Category Pages For: Destinations

Day-to-day blogs about the places already visited

Boquete - Walk - 22
APRIL 2018: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: PLEASE NOTE: The official exchange rate at time of writing was US$1 = P$1 (Panama Balboa). Panama uses US$s and only uses Balboa as coins for small change. I stayed a total of 3 weeks in Isla Bastimentos and Bocas Town, Isla Colon. Throughout Latin America, hotel costs can go crazy in Easter / Holy Week / Santa Semana … with some hotels tripling their prices. So, I decided to leave Bocas Town and get back to the mainland to take refuge in Changuinola for a few nights (before moving on to […]

Boquete – Panama – Information

MARCH 2018: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: PLEASE NOTE: The official exchange rate at time of writing was US$1 = P$1 (Panama Balboa). Panama uses US$s and only uses Balboa as coins for small change. I made my way from Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica to Isla Bastimentos, Panama by Shuttle Bus(es) and Boat(s). On Isla Bastimentos, I booked a GRANDPAcking Double Room for 4 nights at US$31 / night (Bubba’s House). The room was expensive, basic and ‘tired’. The shared kitchen was small and almost unusable. I needed to get my costs down and find somewhere with a […]

Bocas Town – Panama – Information

MARCH 2018: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: PLEASE NOTE: The official exchange rate at time of writing was US$1 = P$1 (Panama Balboa). Panama uses US$s and only uses Balboa as coins for small change. I made my way from Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica to Isla Bastimentos, Panama by Shuttle Bus(es) and Boat(s). I left Puerto Viejo just before 9am and arrived at my Isla Bastimentos hostel (Bubba’s House) mid afternoon. I booked a GRANDPAcking Double Room for 4 nights at US$31 / night. The room was very basic. The ensuite was ‘tired’. The door to the ensuite was off its […]

Isla Bastimentos – Panama – Information

MARCH 2018: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: PLEASE NOTE: The official exchange rate at time of writing was US$1 = C$570. I made my way from Granada, Nicaragua to Puerto Viejo (PV) by 2 long distance buses: Granada to San Jose and San Jose to PV. I arrived in PV late at 11:30pm and took the first hotel room that I could find. My room was at the Sel et Sucre. I got an attic room up a ladder that had a double mattress on the floor, a mosquito net over the bed, no furniture, no space to open my […]

Puerto Viejo – Costa Rica – Information

FEBRUARY 2018: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: In my “Beginner’s Guide” to Little Corn Island, I provided information about: How to get from Big Corn Island to Little Corn Island Why I chose to stay in The Village What Little Corn Island looks like Where to stay What ‘short term’ accommodation I found What ‘long term’ accommodation I found In this post, I will tell you more about what it is like to actually live on Little Corn Island and a lot more about everyday costs. I, also, do a quick comparison between Little Corn Island and Gili Air […]

Little Corn Island – Nicaragua – Information

JANUARY 2018: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: I had so much trouble getting to the Corn Islands that, in a way, I was DETERMINED to stick it out. I booked a Vacation Rental on Big Corn Island for 1 month and tried to get the best out of Big Corn that I could. The rental that I had in Big Corn was very nice: a 2-story, 2-bedroom house all to myself for US$500 / month. Big Corn Island didn’t “cut the mustard” so, it was time to move on to Little Corn to see if it offered anything better. AFTER ALL, […]

Little Corn Island – Nicaragua – A ...

DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: In my “Beginner’s Guide” to Big Corn Island, I provided information about: How to get from Bluefields to Big Corn Island Why I chose Brig Bay What Brig Bay looks like Where to stay What ‘short term’ accommodation I found What ‘long term’ accommodation I found In this post, I will tell you more about what it is like to actually live on Big Corn Island and a lot more about everyday costs. I will, also, compare Big Corn Island with the Bay Islands (Roatan and Utila) in Honduras. […]

Big Corn Island – Nicaragua – Information

DECEMBER 2017: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: I tried to get from Greytown to Bluefields to catch the boat out to Big Corn Island. I had to abandon this route and make my way from Greytown to Bluefields by land via Rama. This added 1 week to my timeline. I wanted to compare Big Corn Island to the Bay Islands in Honduras (Roatan Island and Utila Island). I arrived in Bluefields on a Monday and booked myself into the Mini Hotel y Cafetin Central (MHCC) at N$400 / night for a Fan Double with Private Bathroom. I booked 2 nights. The […]

Big Corn Island – Nicaragua – A ...

DECEMBER 2017: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: I spent several days making my way from Granada to San Carlos via Costa Rica so that I could take a trip down the Rio San Juan to Greytown. I wanted to experience the Rio San Juan villages and the Indio Maiz Biological Reserve … but, still get to Greytown in time to catch the once-weekly (Wednesday) boat from Greytown to Bluefields. My ultimate goal was to get out to the Corn Islands. I have heard some bad things about the Greytown to Bluefields boat trip – so, I wanted to find […]

Greytown to Bluefields – Nicaragua – Journey

DECEMBER 2017: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: I wanted to take a few days travelling down the Rio San Juan from Lake Nicaragua to Greytown to see and experience the Indio Maiz Biological Reserve and, possibly, do some kayaking down the river. I tried to get to San Carlos from Ometepe Island but the ferry between the two does not operate anymore. I ended up in Granada and needed to renew my CA4 90 Day Tourist Visa. So, I made my way from Granada to San Carlos via Costa Rica. My ultimate goal was to take the boat from […]

Rio San Juan – Nicaragua – Information

DECEMBER 2017: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: We came from Ometepe Island … where we stayed for 6 nights in the Hostal Tecali. The hostal is located 600 meters up a dirt road from Santa Cruz. My Double Room should have been US$15 / night. But, I got it through BOOKING.COM at a 67% discount. We rented a scooter from the Tecali for 5 days which allowed us to get around the island to all of the tourist spots. We paid US$17 / day for the scooter (discounted down from US$20). It was now time to move on and to […]

San Juan Del Sur – Nicaragua – ...

NOVEMBER 2017: Why not read our Retirement Reviews. OVERVIEW: We came from Granada … where we stayed for 6 nights in the Boutique Hotel Maharaja. The hotel is located at the eastern end of Calzada Street (the main tourist street). We paid a discounted price of US$23 / night for a Twin Room.Aircon was available for an extra charge of US$10 / night … but, we just used the ceiling fan (which was perfectly adequate). Our room was next to the dipping pool and a small outdoor seating area. Our room rate included a small (insufficient) free Breakfast … which was […]

Ometepe – Nicaragua – Information