Colorful houses line the beach at Little Corn Island, Nicaragua. Michael George for Lonely Planet
With two long coastlines, Nicaragua has no shortage of beautiful beaches, from icing-sugar softness to swaths of black volcanic sand. Along the Pacific Coast, beaches stretch to the Honduran border – some sandy, others rocky, some for swimming, others for world-class surfing, with stellar sunsets as standard. The remote Caribbean coast, on the other hand – with palm-fringed, jungle-clad islands and islets – can feel like an entirely different country.
Whether you want to ride the waves, dance till dawn or spy on nesting turtles, here’s our pick of Nicaragua’s best beaches.
1. Otto Beach, Little Corn Island
Best beach for Caribbean vibes
Off Nicaragua’s east coast, Little Corn Island ticks all the Caribbean boxes – wide, sandy beaches, gin-clear water and a chilled-out vibe – without a high price tag. This car-free, pocket-sized paradise is a short flight from Managua followed by a bouncy 40-minute boat ride from Great Corn.
The palm-fringed Otto Beach is its most popular stretch of sand, with calm waters perfect for swimming. It’s home to Yemaya Reefs, the island’s most luxe lodgings, but the beach is free – get a front-row view of the sunset, then dine feet-in-the-sand on just-caught fish while listening to a reggae soundtrack.
Detour: Pristine reefs, little current and great visibility make the island a world-class diving and snorkeling destination. Blowing Rock is one of the top sites, a spectacular rock formation teeming with marine life.
2. Playa Maderas, Rivas
Best beach for surfing
Away from the hardcore party trail, Playa Maderas is the slow-paced boho cousin of San Juan del Sur, 7km to the south. It’s long been a haunt of surfers in the know, for its consistent year-round waves and left and right breaks, and it plays host to numerous surf competitions. It’s a good place for newbie surfers, too, with a quiet area to practice.
Now that the secret’s out, backpackers, digital nomads, remote workers and travelers seeking a chilled-out beach spot base themselves here. Non-surfers can enjoy yoga classes and relaxed beach time, with fish tacos and a cold Toña.
Planning tip: April through September is the best season for surfing – if the waves are too intimidating, beginners can check out the smaller waves at nearby Playa Remanso.
3. Playa La Flor, Rivas
Best beach for sea turtle spotting
The protected beach of the Refugio de Vida Silvestre La Flor, 20km south of San Juan del Sur, is one of the key nesting sites for endangered leatherback and olive ridley turtles between July and January every year.
While leatherbacks arrive solo, thousands of olive ridley turtles come ashore at night to lay their eggs, a mass-nesting phenomenon known as an arribada. Around 60 days later, the turtles hatch and begin their perilous journey to the Pacific – join a ranger to watch both natural spectacles.
Planning tip: You can camp at La Flor, but facilities are limited; the closest guesthouses are in the neighboring postcard-perfect Playa El Coco.
4. Playa San Juan del Sur, Rivas
Best beach for party people
No longer a sleepy fishing village, San Juan del Sur is the Pacific Coast’s laid-back party central. While it’s not the most stunning stretch of coastline, its half-moon of brown-sugar sand is perfect for soaking up the sun, a beach picnic (or party) and a leisurely sunset stroll – get a panoramic view of the bay from the 25m-high Cristo de la Misericordia statue.
Around the town, with its colorful clapboard houses, there are cool places to stay to suit all budgets, a diverse dining scene and surf shops aplenty. The notorious Sunday Funday Pool Crawl – dubbed the best party in Central America – is the stuff of backpacker legend. And there’s a string of world-class surfing spots within easy reach, including Playa Hermosa to the south.
5. Playa Las Peñitas, Léon
Best beach close to a city
If you’re looking to escape the heat and bustle of Léon, the colonial-era capital, head 20km west – a 30-minute "chicken" bus ride – to Las Peñitas, a former fishing village turned chilled-out beach spot.
The wide, sandy beach is lapped by small but regular waves, perfect for beginner and intermediate surfers with good-value surf lessons and gear rental on offer. Along the coast, there’s a collection of interesting hostels, no-frills guesthouses and boutique hotels – don’t miss the epic sunsets from a hammock.
Detour: The neighboring Reserva Natural Isla Juan Venado is a haven for hundreds of migratory birds, crocodiles and nesting turtles from May through November. Explore the mangroves by kayak or on a guided boat tour.
6. Punta Jesus Maria, Isla de Ometepe
Best beach for volcano views
Reached by ferry from San Jorge, the twin-coned Isla de Ometepe rises out of the silver-flat surface of Lake Nicaragua, where fertile, dormant Volcán Maderas and rocky, fiery Volcán Concepción both make challenging hikes.
Just outside Esquipulas, the volcanic black-sand beach of Punta Jesús María has a skinny sand spit that stretches into the lake for more than 1km in the dry season. It makes for a lovely swimming spot with stunning views over the island’s two volcanoes and across the lake to Volcán Mombacho. Grab a cold beer from one of the shacks along the beach and stay for the jaw-dropping sunsets.
Detour: Take a kayak tour along the lush Rio Istián for virtually guaranteed sightings of turtles, caimans and howler monkeys.
7. Pearl Cays
Best beach for would-be castaways
The Pearl Cays are a string of tiny tropical islets, where palm-shaded, dazzlingly white sand is lapped by turquoise water. They lie around 30–60km off Pearl Lagoon, a village on Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast reached by boat from Bluefields, the capital of the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region.
Unless you’re splurging at Calala Island, a barefoot-luxe private island resort, the only way to island-hop around the cays is on a boat tour. Traveling by panga – an open speedboat with an outboard motor – the journey takes around two hours and includes stops for snorkeling and fishing. The Hotel Queen Lobster also offers overnight camping trips.
Planning tip: The best time to visit Pearl Cays is during the dry season, which runs from December to April when the weather is sunny and the sea is calm.