Isla de Ometepe

Getting to Isla de Ometepe

You can get to the islands main port (Moyogalpa; 1 Moyogalpa dock), or a smaller new port at San Jose del Sur (2 San Jose del Sur dock) by boat or ferry from San Jorge near Rivas for about US$2-3. There are two ferries - one that carries cars, costs C$70 (Feb 2014), is quite comfortable and leaves on a set schedule, and another ferry that is smaller, cheaper, and appears to leave when full.

Worth seeing

Views of the volcanoes as well as sunsets are worth taking a picture or three dozen. There's an island museum in Altagracia with texts mostly in Spanish; good option to kill time waiting for the ferry if nothing else

Things to do

Options on the island include: Hike to the top of Volcan Concepcion: ~ 5 to 8 hours return, strenuous. While many will try to convince you a guide is mandatory this is false. As of November of 2025 there is simply a

Where to eat

Little Morgan's, Between Santa Cruz & Balgue (300 m towards Balgue from Santa Cruz junction),. Accommodation, bar and restaurant serving great food that gives a nice break from the typical rice and beans. Daily menu includes bacon and eggs, pancakes, cake, and sandwiches, and then nightly dinner specials including lasagna, curry, pasta and stir-fry. Food ranges from US$2-6.

Getting around Isla de Ometepe the local way

Everything reaching Ometepe now comes across the lake from San Jorge, a small port two kilometres outside Rivas. Two very different vessels do the crossing. The ferries – Che Guevara, Ometepe I and III (locals call them the Arcia ferries), Cacique Nicarao and the big Rey del Cocibolca – are steel, carry cars and cost C$50 a head. The lanchas – Santa Martha, Estrella del Sur, Mozorola – are small wooden passenger boats at C$35 to C$45 that roll badly and skip Sundays. Almost everything lands at Moyogalpa, about an hour out; a second, thinner service crosses to San José del Sur, 80 to 90 minutes out and closer to the Maderas side. Between November and February the trade wind gets up and the navy simply suspends sailings, sometimes for a whole day, and nothing else reaches the island. The overnight lake boat from Granada to Altagracia and on to San Carlos has been out of service since 2023 and the twice-weekly La Costeña flight to the airstrip at La Paloma is discontinued, so San Jorge is the only public way in. On the island the road is a figure of eight. The Concepción loop and the connector past Santo Domingo beach are surfaced in cement cobbles; most of the Maderas loop is dirt and stone, and the 14 km between Balgüe and San Ramón has no bus at all. Chicken buses run the paved sides roughly hourly between Moyogalpa and Altagracia and a handful of times a day out to Balgüe, Mérida and San Ramón, changing at El Quino, and they all but stop on Sundays. Taxis, moto-taxis and tuk-tuks meet every boat and charge island prices, two or three times the mainland rate. Most visitors end up on a hired scooter, dirt bike or quad.

1. 01
   San Jorge to Moyogalpa car ferriesferry

   San Jorge (Rivas) to Moyogalpa, 17 km across Lake Cocibolca

   Where

   San Jorge is a village on the lake shore about 2 km east of Rivas; every bus, taxi and shuttle that says Ometepe ends at its gate. Non-residents pay a US$1 fee to enter the port area. On your left inside the gate is a low ticket building with three windows: the left window sells Ferry Ometepe I and III (the Arcia boats), the middle window sells lanchas and foot tickets for the Che Guevara, and vehicles for the Che are registered at a separate building to the right of the main gate. Walk down the road to the docks, write your name, passport number and age on the clipboard at the second gate, then find your boat. Four ferries share the Moyogalpa run: Che Guevara, Ometepe I, Ometepe III and Cacique Nicarao. They are steel, take cars, and are far steadier than the lanchas. The Rey del Cocibolca, the biggest boat on the lake at 50 m and 400 tonnes, works the San José del Sur route instead. You cannot reserve a foot passage and do not need to; motorbikes cannot be reserved either and are loaded if they fit, so queue early. Cars and pickups must be reserved, two to three weeks ahead over Christmas, Easter and harvest, on Spanish-only phone lines: Arcia (Ometepe I and III) +505 8966 4983 / 2569 4284, Che Guevara +505 2563 4779 / 2569 4116, Cacique +505 8658 8047. With a vehicle be at the port an hour before departure. If you leave the car behind, the guarded port car park is about US$2 a day.

   When

   From San Jorge: 07:00 Che Guevara, 07:45 Ometepe I, 08:30 Ometepe III, 09:00 Cacique Nicarao, 10:30 Ometepe III, 12:00 Ometepe I, 13:30 Cacique Nicarao, 14:30 Ometepe III, 16:00 Che Guevara, 16:30 Ometepe I, 17:45 Ometepe III. From Moyogalpa: 05:30 Cacique Nicarao, 06:00 Ometepe III, 06:45 Ometepe I, 09:00 Ometepe III, 10:00 Ometepe I, 11:00 Che Guevara, 11:30 Cacique Nicarao, 12:30 Ometepe III, 14:00 Ometepe I, 16:00 Ometepe III, 17:30 Che Guevara. Seven days a week, and the same on Christmas, New Year and Easter; extra sailings are laid on for Semana Santa and the end-of-year holidays

   Fare (2026)

   2026: C$50 per foot passenger (about US$1.40), children under 5 free. Motorcycle C$50 on top of the rider's ticket. Car or pickup C$480–500 depending on the vehicle, which works out just under US$20 once taxes and the driver's ticket are paid. US$1 port entry fee for non-residents on the mainland side

   Takes

   60 to 75 minutes

   Season

   Year-round. Sailings are suspended outright in strong wind, most often November to February

   Booking

   Not possible and not needed for foot passengers. Vehicles by phone to the individual ferry company, 2–3 weeks ahead in peak season; the offices speak Spanish only

   Sources: ometepenicaragua.com (2026) · ometepeislandinfo.com (2026-09) · tn8.ni (2026-03) · confidence high

2. 02
   The lanchas – small wooden boats to Moyogalpaboat

   San Jorge to Moyogalpa (Santa Martha, Estrella del Sur) and to San José del Sur (Mozorola)

   Where

   Buy at the middle window of the San Jorge ticket building, or on board. A lancha is a wooden passenger launch with a roof and benches; it takes no cars and only sometimes squeezes a motorbike on. They are cheaper than the ferries and they look it, but they are licensed and carry life jackets. The trade-off is the ride: they are light, they bounce, and water comes in through the closed windows when the lake is up. If you are prone to seasickness take a ferry, or buy an anti-sickness tablet at the pharmacy or the small grocery on the road down to the port and ask for medicamento para el mareo. Some lanchas do not run on Sundays, so check the board before you plan around one. The Karen María / Cacique Nicarao slot at 09:00 and 13:30 is described as a boat by some sources and a ferry by others – the vessel on that rotation has changed, so ask at the window which one you are buying.

   When

   From San Jorge to Moyogalpa: 11:00 and 15:30 Estrella del Sur, 12:30 and 17:00 Santa Martha. From Moyogalpa: 06:30 and 15:00 Santa Martha, 07:00 and 13:00 Estrella del Sur. Estrella del Sur does not run on Sundays

   Fare (2026)

   2026: Santa Martha and Mozorola C$35, Estrella del Sur C$45, against C$50 on the ferries

   Takes

   About 60 to 70 minutes to Moyogalpa; 80 to 90 minutes to San José del Sur

   Season

   Year-round, but the first to be stopped when the wind rises; November to February is the choppy season

   Booking

   None. Pay at the window or on the boat

   Sources: ometepeislandinfo.com (2026-09) · ometepenicaragua.com (2026) · theselvistaexperience.com (2025) · confidence high

3. 03
   San Jorge to San José del Sur, the second crossingferry

   San Jorge to San José del Sur on the south-west shore of Ometepe, 24 km

   Where

   The island's other port, opened as an overflow for Moyogalpa and useful if you are heading for Charco Verde, Santa Cruz, Balgüe or Mérida – it saves roughly fifteen minutes of driving on the island side. It is a small quay with a café along the beach and nothing else: no bank, no ATM, few shops, and taxis meet the boat rather than wait there all day. Two vessels work it. The Rey del Cocibolca is the largest ship on the lake, rebuilt at the Granada shipyard in 2019–20 for over US$500,000, 50 m long, 400 tonnes, over 80 passengers plus freight, and it is the most comfortable boat on any Ometepe route. The Mozorola is a lancha. Tickets for both are sold at the lancha window at San Jorge; vehicle reservations for the Rey go through +505 2560 4172 / 8691 3669 / 8670 9848. Only four sailings a day each way, so check the return before you commit.

   When

   From San Jorge: 09:30 and 17:00 Rey del Cocibolca, 10:00 and 16:30 Mozorola (some sheets show the Mozorola at 14:00). From San José del Sur: 05:40 and 13:00 Mozorola, 07:30 and 15:00–15:20 Rey del Cocibolca

   Fare (2026)

   2026: C$50 on the Rey del Cocibolca, C$35 on the Mozorola from San Jorge. Vehicles as for the Moyogalpa ferries, about C$480–500

   Takes

   80 to 90 minutes

   Season

   Year-round, subject to the same wind suspensions

   Booking

   Foot passengers turn up. Vehicles by phone, Spanish only

   Sources: ometepeislandinfo.com (2026-09) · ometepenicaragua.com (2026) · tn8.ni (2020-01) · confidence medium

4. 04
   Wind on the lake stops every boatservice status

   All San Jorge – Ometepe sailings

   Where

   Lake Cocibolca gets a hard easterly trade wind, strongest from November to February, and when it does the Dirección General de Transporte Acuático and the Fuerza Naval issue an orden de no zarpe and the port captains stop signing departures. It is not a delay – nothing leaves either shore, and since every scrap of food, fuel and freight on Ometepe arrives by boat the whole island pauses with it. In the January 2023 episode the suspension came in at 06:10, two afternoon ferries were let out, and the ban then went back on for the rest of the day; the authorities were quoting winds to 40 km/h and waves of six feet. A further suspension was reported at the end of December 2025. There is no notice and no timetable for it: the decision is taken hour by hour on the weather. If you are travelling in the windy season, do not book a flight out of Managua for the same day you leave the island, and take a ferry rather than a lancha – the ferries are cleared to sail in conditions that ground the wooden boats. Kite surfers at Playa Santa Cruz treat the same wind as the reason to come.

   When

   Episodic, typically a few hours to a full day. Most common November to February; also in tropical storms

   Fare

   No charge; tickets are honoured on a later sailing

   Takes

   n/a

   Season

   Mainly November to February

   Booking

   n/a – watch the port, ask at the ticket window

   Sources: tn8.ni (2023-01) · tn8.ni (2023-01) · ometepenicaragua.com (2026) · confidence high

5. 05
   The Granada – Altagracia – San Carlos lake boat (suspended)ferry

   Granada to Puerto de Gracia (Altagracia), continuing to San Miguelito, Morrito and San Carlos on the Río San Juan

   Where

   This was the island's other lifeline: an overnight state lake boat that left Granada in the late afternoon, reached the Altagracia pier around four hours later and carried on down the lake to San Carlos, twelve hours away, and it was how freight moved between Ometepe and the Río San Juan. It has not run since 2023. The stated reason is the lake level: the boat is repeatedly pulled when the water drops, and the service has been suspended and reinstated several times since 2017 – reopened in October 2021, running again in July 2022, out again by August 2023. Two independent island sources still described it as cancelled in 2025 and 2026. If it comes back it will be one departure a week from Granada in the late afternoon, arriving Altagracia about 22:00 and going on to San Carlos. The Altagracia pier is 2 km outside the town and unlit, so arrange a pickup rather than walk it. Until then there is no scheduled link between Ometepe and Granada or the Río San Juan at all, and the way to Granada is the ferry to San Jorge, a taxi to Rivas and a bus north.

   When

   Not running as of September 2026. Historically one or two departures a week from Granada; a Tuesday and Friday boat from San Carlos

   Fare (2021)

   When last running, C$104 first class Granada–Altagracia and C$161 first class from San Carlos; second class was for Nicaraguan nationals only

   Takes

   Granada to Altagracia about 3 to 4 hours; San Carlos to Altagracia 9 to 12 hours

   Season

   Suspended. Low lake levels in the dry season are the recurring cause

   Booking

   Was sold at the pier on the day, passport required and bags searched

   Sources: theselvistaexperience.com (2025) · ometepenicaragua.com (2026) · ometepeislandinfo.com (2026-09) · confidence medium

6. 06
   Island chicken busesbus

   Moyogalpa – San José del Sur – El Quino – Altagracia – Santo Domingo – Santa Cruz – Balgüe, and Santa Cruz – Mérida – San Ramón

   Where

   Retired North American school buses, privately owned, no single operator and no printed timetable on the island. They start and finish at the Moyogalpa dock and the Altagracia market and you can flag one anywhere it is safe to stop. Pay the conductor after you sit down; a big rucksack that will not go overhead may cost a little extra. The important trick is El Quino, the junction south of Altagracia where the Concepción loop meets the road to Santo Domingo and the Maderas side: most Moyogalpa buses terminate before it, so tell the driver you want Balgüe or Mérida and he will put you off at El Quino for the connection. For Mérida you can also change at Santo Domingo. Moyogalpa to Altagracia is roughly hourly and takes about an hour for 25 km; through buses to Balgüe, Mérida and San Ramón run only a handful of times a day. On the March 2024 sheet the through runs left Moyogalpa at 09:30, 10:30, 14:40, 15:30 and 16:40, reaching Balgüe 17:15 or Mérida 16:10–18:10 and San Ramón 12:00 or 15:30; coming back, San Ramón 05:15, 10:00 and 15:00, Mérida from 04:00, Balgüe from 05:30, arriving Moyogalpa 06:00 to 17:30. Sunday service is close to nonexistent – one bus if you are lucky.

   When

   Moyogalpa–Altagracia roughly hourly, 04:30 to about 18:30 Monday to Saturday. Through services to Balgüe, Mérida and San Ramón three to five times a day. Sundays sporadic to none

   Fare (2024)

   About C$40 from Moyogalpa to the Maderas side (2024); around C$20 Moyogalpa–Altagracia (2018); roughly US$1 for the Altagracia run

   Takes

   Moyogalpa to Altagracia about 1 hour (25 km). Moyogalpa to Balgüe about 2 hours 45 minutes. Altagracia to Mérida about 2 hours

   Season

   Year-round. Heavy rain can cut the unpaved sections short

   Booking

   None, pay the conductor on board

   Sources: ometepeinfo.com (2024-04) · ometepeinfo.com (2024-03) · ometepenicaragua.com (2026) · confidence high

7. 07
   Half the Maderas ring is still dirtservice status

   Provincial road N226 around Volcán Maderas, and the north arc of NH64 around Concepción

   Where

   The island is a figure of eight and so is its road network. The Concepción loop (Moyogalpa – San José del Sur – El Quino – Altagracia), the national highway NH64, is surfaced in cement cobbles for most of its length; the northern arc from Altagracia round to La Flor via San Marcos is not, and although it is only 15 km against 25 km on the south side it takes longer and can need four-wheel drive at some times of year. The connector from El Quino past Santo Domingo beach to Santa Cruz is paved. On the Maderas loop only about 3 km is sealed, from Santa Cruz to Balgüe; the rest is dirt and loose stone, in places with big rocks, and the eastern and southern sections between Balgüe and San Ramón – roughly 14 km – have no public transport at all. Practical consequences: journey times on the Maderas side are two to three times what the distance suggests; hotels in Mérida and San Ramón are the only ones not on a paved road; cycling the Maderas ring is not recommended and a scooter built for tarmac will struggle, which is why the rental places push dirt bikes and quads for that side. Driving after dark anywhere on the island is a bad idea – free-ranging cattle, horses and dogs, and unlit vehicles.

   When

   n/a

   Fare

   n/a

   Takes

   n/a

   Season

   Worst in the May–November rains; the dirt sections rut and wash

   Booking

   n/a

   Sources: en.wikivoyage.org (2026-09) · ometepenicaragua.com (2026) · theselvistaexperience.com (2025) · confidence high

8. 08
   Moto-taxis, tuk-tuks, collectivo pickups and island taxismoto taxi

   Moyogalpa and San José del Sur docks to anywhere on the island

   Where

   Drivers swarm the ramp as you step off the boat – moto-taxis and three-wheel tuk-tuks for short hops within Moyogalpa and out to the nearby hostels, saloon cars and 4x4 pickups for the long runs. Away from the dock and the Altagracia market they are genuinely hard to find, so if you want one later, get a WhatsApp number from the driver who brings you in or ask your hotel. Island prices are much higher than the mainland – fuel on Ometepe is the dearest in Central America and drivers lean on that – so expect US$20 and up for a ride across the island and negotiate before you get in. As a published benchmark, one Balgüe operator's fixed 4x4 rates in 2026 are US$40 one way from Moyogalpa port, US$35 from San José, US$25 to Santo Domingo or Ojo de Agua, US$30 to the Los Ramos trailhead on Concepción, US$40 to San Ramón, and US$120 for a full-day island circuit for up to four people; ordinary local drivers undercut that by about US$5. Locals also ride in the back of pickups that work the paved loop for a share of the fuel, and hitching on the island is normal in daylight. Rates are usually quoted per vehicle at a hotel and per person when you flag one on the road, in which case the driver will pick up others on the way.

   When

   Every arriving boat is met. At other times and in other villages, by phone or luck

   Fare (2026)

   2026: US$20–40 for a cross-island run; US$25 Santo Domingo, US$35–40 Moyogalpa port, US$120 full-day tour for up to four. Short tuk-tuk hops in Moyogalpa are a dollar or two. Always agreed before departure

   Takes

   Moyogalpa to Balgüe about 1 hour 15 minutes; Moyogalpa to Mérida about 1 hour 30 minutes

   Season

   Year-round; 4x4 needed on the Maderas side in the rains

   Booking

   None at the dock. For a specific time, book through a hotel or WhatsApp the driver a day ahead

   Sources: theselvistaexperience.com (2026) · ometepeislandinfo.com (2026-09) · en.wikivoyage.org (2026-09) · confidence medium

9. 09
   Scooters, dirt bikes, quads and bicyclesscooter hire

   Hired in Moyogalpa, Santa Cruz, Balgüe, Mérida and Santo Domingo; delivered to hotels

   Where

   Moyogalpa has dozens of rental shops along the street up from the dock and there are smaller outfits at Santa Cruz, Balgüt, Santo Domingo and Mérida; most will deliver the machine to your hotel and collect it. Match the vehicle to the road: a 125 scooter is fine on the cement-cobbled Concepción loop and the Santo Domingo connector and miserable on the Maderas dirt, where a Genesis 250 dirt bike, a quad or a 4x4 is what you want. Shops quote two rates, a day rate meaning back by 17:00 or 18:00 and a 24-hour rate that usually runs 08:30 to 08:00. There is no real insurance on the island: if it breaks, is dropped or is stolen, you pay, so photograph and video every panel before you ride off, never leave a helmet or bag on the bike, and do not park it on the street overnight. Reputable operators do not ask for your passport or a large cash deposit – handing over a passport is illegal and still common, and is the usual precursor to an inflated damage bill. Return it with a full tank. Bicycles are the local way to reach the beaches, Punta Jesús María and Ojo de Agua, and small repair shops and inner tubes exist in most villages; you can bring your own bike over on the ferry for a nominal fee.

   When

   Walk-in, daily. Delivery to Balgüe and Mérida by arrangement

   Fare (2026)

   2026 delivered rates on the Maderas side: motorbike or scooter US$30 a day, US$35 for 24 hours; ATV US$65 for 24 hours plus US$10 an hour over; bicycle US$12 a day. Moyogalpa street rates are lower – typically US$15–20 for a day and US$15–25 for 24 hours, as little as US$5 in the off season, and always negotiable. Bicycles from town shops around US$5–7 a day (2016)

   Takes

   n/a

   Season

   Year-round. Dirt roads on Maderas are hard work after rain

   Booking

   Walk in, or book delivery through your hotel. Driving licence needed; helmets provided

   Sources: theselvistaexperience.com (2026) · ometepeislandinfo.com (2026-09) · en.wikivoyage.org (2026-09) · confidence high

10. 10
    Mainland buses – Managua, Rivas, San Juan del Sur and the taxi to San Jorgebus

    Managua (Mercado Roberto Huembes) – Rivas – San Jorge; also San Juan del Sur – Rivas – San Jorge

    Where

    Managua's buses are split by market. Everything going south, including Rivas, San Juan del Sur and the Peñas Blancas border, leaves from the terminal at the Mercado Carlos Roberto Huembes; León and Chinandega go from Israel Lewites and the north and Caribbean from El Mayoreo, so make sure you are at the right market. Rivas buses leave roughly every 30 minutes and take two to three hours; any bus signed San Juan del Sur or Peñas Blancas also passes Rivas and you get off at the gasolinera on the highway rather than going into the terminal. From Rivas the port at San Jorge is 15 minutes away: a taxi is about US$2–3 for the car, or wait for a colectivo minivan at about US$1 a head. Chicken buses to San Jorge do exist from a stop by the pharmacy just outside Rivas terminal but they are infrequent enough that most people give up and take the taxi. Coming from Granada, take the chicken bus to Rivas – about an hour and around C$31 – from the informal yard off Calle El Comercio near the Uno station, then the same taxi. From San Juan del Sur there are several buses a day to Rivas. Managua or Liberia airport to San Jorge by private car is about 2.5 hours; Granada 1.5 hours; San Juan del Sur about 40 minutes.

    When

    Managua (Huembes) to Rivas roughly every 30 minutes through the day. Granada to Rivas frequent. San Juan del Sur to Rivas several a day. Fewer services on 24 and 31 December

    Fare (2025)

    Granada–Rivas about C$31 (2023). Rivas–San Jorge taxi about US$2–3 for the car, colectivo minivan about US$1 per person (2025)

    Takes

    Managua to Rivas 2 to 3 hours; Granada to Rivas about 1 hour; Rivas to San Jorge 15 minutes

    Season

    Year-round

    Booking

    None. Buy on board or at the terminal window

    Sources: theselvistaexperience.com (2025) · tn8.ni (2025-12) · coupletraveltheworld.com (2023-09) · confidence medium

11. 11
    Peñas Blancas, the Costa Rica borderborder crossing

    Liberia / La Cruz (Costa Rica) – Peñas Blancas – Rivas – San Jorge

    Where

    Peñas Blancas on the Pan-American Highway is the busy crossing between Costa Rica and Nicaragua and the usual way onto Ometepe from the south; the alternative, Los Chiles–San Carlos on the eastern side of the lake, has had a road bridge since 2015 but is a long way round. The Nicaraguan side has its own bus terminal at the border and buses run regularly from there to Rivas, where you change for the port at San Jorge. International coaches – Tica Bus and Transnica on the Managua–San José run – stop here for immigration but do not set down at Rivas, so a local bus is usually the better choice if Ometepe is your destination. Costs on the Nicaraguan side: a US$10 tourist card on entry, valid one to three months and also good in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador under the CA-4 agreement, and a US$4 exit tax when leaving by land, payable in dollars and not in córdobas. Expect queues: the crossing backs up badly at Christmas and Easter with Nicaraguans living in Costa Rica going home. Nicaragua tightened entry checks on foreigners at this border in late 2025, and entry has been refused to some travellers without warning, so allow time and carry a printed onward booking and hotel reservation.

    When

    Border open daily; local buses between Peñas Blancas and Rivas run through the day

    Fare (2026)

    US$10 tourist card on entry to Nicaragua; US$4 land exit tax, dollars only. Bus fares on top

    Takes

    Peñas Blancas to Rivas about 1 hour 15 minutes, plus formalities that can run from 30 minutes to several hours

    Season

    Year-round; heaviest mid-December to early January and at Easter

    Booking

    None for local buses. Tica Bus and Transnica through tickets are booked in advance

    Sources: en.wikivoyage.org (2026-09) · en.wikivoyage.org (2026-09) · theselvistaexperience.com (2025) · confidence medium

12. 12
    Volcano guides, who also get you to the trailheadtour package

    Moyogalpa, Altagracia and Balgüe to the Concepción and Maderas trailheads and the San Ramón waterfall

    Where

    Guiding on Ometepe is as much a transport service as a walking one: the trailheads are a long way from anywhere, so the price you agree usually includes the driver who takes you out before dawn and waits, and guides are booked through hostels in Moyogalpa, Altagracia, Balgüe and Mérida up to late afternoon the day before. Maderas, the dormant one at 1,394 m, is the usual climb – about eight hours return from Balgüe through Finca Magdalena to the crater lake, steep, muddy and slippery, and the standard rate falls with group size: US$35 for one, US$25 each for two, US$20 each for three or more, plus the park entry. Concepción, the active cone, is a similarly long day and steeper. Guiding is described as compulsory by every operator and most hostels, and it is genuinely easy to lose the path, but the rule has been relaxed: as of November 2025 you can walk Concepción unguided on payment of a US$10 no-guide fee on top of the US$3 park entry. The San Ramón waterfall is a separate walk of several hours from Mérida with its own gate fee. Taxi rates to the trailheads are published – about US$30 one way from Balgüe to the Los Ramos start on Concepción.

    When

    Daily on request, leaving 07:30 to 08:00. Book the afternoon before

    Fare (2026)

    2026: guided Maderas US$35 for one person, US$25 each for two, US$20 each for three or more, plus park entry. Concepción unguided US$10 fee plus US$3 entry (Nov 2025). Earlier guided Maderas rates from hostels were as low as US$8 per person (2016)

    Takes

    Maderas about 8 hours return; Concepción 5 to 8 hours return

    Season

    Year-round. Wet and slippery May to November; the crater is often in cloud

    Booking

    Through your hostel or guesthouse by late afternoon the previous day

    Sources: theselvistaexperience.com (2026) · en.wikivoyage.org (2025-11) · theselvistaexperience.com (2026) · confidence medium

Not yet confirmed: Correction to the brief: there is no working Granada ferry. The Granada – Altagracia – San Carlos lake boat has been suspended since 2023 and two island sources still called it cancelled in 2025 and 2026. Do not offer it as a route.; Correction to the brief: flights are gone too. La Costeña's twice-weekly Managua – Ometepe – San Carlos – San Juan de Nicaragua service from the La Paloma airstrip is discontinued for lack of demand, so San Jorge is the only public way onto the island.; Correction to the brief: there is public transport to San Ramón, just not from Balgüe. The March 2024 island timetable runs buses to San Ramón via Santa Cruz and Mérida; the 14 km of dirt between Balgüe and San Ramón is what has no service.; Vessel names on the two published San Jorge timetables disagree. ometepenicaragua.com calls the 09:00 and 13:30 Moyogalpa departures 'Boat (Karen Maria)' while ometepeislandinfo.com calls the same slots 'Ferry Cacique Nicarao', and a 2023 blog lists both. The boat on that rotation appears to have been replaced; check at the ticket window which you are buying.; No 2025 or 2026 fare could be found for the island chicken buses in córdobas beyond the 'around C$40 to the Maderas side' figure on ometepeinfo.com from April 2024. Ask at the Moyogalpa dock or the Altagracia market.; No published moto-taxi or tuk-tuk tariff exists. The US$ figures given are one Balgüe operator's fixed 4x4 rates, which that operator itself says are above the local going rate by about US$5.; The island bus timetable is not published by anyone official. The 2024 images on ometepeinfo.com and the undated table on ometepenicaragua.com are the only sheets online and they differ in places; treat departure times as indicative and confirm with a local the day before.; Whether the collectivo pickups that work the paved loop charge a fixed fare could not be confirmed, nor whether the Rivas–San Jorge chicken bus by the pharmacy still runs.; Nicaragua's entry requirements at Peñas Blancas were reported as tightening for foreigners in November and December 2025 by Costa Rican and Nicaraguan outlets, but the primary immigration source could not be reached (epn.com.ni and several Nicaraguan government sites did not respond). Check current entry rules before relying on this crossing.; The Empresa Portuaria Nacional site epn.com.ni, which used to publish the official lacustre tariff table including the Granada and San Carlos boats, is unreachable and appears to be down..

The field note on Isla de Ometepe reads this entry in full, one option at a time, with every source beside it.