Playa Maderas, Nicaragua

The second part of our Nicaragua trip was spent in Playa Maderas, about 20 minutes north of San Juan Del Sur. We also picked this area because of the surf and rented a little villa in the hill just north of the main beach at Maderas. It's a property with 5 houses on it called Villas Playa Maderas. The view from this place was absolutely stunning and the house had a wonderful patio with hammocks to laze around in. However the accommodations were a bit disappointing for the price. Very basic, almost hostel style. For the price we paid for the house I would have expected something a bit better, though I suppose it's the view we paid for.  Little things like exposed wires in the shower, 2 tiny towels that were never replaced, a non-functioning coffee maker and only one roll of toilet paper added up to some annoyance on our part. When you pay $150/night in a place as cheap as Nicaragua you expect a bit more. This house was on par with the cheap room we got in San Juan Del Sur our first night here. The positives were having our own kitchen to cook in and the pool (shared with another house on the property) which has an absolutely breathtaking view.

Our house on the hill, patio with hammocks was the best part

Definitely the best view I've ever had

Playa Maderas, around the point to the south of our rental house

Contemplating life in the pool

We came to the realization while we were here that there is not a ton to do in these areas of Nicaragua besides surf, hang out at the beach and drink. Exploring and adventure is difficult as the roads are terrible and there's just not much around. It was also very windy when we were there so lying on the beach resulted in getting a good coating of sand blown onto your body.  So we resigned ourselves to reading books, walking on the beach, dipping in the pool and drinking Toñas.  Worst of all husband-face pinched a nerve in his neck and wasn't able to surf most days so there was a lot of down time in the 3 days we were here. There were a couple of beaches we could explore on walks from the house.  One beach to the north is Playa Majagual which we were told used to be private and owned by the family that owns Flor de Caña rum, one of the richest in Nicaragua.  However they sold it and it has since gone into disrepair.  Rumor has it there are guards with machetes on the property.  I wanted to venture in but it's walled off and I didn't want to run into the machete wielding guards. the beach is still accessible by walking behind Matilda's hostel at the north end of Maderas.

Playa Majagual and the beachfront compound

The beach north of Majagual, not sure if it had a name, completely deserted

Sunset from the ridgeline north of the house, a short hike

Also be warned the road to Playa Maderas is a rough one, you need 4WD.  I have a great video of the drive but unfortunately my browser crashes every time I try to upload it.