Rio San Juan – Sabalos – Indio Maiz
9/15/09 – 9/18/09
Paradise. Best place on earth. Delightful. A geniune pleasure. These are the words that come to mind to describe the Rio San Juan. From the funky port town of San Carlos to the Southeast Biosphere Reserve, this river area is full of natural wonders, friendly people and peaceful tranquility. From the dock in San Carlos, we took one of the local ferry/taxi boats that traverse the Rio San Juan, some of which motor all the way to San Juan del Nicaragua on the Caribbean coast. The trip to Boca de Sabalos cost a little over $3.00 for just under a two hour ride. I managed to get the driver to let us off directly at the Hotel Sabalos, which lies across the river from the main dock and pueblo of Sabalos. Of course, the accommodating hotel staff would be happy to pick you up from the dock as well.
Since we wanted to explore the Indio Maiz Reserve, we took a local boat to El Castillo. This town is a national tourist favorite and is home to the Fortress of the Immaculate Conception. This formidable castle was fortified by the Spanish to protect against English pirate attacks. The museum and tour around the castle are well worth the reasonable ticket price and the short climb up the stairs. Food is notoriously expensive in El Castillo, although lodging is reportedly quite cheap.
We hired a boat to the Indio Maiz Reserve from the tourism office on the dock for $75. While we thought this an expensive ticket, it was half the price of the tour offered from our hotel so we felt it was a good option. Our guide and boat driver took us to Aguas Frescas, which is a hike along a small river inside the reserve. We were delighted to spot trogons, frogs, howler monkeys, giant ants, jaguar prints and tapir prints. The forest was teeming with life, which at points was actually deafening. A short rainstorm made us glad we had borrowed rubber boots from the tourism office as we were often trekking through muck. Thanks to Jess’s dad, we stayed dry with our fabulous ponchos plasticos.
Back at the hotel, we were happy to shower and relax on the deck for our last night. We noticed many of the staff had English workbooks. It turns out the Nicaraguan tourism board is providing free classes to anyone working in the hotel, restaurant or tourism industry in Boca de Sabalos. This educational course includes English classes along with hospitality basics. We are pleasantly surprised at this service, which is extremely long-sighted on the part of the Nicaraguan government, and will provide many of the Sabalos residents with lifelong opportunities both within and outside of the tourism industry. We were sad to leave this magical tranquil place and already miss the wonderful people and atmosphere of the Rio San Juan.
Paradise. Best place on earth. Delightful. A geniune pleasure. These are the words that come to mind to describe the Rio San Juan. From the funky port town of San Carlos to the Southeast Biosphere Reserve, this river area is full of natural wonders, friendly people and peaceful tranquility. From the dock in San Carlos, we took one of the local ferry/taxi boats that traverse the Rio San Juan, some of which motor all the way to San Juan del Nicaragua on the Caribbean coast. The trip to Boca de Sabalos cost a little over $3.00 for just under a two hour ride. I managed to get the driver to let us off directly at the Hotel Sabalos, which lies across the river from the main dock and pueblo of Sabalos. Of course, the accommodating hotel staff would be happy to pick you up from the dock as well.
San Carlos
Celebration of 30th Anniversary of the National Police
The friendly, laid-back fishing town of Boca de Sabalos is one of the few places on this trip that we felt like we could stay forever. A good part of that was due to the fantastic employees and lodging at the Hotel Sabalos. Located on the confluence of the San Juan and Sabalos rivers, the wraparound corner deck at the hotel corner provides endless entertainment, from watching the local boats, spying birds on the water and listening to the monkeys howl across the river. When we tired of swinging in the hammocks or playing cribbage on the deck, we took the hotel’s canoe out on the Sabalos river to get up-close and personal with the wildlife. Despite a somewhat limited menu, every food item we ordered from the hotel was fantastic. Do not miss the local chocolate, fresh from the nearby cacao plantations. This handwrapped delight ranks in the top five things I’ve eaten in my lifetime. Furthermore, the rooms are the cleanest we have encountered in our entire trip and in fact I was compelled to wander around the entire hotel property in bare feet, because the floors were certainly a lot cleaner than my shoes. The superb staff combined with the fantastic location make the Hotel Sabalos one of our favorite places in the world.
The friendly, laid-back fishing town of Boca de Sabalos is one of the few places on this trip that we felt like we could stay forever. A good part of that was due to the fantastic employees and lodging at the Hotel Sabalos. Located on the confluence of the San Juan and Sabalos rivers, the wraparound corner deck at the hotel corner provides endless entertainment, from watching the local boats, spying birds on the water and listening to the monkeys howl across the river. When we tired of swinging in the hammocks or playing cribbage on the deck, we took the hotel’s canoe out on the Sabalos river to get up-close and personal with the wildlife. Despite a somewhat limited menu, every food item we ordered from the hotel was fantastic. Do not miss the local chocolate, fresh from the nearby cacao plantations. This handwrapped delight ranks in the top five things I’ve eaten in my lifetime. Furthermore, the rooms are the cleanest we have encountered in our entire trip and in fact I was compelled to wander around the entire hotel property in bare feet, because the floors were certainly a lot cleaner than my shoes. The superb staff combined with the fantastic location make the Hotel Sabalos one of our favorite places in the world.
Boca de Sabalos dock
Hotel Sabalos
Since we wanted to explore the Indio Maiz Reserve, we took a local boat to El Castillo. This town is a national tourist favorite and is home to the Fortress of the Immaculate Conception. This formidable castle was fortified by the Spanish to protect against English pirate attacks. The museum and tour around the castle are well worth the reasonable ticket price and the short climb up the stairs. Food is notoriously expensive in El Castillo, although lodging is reportedly quite cheap.
We hired a boat to the Indio Maiz Reserve from the tourism office on the dock for $75. While we thought this an expensive ticket, it was half the price of the tour offered from our hotel so we felt it was a good option. Our guide and boat driver took us to Aguas Frescas, which is a hike along a small river inside the reserve. We were delighted to spot trogons, frogs, howler monkeys, giant ants, jaguar prints and tapir prints. The forest was teeming with life, which at points was actually deafening. A short rainstorm made us glad we had borrowed rubber boots from the tourism office as we were often trekking through muck. Thanks to Jess’s dad, we stayed dry with our fabulous ponchos plasticos.
Back at the hotel, we were happy to shower and relax on the deck for our last night. We noticed many of the staff had English workbooks. It turns out the Nicaraguan tourism board is providing free classes to anyone working in the hotel, restaurant or tourism industry in Boca de Sabalos. This educational course includes English classes along with hospitality basics. We are pleasantly surprised at this service, which is extremely long-sighted on the part of the Nicaraguan government, and will provide many of the Sabalos residents with lifelong opportunities both within and outside of the tourism industry. We were sad to leave this magical tranquil place and already miss the wonderful people and atmosphere of the Rio San Juan.
I am so glad that you found such a restful and relaxing place after your recent travels. What a blessing. I hope you are refreshed and recharged.
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Hello Jessica and Rebekah!
I love your web site.
Thanks for your comment about Rio San Juan, specially about Sabalos Hotel.
You were special and friendly guests.
We wait for you when you return to your home.
See you soon,
Mariela (part of staff Sabalos Hotel).
Pd: espero me hayan entendido, porque a como dijeron, estamos aprendiendo inglés y todavia no es fluido.
Buen viaje!
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I am so glad you enjoyed Sabalos. I was lucky enough to live there for 2 yrs as a peace corps volunteer. When I miss it, I google it, to see what's new and came across your bog and pics. Thanks for providing such a positive update!
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