It wasn't half as bad as I was told it would be. Upon my entering the area around lunch time on a March afternoon i was quite shocked by how small the area was. Parking was relatively easy, and even easier was finding a place to eat. The place is for surly a tourist magnet of conveniences if your willing to pay the prices. The drive from Rivas to San Juan del Sur is a nice smooth ride on a paved highway and quite scenic. You will pass by the Nicaragua wind turbines with a pleasant view of Ometepe in the background. The food in San Juan del Sur is pricey for Nicaragua but most tourists from North America are use to paying those prices back home. I found the San Juan del Sur area had a comfy feel to it despite the street hustlers aggravating the shit out of you. After having a nice meal of fish, shrimp, and fries at a beach front restaurant, I broke out the camera and hit the beach full speed ahead. San Juan del Sur for surly had a packed house of boats that added to the scenery and a rather packed beach as compared to what I am use to. A short while later I made a right on the beach and headed towards the street vendors that were sat up in the middle of the street. I purchased a bracelet with a Nicaragua coin made into for about $3.00 then headed on down to check out a few more shops. One of the coolest places that I stumbled upon was the Howler which is on the main drag and offers a variety of fixings but the thing that caught my eye the most was the all natural fresh juice mixes in which I have a picture of listed below.price is around $3.00 in US cash.
The ups and downs of San Juan del Sur in my opinion would be:
Ups would be how convenient everything is from shopping, eating, and a list of activities you can pay to do such as surf lessons, boat rentals, snorkeling equip and more. If your young and wanting the party type of life or a life that is filled with youth then this place will work for you, just be prepared to pay US prices and do not expect peace and quiet.
The downs would be crowded, expensive...I think it depends on each individual and what they are looking for but for me San Juan del Sur is just an occasional place for me to visit and piss my money away.
Travel Tip before heading into San Juan del Sur based off of my experience of living here if your curious about crime in the area you can read the La Prensa online in English. Its not a bad idea either to purchase a small over the shoulder cooler before arriving in Nicaragua and stop at one of the local groceries or even a Pulperia and purchasing some ice and drinks to carry with you...Nicaragua does take American cash but please make sure there isn't one single mark or tear anywhere on the bills and be prepared to pay the exchange rate prices
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