|
Opening hours, festivals and holidays
|
|
|
Shops
and
services
in Nicaragua still observe Sunday closing: otherwise you'll find most things open from 8am to 4pm, with the exception of
banks
, which normally close at 3pm. Some
museums
and
sites
close for lunch, normally shutting their doors between noon and 2, before reopening again until 4pm. Supermarkets, smaller grocery shops and the small neighbourhood shops called
ventas
generally stay open until 8pm.
Bars
and
restaurants
tend to close around 11pm, except for nightclubs and dance clubs - most of which are in Managua - which stay open until 2am or later.
Christmas and Easter are still the biggest
holidays
. At
Easter
especially the whole country packs up and goes to the beach: buses are packed, hotel rooms on the coast are at a premium, and flights to the Corn Islands are fully booked.
Christmas
and
New Year
are mainly celebrated in the home, but you'll find most things closed between December 23 and 25 and on January 1. The holiday marking the
Revolution
, on July 19, is still celebrated ardently by Sandinistas and is usually accompanied by parades and marches. In addition, each town in Nicaragua has its own
patron saint
and will observe the saint's day with processions and celebrations called Toro Guaco, when you might catch a glimpse of old customs inherited from the Aztecs mixed with mestizo figures like the masked
viejitos
(old ones - masks of old men and women worn by young and old alike). In all cases Nicaraguans love to dance, and you will probably see folkloric dances in the streets, usually performed by children. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
|
Nicaragua |