I am eating Mexican food in a Scottish restaurant on a Nicaraguan beach as the sun sets behind Christ the Redeemer. There is a motorcycle festival on the street, and a reggae band on the boardwalk. San Juan del Sur is quirky, and rowdy and totally in a world of its own.
For anyone who’s convinced travel died when TikTok was born, ‘SJDS’ feels like a final outpost of chalkboard coffee shops, red cup party culture, and relaxed surf town energy.
As a Gen Z traveller, I often worry that I missed the better days of backpacking trails, but SJDS cured that FOMO pretty quickly. Strolling past seashell jewelry market stalls and bikini boutiques, this Nicaraguan-Pacific backpacking hub seems permanently stuck in a digi-cam selfie, or a 2016 Retrica filter.
San Juan del Sur lies in the southwest of Nicaragua, around a two-hour drive from Managua and an hour from Granada. The town has always been a hotspot for domestic tourism, and Nicaraguan hen dos and girls’ trips often fill its beachside bars and restaurants.
It’s the kind of laid-back location where backpacker and local culture blend easily, and everyone is in the same nightclub by 11 pm.
If you’d rather stick to calmer evenings, San Juan is still deserving a place on any Central American itinerary. Not only does the town sit amongst rolling green hills and swathes of jungle, but the coastline is also home to idyllic beaches, charming local towns and unique hikes.
Away from hedonistic party hostels, the area is also known for excellent immersive Spanish schools, wellness and yoga-themed retreats, and plenty of laidback surf camps.
Know before you go
- Bar and restaurant prices in SJDS (probably because it’s a popular spot!) can seem inflated compared to other Nicaraguan cities like Granada or Leon.
- Cash-only! San Juan still seems reluctant when it comes to contactless payments, and foreign cards and ATMs come with hefty fees.
- Transport! It’s easy to walk SJDS town on foot, but many people rent bikes or scooters to get to hostels further out, or to better beaches along the coastline. Taxis in town can be negotiated and are usually fairly reasonable – often around 5-8 dollars from the town centre for a 20-25 minute drive.
What I loved
- Sunset at the main beach and from the Cristo de la Misericordia hike
- It’s easy to do with little planning, with surf, hikes, ziplining and volcano day trips all nearby
- Cheap to get to with shared transport
What to consider
- There’s not a lot to do beyond beaches, surf and nightlife.
- Bars and restaurants cost more than in Granada or León.
Your San Juan experience is all about where you stay: in town, on the hills, or at secluded surf beaches like Playa Maderas (with its iconic shark fin rock). Don’t miss the Where to Stay section to find your hub!
How to get there & when to go
I kept extending my stay in San Juan del Sur, partly because of how easy it is to waste a day on the beach, and truthfully because I got stuck in an endless partying loop.
Sitting around an hour by car from the Costa Rican border, San Juan is a good first or last stop in Nicaragua for anyone transiting through Central America. It was the last place I stayed in the country, and although I don’t think the town is teeming with things to do, laidback travellers could definitely spend a week or two chilling on the coast.
If you’re strapped for time, you could also day-trip or take a weekend break in SJDS, the town is well-connected and only a few hours from every other major backpacking spot and Managua’s airport.
Whether you’re coming from Managua, Granada or even Leon, San Juan del Sur will be accessible via tourist shuttle or public transport. On local buses, those coming from Granada and Managua often just have to change in Rivas.
If you’re tired of crammed carriages and bags in the footwell, Nicaragua tends to have reasonably priced private transfers and between a group of travellers, organised taxis and shuttles can actually work out pretty well. (We shared a ride from Granada to SJDS with six other backpackers and spent just $8 each)
The high season in San Juan del Sur falls from November to April, but experienced surfers tend to hit the town from May-October for better swell. I wouldn’t worry too much about timing – we stayed in October and hostels were still packed out, with plenty of opportunities to get out on the water, too.
Best things to do
Between volcano boarding and jungle raves, San Juan del Sur is a welcome exhale on a busy Nicaraguan tour. Hostel happy hours, beachside dining and surf shops make it easy to explore San Juan without too much planning ahead. Although, of course, there are some obvious highlights:
1. Watersports, beach days and surf schools
SJDS’s main beach is an amazing sunset spot and perfect for an afternoon swim or paddleboarding. However, the calm waters in the bay are not ideal for any seasoned or wannabe surfer.
Playa Maderas and Playa Remanso sit around 20-25 minutes out of town, and are the perfect spots for practicing watersports or committing to a classic beach day. Most hostels run daily tours or shuttle services to nearby beaches, and you can always rent a bike or scooter to come and go as you please.
- San Juan del Sur’s beach – easy access, good for swimming, paddleboarding and relaxing.
- Playa Maderas – a proper surf beach, with surrounding hostels and restaurants (best for those with some surfing experience). Lots of beach horse-riding tours!
- Playa Remanso – smaller surf but better for beginners and swimmers, beach bars and restaurants and a more family-friendly atmosphere.
There are places to rent kayaks, paddle and surfboards all over town, and directly on the beaches. Daily surfboard rental on Playa Remanso was around $8 USD.
2. Sunday Funday, nightlife and hostel culture
San Juan del Sur and ‘Sunday Funday’ are synonyms on the Nicaraguan backpacking route. The all-day party happens across four hostels and is perfect for sociable travellers and nightlife lovers. The route changes every week to include a range of hostels, but it doesn’t matter if you aren’t staying at one of the stops.
My only gripe with the event is that the tickets are a steep $40 USD (before you even buy a drink!) but that does include a t-shirt, transport, access to four hostel bars and pools and a popular nightclub at the end of the crawl.
It really does take over the whole town, and if you’re anything like me, I weirdly enjoyed a nosy whistle-stop tour of places I wasn’t actually staying at.
While Sunday Funday is the main event, SJDS doesn’t dry up on any other day of the week. You’ll find bars and restaurants all over the bay, often with music and dance floors that stay lively all day. Most hostels and their poolside bars are also ‘open-door’!
3. Hike to Cristo de la Misericordia
If you need to sweat it out after a Sunday Funday, the 1.5-hour hike to the statue of Jesus Christ that overlooks San Juan’s bay area is a popular SJDS activity.
Best timed for a good sunset or sunrise, the hilly climb provides breathtaking views of the town and coastline, and if you aren’t on the gringo trail for as long as Brazil – you can get some pretty convincing Christ the Redeemer photo dupes!
Some hostels run this hike as a tour, especially in the early morning, as there have previously been sketchy happenings on the trail that local guides can help prevent.
You can also take a taxi up the hill close to the statue, if you’d rather get the views without the wobbly legs. We felt perfectly fine on the route in the evening, but would maybe recommend doing an early morning walk with a friend!
4. Jungle adventures and ziplining
If you’re way more woodland than watersports, the area surrounding San Juan del Sur does have other amazing hiking opportunities and an adventure park dedicated to canopy walking and jungle ziplining that feels like a bit of a teaser for Costa Rica.
Parque de Aventura San Juan del Sur is about 30-40 minutes from town and is everything you’d expect from a sporty jungle excursion.
You can zipline through the trees, rappel down canopy ladders or ride an ATV through the wilderness. The site is also within a nature reserve offering guided hikes and wildlife spotting tours.
Further afield, hiking day trips to Mombacho volcano leave from San Juan del Sur regularly. In fact, many adventure tours to Ometepe island and Masaya volcano can be accessed from the town due to Nicaragua’s convenient size.
Where to stay
Type ‘San Juan del Sur’ into any accommodation site and you’ll find hostels, hotels and eco-lodges from the centre of town all the way to the Costa Rican border. The Pacific coast of Nicaragua is rapidly opening its doors, and Google Maps hasn’t quite caught up yet.
San Juan del Sur isn’t a massive metropolis where your chosen base will heavily impact your travel logistics, but experiences and atmospheres can still vary.
San Juan del Sur has three rough types of accommodation:
- Central stays – hostels and hotels located directly in SJDS town.
- Hilltop hostels – accommodation overlooking the town, often a 15-20 minute drive to SJDS centre or longer.
- Beach stays and eco-lodges – typically self-contained hostel sites that are 20-25 minutes from town, near to beaches like Playa Maderas (a much more remote atmosphere than staying in SJDS and almost a ‘hostel area’ in its own right!)
If you’re a budget traveller, central town stays can save you on taxis or shuttle services to hostels further out. We stayed in the hills and, even though our hostel had occasional free trips into town, we often needed to spend on taxis home which definitely added up.
Though, of course, any journey from a remote hostel to SJDS, and vice versa, will also cost you no matter where you’re staying. Here are a few different recommendations from each area!
In-town accommodation
Hostal Namborus
Namborus is a small hostel in the heart of SJDS and one of the most budget friendly options in town. While definitely more popular with couples or friends, and a less party-focused crowd, this hostel is perfect for those who’d rather spend the day exploring and return to a simple but comfortable lodging.
We stayed in a private room here, and the vibes almost felt like a boutique hotel!
Hostel Pachamama
Another in-town option, especially for a wilder traveller, is Pachamama. This hostel is the starting point for Sunday Funday each week, so as I’m sure you can expect, it attracts boozy backpackers and has an open bar and pool area that seemed to have a perpetual beer pong tournament or drinking game starting.
You can also book a range of tours, surf lessons and even transfer into Costa Rica with the hostel, and staff were always friendly and happy to help out. If you really want to go hard in SJDS – this is where I’d stay!
Hilltop hostels
Casa de Olas
Situated in the hills about 10-15 minutes outside of town, Casa de Olas is my favourite hostel in SJDS. The infinity pool overlooking the bay and comfy outdoor hammocks were a welcome break from partying (although right next to the rowdier Naked Tiger hostel!) and the atmosphere managed to stay friendly and social without being overwhelming.
There’s a shared kitchen and common areas, daily shuttles into town and a range of activities including surf lessons. The rooms are quite basic, and often 10-12 people a dorm, but for an accommodation with these views it’s a good trade off.
Eco-lodges & beach stays
The SPACE – Jungle Oasis
Geared towards digital nomads, the space is a wellness-focused (yet somehow also party obsessed) hostel about 20 minutes from San Juan, in a remote jungle setting near to Playa Maderas.
With yoga classes, animal therapy, co-working spaces and a permanent place on the Sunday Funday crawl – you could argue they are all about balance.
The Space is slightly on the expensive side for SJDS accommodation, but the activities, transport into town and boujee feel definitely justify the price tag.
HUSH Maderas
If you’ve come to San Juan del Sur to take surf and sea seriously, you may want to stay in the Maderas area at somewhere like HUSH. This hostel overlooks the beach from its gorgeous infinity pool, has on-site dining and yoga classes and plenty of surfboards to rent and instructors to hire.
There are both private rooms and basic dorms and if you’d rather stay in a remote beachy location than an urban town, HUSH seems like an affordable option amongst Maderas accommodation.
Where are backpackers heading next?
San Juan del Sur is an hour from the Costa Rican border, so most travellers are either heading south along the gringo trail or looping back through Nicaragua.
Crossing into Costa Rica: Costa Rica is next door, with jungle wildlife and pura vida awaiting you. Start with our guide to backpacking Costa Rica or our classic 1 week itinerary.
Staying in Nicaragua
- Ometepe: twin volcano island, a day trip or longer stay from SJDS
- Granada: colourful colonial city, plus the Islets of Granada just minutes away
- Estelí: the off-route highlands, with coffee, tobacco and Somoto Canyon
Planning the full route? Check out our full Nicaragua backpacker guide.
