Travel to Nicaragua in September?

[amlee]

 
 Hi everyone,

 I'm new to the forum, as of today. 

 I am interested in potentially traveling to Nicaragua for a two-week trip during the first half of September...I would like to focus on the West side of the country.  All of the reports I am reading are telling me that this is not the ideal time to travel.

 I worry about plunking a lot of money down on the trip, only to be rained out for most of the time.

 I am wondering if anyone had any potential thoughts on traveling in Nica. during this time period.  Is it a bad idea in general, or might there be some good opportunities to see the country during this time period?
 
 Does anyone have any experience being in the country during the end of August/first half of September?

 If you any suggestions whatsoever, they would be much appreciated. 

 Thanks,

 A.

[Joshua Berman]

A few places may be closed, but in general, everything is open and you'll have many hotels and tours to yourself, which can be quite nice. You may also be able to bargain for low season rates. No need to pre-book hotels, just show up and shop around. Bring a rain jacket and umbrella and plan on doing more upland rain/cloud forest activities instead of the beach. Enjoy and let us know how it goes!

[amlee]

I also failed to mention that I do not really speak Spanish.  But alas, I am going to be working on that in the next two months.  I will be going with the assumption that I will not be able to speak English (nor do I want to).  Seems like there will not be many tourists around, which should be quite different, but nice.

[chamberlin]

My husband and i are going those first two weeks as well and decided (based on the advice of the forum) to stick to the west coast primarily.  We are going to hit SJDS, Ometepe, Granada, Las Penitas, and Managua in that order.

Hopefully there will be some sun breaks .

[Joshua Berman]

Amlee, you'll be able to speak all the English you want in Granada and San Juan del Sur (and the Atlantic Coast, of course). Elsewhere in Nicaragua, not so much.

[Randall Wood]

With regard to weather conditions, have you seen this article on this site?  It may be helpful in your planning:

http://gotonicaragua.com/content/view/55/58/

[madcityRN]

I'm look to visit the west coast of Nicaragua in mid-October. That seems to be the worst of the rainy season. I read that it is generally clear in the morning, so I'm wondering if that would give us time to hike and such before the rains start?

[Joshua Berman]

madcity: totally unpredictable. october is the height of hurricane season. you may get lucky with just afternoon rains, or not. if you stick to the pacific side, you'll probably be fine. ... good luck.

[Randall Wood]

Note that the El Niño weather patterns play a pretty dramatic role on the rainy season from one year to the next as well, so perhaps you'll get lucky.  That said, October really is about as wet as it gets.

I happen to like the month anyway.  Things don't close down - bring your rain coat and/or a travel umbrella and splash around with everyone else.  The rains will sometimes come down so hard and fast you find yourself stuck somewhere with a bunch of strangers with whom you will be friends before the sun comes out!  Try that in New York ...