Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 2784-2327; casitasanpayo@gmail.com; Parque Central, 2½c N; s/d/t US$15/20/27.50)
This is a
terrific budget hotel with sunny upstairs rooms wired for cable TV, and it has an even bet-
ter restaurant (meals US$2 to US$4). The fabulous owner, Naraya Zelaya, is beyond help-
ful; she rents a 4WD car (US$100 per day with driver) and can arrange guides (US$10/20
per half/full day) to the
Cascadas Verdes
and
Salto Santa María
waterfalls, the
Cuevas del
Hermitanio
caves and pine-blanketed
Volcán Yalí
(1542m).
Getting There & Away
Buses (US$0.80, 45 minutes) and minibuses (US$1, 30 minutes) to Jinotega leave at regu-
lar intervals from the parque central. Buses for Estelí (US$1.50, 90 minutes, every two
hours) travel via La Concordia.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Jinotega
POP 46,000 / ELEV 985M
Hidden in a cat's eye of a valley, the City of Mists is enclosed on all sides by mountains
dappled in cloud forests, crowned with granite ridges and pocked with deep gorges.
While coffee tourism percolates in Matagalpa, Jinotega, which brims with adventure
and promise, still sees far more foreign-aid workers than tourists. So walk these cobbled
streets, visit nearby Lago de Apanás and hike into the misty mountains, where you can
harvest coffee with locals and stroll through primary forest. Just make sure to get to Cerro
La Cruz on a clear day to glimpse the cat's eye in all her jade glory.
That City of Mists moniker is no joke. The average temperature is just 20°C (68°F) and
the town can get 2600mm of rain annually. Bring rain gear and a fleece for the cool even-
ings.
