Nicaragua accommodation, farmstay cabins
| country: | Nicaragua |
| location: | Near Masaya |
| price: | From US $4 - US $8 (hostel) or US $25 - US $30 (cabin, sleeping up to 4) per night. Price includes lodging and access to the centre facilities. Meals, guided walks, trips & Spanish lessons at extra cost (see below) |
description
We offer an active holiday staying in cabins and our hostel in a natural environment, surrounded by trails for exploring and learning about nature. We are an ecotourism centre run by a Danish-Nicaraguan family. Our little farm is characterized by forestry, organic farming and domestic animals.
Located in beautiful natural surroundings near the Masaya Volcano and about one hour's drive from Managua, we offer outdoor activities for individuals and groups as well as practical Spanish classes, meals, and accommodation for short and long term visitors.
Many of the services offered are a collabotation with other members of the local community, and we hope that our initiative will bring jobs and wealth to some of our very kind neighbours.
Hiking trails on the farm & in the National Park (guided or on your own) Horse riding Spanish school for foreigners Traditional agriculture tasks, such as coffee, cattle, fruit farming, firewood Learning about nature, reading, listening and playing Nature based playground Volcano climbs & lagoon trips Furniture tour (tree to product)
Located in beautiful natural surroundings near the Masaya Volcano and about one hour's drive from Managua, we offer outdoor activities for individuals and groups as well as practical Spanish classes, meals, and accommodation for short and long term visitors.
Many of the services offered are a collabotation with other members of the local community, and we hope that our initiative will bring jobs and wealth to some of our very kind neighbours.
special things to do and see here
Hiking trails on the farm & in the National Park (guided or on your own) rooms, food and facilities
Cabins for 2 to 4 people: Small but good standard and nice finish with local materials: Wood, bamboo, lavastone etc. Private bathroom, private terrace with rocking chairs and excellent view. Hostel with collective and individual rooms: Good standard of beds, buildings and sanitarian installations. Shared bathroom.
We also have a sitting room - a palm hut in a protected valley with forest cover - and a restaurant with variety of food, including vegetarian. We provide a laundry service, or you can do it yourself. Limited access to internet.
Family friendly: We have good experiences with children. The open space and the nature – especially the rocks – fascinate many children. Furthermore we offer playgrounds for different ages, horse riding, animals to see and to feed (cattle, sheep, hens, geese and snakes), good trees for climbing and trails with tasks related to nature. Disabled access: Our installations permit access in wheelchair, but the many hills make internal transport at the centre something of a challenge. However, we have the best intentions to give a hand.
how to find us
By plane: The distance from the airport is about 50 km. We can arrange a pick up service. If you hire a taxi, or rent a car, take the highway East to Tipitapa, and turn south towards Masaya. If you go by bus, you have to find the 'Roberto Huembes' market in Managua, and to get there you need a taxi. By bus from Costa Rica: There is one daily trip that passes through Masatepe. It leaves from San José at 7.30am and arrives in Masatepe around 3pm.
From within Nicaragua: There are good bus connections from Managua, Masaya and Jinotepe.
From Masetepe: Take a three wheel moto-taxi.
prices
Cabins: US $25 - US $30 per cabin (sleeps up to 4 people)Hostel: US $4 - US $8 per person
Meals: US $2 - US $4 (vegetarian options available)
Snacks, drinks & beer: US $0.5 - US $1
Volcano climb: US $12 - US $16 per group plus US $9 - US $15 per person, depending on transport options
Lagoon trips: US $2 per hour for guide or US $4 per group plus US $3 per person for tour
Furniture tour (tree to product): US $15 per group plus US $5 per person
Farm visit: Experience a day working on the farm: US $5 per person
Spanish lessons: US $625 including 60 hours of classes, 14 days accommodation & food, transfers, excursions & study materials
how this holiday makes a difference
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We think that we make a difference in the maximisation of benefits for the community. Our main instruments are working within a development concept for the community and implementing agroforestry practices with organic techniques. We are convinced that our presence, so far, has had mainly positive social and environmental effects.
 We try to contribute as a member of the community with more economic resources and more contacts, not as an agency, nor as a channel for foreign aid. We have 10 full time workers from the local community, so that they gain experiences, skills and ideas, and we use local services such as food supplies, horse rental, guides, building. We are helping local community members set up small businesses related to tourism (including the services listed above), and are coordinating our ideas with local leaders by establishing a community network to bring people together across traditional political and family barriers. The farm has been reforested with a large variety of species, permitting a mix of plantation and spontaneous regeneration. We practise organic farming, using Nim based pesticides and a range of organic fertilisers, such as poultry mulch, 'leaf soup' and compost. The crops are held in small spots, and the fruit trees in mixed cultures to avoid monoculture effects. With our cattle, we produce our own fodder and collect the manure to use as fertiliser. We are looking into making biogas from the manure, as our little grain against the green house effect. We collect all our wastewater and separate organic waste to exploit the irrigation and fertilising effect to a maximum. We aim to diminish the use of fossil based gas and electricity and hope soon to present a combined sun-firewood water heater, and a biogas cooker. As a 'leading local enterprise' we support activities in the community, in areas such as sport and religion. We give small donations to groups who apply for a specific activity. Furthermore we have a project with the local baseball team to set up some conditions in their playing field... at moment on hold due to a lack of iron tubes! |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |