus to Rivas cost 24 c.d per person,take 1 and half hour to get there.Try to take the very first bus at around 5.45 in order to catch the first big ferry at 7.45. (in my case I don't like small boat (lancha)because I have sea sick easily) When arriving at Rivas ,take taxi to San Jorge port.The price for shared taxi used to be some thing like 20 c.d per person but that day it's hard to find any taxi who accept this price ,even when I do the trick of walking away to find some other taxi,no body called me back ,everybody asked for at least 30 c.d per person.The last moment before I accept 30 c.d price,there's one taxi calling us with price of 20 but I have to sit tight with another 3 passengers!! so totally 5 passengers plus 1 driver!! We were in taxi about 6 minutes.At San Jorge port we paid 10 c.d each for port fee.We bought ferry ticket from a small booth ,ferry cost 60 c.d (lancha will be cheaper,I think it's about half price).There will be the boat depart from San Jorge to Moyogalpa around every hour on week day ,if weekend there are much less frequent. The big ferry will depart at 7.45,10.30,14.30 and 17.40.It took 1 hour on the ferry to get to Moyogalpa.

4 more images

The Ferry runs twice a week. We took the 2 PM ferry on thursday for 90 Cordobas (about $4.50 each). Comfortable air conditioned seating area on the upper deck with great view coming into the island. cheap eats from the downstairs galley. Arrived just after sunset September 9th. We took one of only two available taxis, a seven passenger Toyota minivan with eleven passengers inside and I found out there were 3 more people on the roof/luggage rack after the van broke down just short of Altagracia. We all walked the remaining distance in the dark. A good bonding experience with our fellow shipmates/taxi mates. The ferry makes several other stops beyond Altagracia and returns to Granada in the wee hours.

July 2009 only the southern road between Moyogalpa and Altagracia was paved, all other roads on Isla de Ometepe were rough dirt roads.

Between Moyogalpa and Altagracia the buses run every hour and the ride takes one hour (along the southern paved road). To other destinations buses are less frequent. There are more buses to Merida and Balgüe from Altagracia than from Moyogalpa, so if there are no direct bus you can go off in Las Esquinas and wait for a connection there.

The day I had been checking out El Porvenir and was going back to Playa Venecia I started to walk along the road. Shortly after Santa Cruz a minibus passed me and this might have been a public transportation, but I don’t know. Anyway I walk for almost 1.5 hours until another bus came.

Playa Venecia - Altagracia was 10 cordobas.
Altagracia - El Porvenir was 10 cordobas.
El Porvenir - Moyogalpa was 20 cordobas (1 dollar).

There are a few direct buses every day departing from Merida going to Moyogalpa. I took the bus passing El Porvenir just after 9am. A woman waiting for the same bus as I told me that the lancha/ferry in Moyogalpa usually waited if the bus was late. From El Porvenir to Moyogalpa it took 2 hours and it was 20 cordobas (July 2009). In Moyogalpa the bus stopped just by the ferry terminal.

The lancha (small boat) left on time 11.30 for San Jorge on the mainland. The boat journey took 1 hour and the ticket was 30 cordobas (1.50 dollars). From San Jorge I shared taxi with two other persons and we paid 20 cordobas each to go to the bus terminal in Rivas. The taxi would have been 20 cordobas each even if we had been two passengers.

In Rivas I waited more than half an hour for the bus to Granada. The terminal is busy and you will find lots of food, snacks and drinks to buy and people to watch while you are waiting. The bus to Granada was one of those repainted old American school buses, so common in Nicaragua. To Granada it took 1.5 hours and the ticket was 24 cordobas. In Granada the bus stopped one block south of Mercado Muncipal.

Twice a week there is a ferry going to Granada from Altagracia. It takes 4 hours.

3 more images

Buses leave San Juan del Sur about every half an hour for Rivas. The bus ride takes 45 minutes and cost 15 cordobas (July 2009). At the bus station in Rivas I asked for a bus to San Jorge, from where the ferries leave for Isla de Ometepe, and was told that there are minibuses passing on the street. Before I had time to cross the street a taxi driver told me he could take me to the port for 40 cordobas.

I took the taxi from Rivas to San Jorge and as I went into the car a friend of the taxi driver also went into the car. As the taxi left the station two men shouted ”take care”. Soon after the friend of the taxi driver took out a big tool. Having read in the newspaper only the previous day about fake taxi drivers robbing their customers in another Nicaraguan city I felt that this might be very bad, so when the car turned in a direction I thought was wrong I said that this is not good. The taxi driver assured me it was the right way and soon after his friend left. Arriving at the port of San Jorge I told the taxi drivers what I had read about taxis in Nicaragua and he just laughed and said that this is not Managua.

From San Jorge to Isla de Ometepe there are several boats per day. The ferry (bigger boat) only leaves twice a day, but the lancha (smaller boat) leaves more often. At the port I paid the admission of 10 cordobas (July 2009) and then sat down in the waiting hall for a while. The lancha was a little late arriving from Isla de Ometepe so we didn’t depart on time. When it was time to board the boat everyone tried to get on at once so for some time it was a bit chaotic. But soon everyone had taken a seat and we left. The tickets were sold on board and it was 30 cordobas. The boat ride took one hour. It was a bit wavy but not rough.

The boat stops in Moyogalpa, a small town on the western side of Isla de Ometepe. Here I arranged for a hike to Volcán Concepión and went to the supermarket to buy water and snacks. Then I bought an ice cream at Eskimos and sat down at the pavement waiting for the next bus. While I was waiting a pickup from Hotel Finca Playa Venecia (where I was going) stopped and said I could go with them, they were only picking up a couple of tourists arriving with the next lancha, which were arriving soon.