IT'S A ROUGH AND TREACHEROUS ROAD...
But oh so worth it for the Adventure!
Having lived and travelled through parts of Central America, there are a few things we wished were written down a little more and shared with the travelling World. CA unlike South East Asia is not as tourist friendly and does not have all travel plans handed to you on a not-so-clean silver platter! It makes you think a little more, which to us...is the best way of traveling!
The next few posts are going to be our stories, our advice and our travel tips to help you get from a few Point A's to a Point B's.
HONDURAS TO COSTA RICA
Step 1: Roatan to Tegucigalpa
Upon leaving the Island of Roatan, there is one main ferry service that is available - Roatan Ferry. Click here for schedules etc (http://www.roatanferry.com/). It will take you to the town of La Ceiba, this is the portal for buses to all your destinations around Honduras.
We opted to take the Cristina bus to Tegucigalpa. It was definitely the cheapest option, and if you ask any taxi driver they will take you over to the bus terminal to catch the bus. We left our bags at the terminal whilst we walked around the town and got some breakfast and some flip-flops. If you have had your fill of baleadas and are after some Western food, don't fret! There's KFC and Pizza Hut galore all close by. Make sure you leave your bags in a secure place or trust a security guard to keep an eye on them! The bus does stop from time to time for food and to pick/drop off passengers but still bring food and drinks since it can be a few hours between stops.
Also there is no drinking alcohol on the bus for Religious reasons so just be aware of that!
The total for the whole trip to Tegucigalpa for the 2 of us was USD $25!
Now, as we were pulling into Tegucigalpa we had absolutely NO idea of what to do or where to stay and it was getting dark so we were a little dubious as to what to do!
We were lucky we had the laptop and the internet stick with us so we whipped it out and did some googling! We researched where to get the bus the next day from to Nicaragua, hoping there would be taxi drivers once we arrived to take us to a hotel near the bus station. What we read did not please us much! We learned that we would be dropped off in the part of town called Comayaguela, which is THE bad part of Tegucigalpa.
We actually got pretty lucky because we were able to get a cab to take us to a hotel called Las Periñas a few streets away from the Tica bus stop. I would not recommend exploring this part of town! There was a chinese restaurant across the street from us so we got a few meals to go along with our Salva Vidas and ran back to the hotel, with the doorman keeping an eye on us the whole time! The hotel itself was more of a prison since it had a few layers of bullet proof glass, dead bolts, and bars. It only cost about $12 though and we woke up the next morning safe and sound!
Step 2: Tegucigalpa to Managua
We woke up in the morning, grabbed some more beers and snacks, then headed to the bus terminal. It was good that we stayed nearby because the bus left fairly early in the morning. Once aboard the bus we were able to get comfy and relax until the border, it was a good thing that we had food and drinks because we didn't stop until the border. Once at the border it's time to get your passports out along with money for entrance and exit fees. When we left Honduras it cost us $3 each and it cost $7 to enter Nicaragua. At the border you can change money if you want, be wary if you don't know the conversion rates or Spanish. They also have food and drinks for sale. At this time we had gotten thirsty so we introduced ourselves to Tona, the beer of Nicaragua!
It was amazing how much changed once we entered Nicaragua, the prices were about the same but it was much cleaner and felt safer. The bus didn't stop again until Leon, where we let out passengers. I don't know much about Leon since we kept going but from what I read after, I wish we had explored it. Back on the bus we headed to the capital, Managua.
We actually got pretty lucky because we were able to get a cab to take us to a hotel called Las Periñas a few streets away from the Tica bus stop. I would not recommend exploring this part of town! There was a chinese restaurant across the street from us so we got a few meals to go along with our Salva Vidas and ran back to the hotel, with the doorman keeping an eye on us the whole time! The hotel itself was more of a prison since it had a few layers of bullet proof glass, dead bolts, and bars. It only cost about $12 though and we woke up the next morning safe and sound!
Step 2: Tegucigalpa to Managua
We woke up in the morning, grabbed some more beers and snacks, then headed to the bus terminal. It was good that we stayed nearby because the bus left fairly early in the morning. Once aboard the bus we were able to get comfy and relax until the border, it was a good thing that we had food and drinks because we didn't stop until the border. Once at the border it's time to get your passports out along with money for entrance and exit fees. When we left Honduras it cost us $3 each and it cost $7 to enter Nicaragua. At the border you can change money if you want, be wary if you don't know the conversion rates or Spanish. They also have food and drinks for sale. At this time we had gotten thirsty so we introduced ourselves to Tona, the beer of Nicaragua!
It was amazing how much changed once we entered Nicaragua, the prices were about the same but it was much cleaner and felt safer. The bus didn't stop again until Leon, where we let out passengers. I don't know much about Leon since we kept going but from what I read after, I wish we had explored it. Back on the bus we headed to the capital, Managua.
We didn't arrive until late afternoon and we were tired from traveling. The bus drops you off at their station in a quiet part of town. Tica has an adjoining hotel at the station which were easy, affordable, and clean. There is food in little stands around the station. There was other accommodation but since we were passing through we just found a bed and fell straight asleep. They will even come and wake you up for your bus the next day!
Step 3: Managua to Costa Rica
The bus we took leaving Managua left very early so again it was nice to be staying so close. The bus took us to the Costa Rican boarder before we finally stopped. The border crossing was similar to the Honduras/Nicaragua border as you have the same services. It cost us $2 to exit Nicaragua, but what we didn't know is that in order to enter Costa Rica you need proof that you will be leaving. Tica bus was more than happy to sell us open ended tickets for proof of further travel. At the border there are money changers again and stands selling food. I recommend hitting the duty free store at the border because you will be extremely surprised as to how expensive Costa Rica is!
We had bought original tickets to San Jose but we realised looking at the map that that was way out of our way. The next bus stop that you have is Liberia. Tgey have a stop right next to McDonalds, which is where we got off. Liberia is a cross roads for those heading onto San Jose or headed to the coastal towns. Tamarindo is the main town near there onthe coasy. We made our way to the bus station which was just around the corner and looked for the bus to take us there. Tickets were $2 for chicken bus but didn't leave until late at night and seeing as how we just missed the one before we were stuck for a while. We were able to get a man to drive us for $30. All in all the bus from Tegucigalpa to Liberia cost $46 each. The bus was clean and comfy but very cold. Bring a blanket or sweatshirt, maybe socks. Bring food and drinks on the bus because it might take a while between stops. Also bring a bit of cash to pay the fees, overall though it was a lot of fun and not too hard to do.
Step 3: Managua to Costa Rica
The bus we took leaving Managua left very early so again it was nice to be staying so close. The bus took us to the Costa Rican boarder before we finally stopped. The border crossing was similar to the Honduras/Nicaragua border as you have the same services. It cost us $2 to exit Nicaragua, but what we didn't know is that in order to enter Costa Rica you need proof that you will be leaving. Tica bus was more than happy to sell us open ended tickets for proof of further travel. At the border there are money changers again and stands selling food. I recommend hitting the duty free store at the border because you will be extremely surprised as to how expensive Costa Rica is!
We had bought original tickets to San Jose but we realised looking at the map that that was way out of our way. The next bus stop that you have is Liberia. Tgey have a stop right next to McDonalds, which is where we got off. Liberia is a cross roads for those heading onto San Jose or headed to the coastal towns. Tamarindo is the main town near there onthe coasy. We made our way to the bus station which was just around the corner and looked for the bus to take us there. Tickets were $2 for chicken bus but didn't leave until late at night and seeing as how we just missed the one before we were stuck for a while. We were able to get a man to drive us for $30. All in all the bus from Tegucigalpa to Liberia cost $46 each. The bus was clean and comfy but very cold. Bring a blanket or sweatshirt, maybe socks. Bring food and drinks on the bus because it might take a while between stops. Also bring a bit of cash to pay the fees, overall though it was a lot of fun and not too hard to do.
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