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Looking for the best things to do in Granada, Nicagauraga?
Granada is an absolute must-see destination during your travels in Nicaragua. As the oldest colonial city in the Americas, Granada is brimming with rich cultural history, natural beauty, and a ton of fun and interesting things to see and do!
And lucky for you, in this blog, I’ve broken down all of the best things to do in Granada, Nicaragua. From sightseeing to adventure, I cover all the “must-do” activities so you can plan the best trip possible!
Quick Pick: Our Favorite Activity
Don’t have time to read the full article?
Our personal FAVORITE thing to do is go on this full-day tour that combines all of the city’s best activities! Visit an active volcano at Masaya Volcano National Park, go shopping at Masaya Artisan Market, go on a historical city tour, and explore Lake Nicaragua on a boat ride! Check out the 5-star reviews and book this experience here.
Tip: This activity is very popular – reserve your spot now and get FREE cancellation 24 hours before you go.
The BEST Things to do in Granada, Nicaragua
1. Go Shopping at the Masaya Artisan Market
If you’re into small villages and markets then the Masaya Artisan Market is for you! This market is truly authentic and a great experience for anybody who wants to experience a real Nicaraguan market.
At the Masaya Artisan Market, you’ll find everything from handmade leather shoes to woven goods, to food, and more! Try some new fruit, buy a unique souvenir (different than the ones you’ll find in all of the touristy stores), and have a few interactions with the locals.
It’s located about a 25-minute drive outside the city, so the best way to experience it is on this guided combo day tour that includes a visit to the market with a bunch of Granada’s other highlights!
The day starts with a city tour around Granada before heading out of the city to Masaya Volcano National Park. Here you will witness an active volcano with smoke and flowing lava – it’s quite the site! After, it’s off to the market to do some shopping, and then the day ends with a scenic hour-long boat ride around Lake Nicaragua.
I had such a great time on this tour and loved that it combined the market with other great activities in the area. It costs $130 USD per person which includes hotel pick-up/drop-off, entrance fees, transportation, and the boat ride.
Check out all of the 5-star reviews and book your spot on this tour here!
2. Go Paddle Boarding
If you’re looking for a relaxing nature activity in Granada, look no further than this stand-up paddle board (SUP) experience on Lake Nicaragua.
In my opinion, there is no better way to experience Lake Nicaragua than from right on the water. On this 3-hour tour, we paddled to the foot of Mombacho Volcano and had epic views the entire time. We even got to feed the monkeys at Monkey Island!
This tour is perfect for any level of experience, even beginners. Our guide was super helpful and even gave a lesson in the marina before we got started. It is also a guided paddle-boarding session, so the guide is with you the entire time.
I think my favorite part of this tour was the included meditation session on the boards. Meditating on the water was such a rejuvenating and unique experience!
This activity costs only $39 USD per person which includes private transportation from Granada, your SUP equipment, and bottled water. It runs twice daily, but we highly recommend doing the sunrise tour to get some stunning views of the volcano.
Check availability for this popular paddle board experience here!
Why We Book Tours with Viator
Viator is a trusted online booking system for tours around the world! We almost always book our tours using Viator for a couple of reasons:
- Free cancellation on most tours – Most of the tours on Viator allow you to cancel and get a full refund up to 24 hours in advance. This is handy in case plans change, or if booking an outdoor activity, the weather forecast is looking grim.
- Reserve now and pay later – You can secure your spot on some of the most popular tours well in advance and not pay until closer to the day of the tour.
- Lowest price guarantee – If you happen to find the same tour at a lower price elsewhere, Viator will refund you the price difference.
- Pay in your chosen currency – Avoid costly international transaction fees by choosing to pay in your home currency.
- Peace of mind – When booking with tour operators you find in person on the street or in small booking offices, you are often promised one thing and given another. This online platform holds tour operators accountable with a written description of inclusions as well as the opportunity for customers to leave reviews.
Check out the Viator website here! Or, for more info, read our detailed review about Viator here.
3. See the Masaya Volcano at Night
Visiting the Masaya Volcano is one of the most popular things to do in Granada and something I encourage everyone to add to their Granada “to-do” list!
I mean, who doesn’t want to see magma inside a volcano with their own eyes?!
Well on this night tour to Masaya Volcano, you will see just that. With the right weather and magma levels, you’ll be able to peer down into the volcano and see the lava for yourself. I have to admit, this is one really unique attraction and I personally loved it!
The volcano is located just on the outskirts of the small village of Masaya around a 40-minute drive from Granada. The tour will pick you up right from your Granada accommodation and take you to the volcano. You will get to peer over the edge of the crater to view the bright lava, which is why visiting at night is so much better than during the day!
The guide also shares lots of interesting information about the volcano and keeps the drive interesting. Plus, with tour prices at only $45 USD you really can’t go wrong. Going with a group is so much easier and safer!
Book your Masaya Volcano experience here and receive FREE 24-hour cancellation!
4. Boat around the 365 Islets of Lake Nicaragua
By far, one of the best things to do in Granada, Nicaragua is to explore the 365 islands on Lake Nicaragua!
The islands were created after Mombacho Volcano erupted thousands of years ago, spattering varying-sized rock formations or islets across the shores of the lake. Some of the islands are completely uninhabited with only palm trees and the occasional birds, while others are inhabited by local fishermen and their families. Some even boast up-scale eco-hotels, restaurants, and private luxury homes owned by the rich and famous!
One of the best ways to tour the area is by boat because you are able to cover a lot of ground and see as many of the islets as possible. My favorite way to do this is on this combo tour. It combines an hour-long cruise around the lake with a city sightseeing tour.
The tour will pick you up in Granada and take you to Lake Nicaragua for a scenic cruise. Keep your eyes open for wildlife, we saw some howler monkeys when we went! After, you’ll go on a historical city tour to see impressive landmarks such as La Pólvora Fortress and Parque Colon de Granada.
We love the combination of beautiful nature with the history of the city. The tour costs $130 USD per person which includes all transportation and activities and runs daily at 8 am.
Check availability on this highly-rated tour to Lake Nicaragua here!
5. Make Chocolate!
Did you know that some of the world’s finest chocolate originated in Nicaragua?! That’s right, Nicaragua’s climate makes for the ideal place to grow cocoa beans, the main ingredient in chocolate.
In Granada, you can actually book a tour to a chocolate factory and learn all about the entire chocolate-making process (while sampling lots of chocolate of course!) and even make a traditional Nicaraguan cocoa-based drink.
You’ll actually make your own chocolate bar to take home with you too – what a cool souvenir!
This is one highly-rated activity in Granada, and one not to miss if you’ve never made chocolate before! For $50 USD it includes transportation to the chocolate museum as well as entrance fees – which we think is a pretty good deal for this neat experience!
Book your chocolate-making experience in advance here!
Getting to Granada
From Managua, Nicaragua
A majority of travelers who are visiting Granada will be coming from Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, where the main international airport is.
Getting from Managua to Granada is quite simple and the journey by road is only 45 minutes long.
The best way is to have your hotel arrange for a driver to come to pick you up from the airport. They will wait in arrivals for you with a sign. This typically costs around $40 USD.
If you want to reserve online in advance you can book this minivan shuttle to take you to your Granada hotel for around $35-40 USD.
Your last option is to hop on a chicken bus. This will not be the smoothest or most comfortable ride but it is definitely the cheapest! You aren’t likely to pay more than a few dollars but will probably need to pay in córdoba.
If you are planning on driving around Nicaragua then you can rent a car from the airport.
From neighboring countries
From countries like Costa Rica, El Salvador, or Honduras there are different bus companies that will travel to Granada. You can search for routes here.
Where to Stay in Granada, Nicaragua
There are tons of great options when it comes to choosing a place to stay in Granada, Nicaragua. To help make your decision easier, I’ve listed a couple of the best options including budget, moderate, and luxury options.
Hotel Plaza Colón – $$$
The elegant Hotel Plaza Colon comes highly recommended as it is located in central Granada and has – you guessed it – a pool! The rooms are large and clean and complete with air conditioning, bath robes, and toiletries. The price is very affordable as well considering all of the inclusions! A queen room averages around $100 USD.
You can book Hotel Plaza Colon on Booking.com.
Hotel Casa del Consulado – $$
This former colonial-style mansion is now running as a hotel just a few hundred feet from the central park in Granada. All of the rooms in Hotel Casa del Consulado are massive and have high ceilings, air conditioning, a desk, and a wardrobe. The courtyard pool is nice to cool off in and catches a lot of direct sun in the early part of the day. A private king room averages $63 USD.
Hostel Oasis Granada – $
We stayed at Hotel Oasis in Granada and loved our stay! Not only is this hostel one of the very few that actually has a pool, but it is clean, comfortable, and offers a delicious breakfast with lots of different options. They have both dorm beds and budget private rooms available. It is a spacious property and a great place to socialize with other travelers however there is still an 11 pm quiet time policy so we weren’t disturbed.
You can book Hostel Oasis Granada on either Hostelworld or Booking.com.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance!
If you’re looking to save money on travel insurance, we currently use and recommend SafetyWing. We’ve been using their coverage since 2018 and they’ve had our backs when we needed emergency flights and got sick overseas.
SafetyWing is one of the cheapest providers out there and covers everything from medical costs to lost luggage, travel delays, and emergency flights. A huge difference we’ve found between them and other companies is that they let you take out a policy AFTER leaving your home country. We’ve also found it handy that it’s a monthly payment rather than a lump sum, and you can get a refund for unused time.
SafetyWing has helped us out in some scary situations before and their affordable coverage has given us peace of mind. You can read our honest review of SafetyWing for all the pros and cons.
Thanks for reading!
I hope this blog has helped you plan out your time in Granada, Nicaragua! There are lots of fun things to do in Granada, and I hope you enjoy all of the activities as much as we did!
Be sure to check out our complete Nicaragua travel guide or all of our other Nicaragua blogs for more info on traveling to this amazing country! Or, check out some related blogs below:
Things to do in Leon, Nicaragua (other than just volcano boarding)