Granada City Tour, Masaya Volcano & the White Villages
This morning, our guide will meet you at the lobby of your hotel to enjoy a City Tour of Granada.
On this wonderful outdoor experience you will visit places like the La Casa de los Tres Mundos, an art gallery a cultural academy. Then, go to the Convent of San Francisco church, built in 1529 and decorated with elegant paintings and pre- Columbian statues from Zapatera Island. Continue to the Iglesia La Merced, take the stairs up to the tower from where you will have great views of the city. After Iglesia La Merced, you will go to the Old Train Station located in front of Sandino Park. The last place you will visit is La Polvora, a fort where the Spanish stored dynamite and weapons in the 17th and 18th century to repel the attacks of English and French pirates. Part of the tour will take place in a traditional Horsedrawn Carriage conducted by a local driver. Morning tour duration: 3 hours approx.
In the early afternoon, you will leave Granada and will be transferred to the Masaya Areas.
Your tour will take you to Catarina, a small and characteristic village of Nicaragua where people work seedling nurseries, make handcraft and raise horses. Placed on top of the extinct volcano 520 meters above sea level this presents a very agreeable climate. The temperature veries from 22 and 27 C° (72 & 77 F°) from here you can have a magnificent view of Apoyo lagoon, Mombacho volcano, Granada and Lake Nicaragua. Enjoy lunch in nice restaurant amidst nature. After Catarina you will visit the ancient highland villages of "La Meseta" to visits the Mesa artisans workshops of San Juan de Oriente. This precious town has colonial period houses, churches and a hardworking native population. Then visit the finest Handicraft Market in Masaya where you will enjoy the creativity and a variety of Nicaraguan art at bargain prices.
Our day tour ends with the late evening visit to the First National Park created in Nicaragua in 1979, one of Nicaragua's most interesting and beautiful natural phenomena. It comprises an area of 54 km2 with more than 20 km of scenic roads and trails, leading to and around the one impressive volcano and five formidable craters; one of them currently displays gaseous activity and incandescent lava lake in its interior. Standing at the wall, you are able to peer into the crater- an incredible thing to experience first-hand! Eventually transfer back to Granada. Afternoon tour duration: 6 hours approx.
Included:
Transportation.
Bilingual guide (English-Spanish).
Lunch.
Entrance fees.
Please note that due safety restrictions, visitors are only allowed to stay 15 minutes near the crater.
Breakfast and Lunch included.
