León is the second biggest and most important city in Nicaragua, famous for its colonial architecture, volcanoes and beaches on the Pacific Ocean coast.
Located on the western part of the country, it is 56 miles from Managua, the capital of Nicaragua and only 11 miles to the beach.
The Ruins of León Viejo
León was the capital of Nicaragua for over 200 years, until the recurring eruptions and earthquakes of the Momotombo Volcano forced its settlers to move to where the city actually is. The original settlement are the Ruins of León Viejo, located 30 km from the present-day León, which has been given the status of World Heritage Site.
Nowadays, the ruins operate as an open-air museum, with the remaining trace of the construction that once structured this colonial city. In the ruins you can see the mausoleum of the founder of León, Francisco Hernández de Córdoba. From the ruins you will have an extraordinary view of the Momotombo Volcano and the Xolotlán Lake.
The present-day city of León
León is a very historic and religious city. Its colonial architecture can be seen in houses, streets, monuments and churches. It’s ancient constructions go from the Baroque to the Neoclassic.
The city has 16 churches, being the Insigne y Real Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, the biggest Cathedral in Central America, and the third biggest in Latin America.
In the center of the cathedral, there is a mausoleum holding the remains of the poet Rubén Darío.
The city offers an active cultural life with activities, museums, ruins, theaters, markets, and universities.
León is known as a university city, and the University of León is one of the first in Central America. Leon was the cradle of the sandinista revolution that finished the dictatorial regime of the Somoza family, and there are many monuments and museums in the city of this revolutionary history.
VOLCANOES
From León, tourists have the gateway to the chain of volcanes in Nicaragua either to observe, climb, or sandboard. The Maribios Volcano range has the most active volcanoes in Nicaragua.
Cerro Negro Volcano
The Cerro Negro Volcano is the youngest in Central America and the most active in Nicaragua. It is 20 km northeast of the City of León, 730 meters high and many active craters. It is the easiest volcano to climb that offers the possibility to descend it sandboarding its black sands.
The cerro negro is located in a natural reserve called Las Pilas - El Hoyo, which offers a Rural Communal Tourism. Its main objective is to reforest and restock the environment, protect it and take care of it, while promoting a different tourism combining nature, culture, production and local gastronomy.
The Cerro Negro is much more than just a volcano and its incredible views. The area is surrounded by a dry forest and wild animals such as rattlesnake, mica snake also called "tropical chicken snake", the bejuca snake, green iguanas. You wil be able to see them in the natural reserve in a sort of zoo that have prepared for the tourist.
Moreover, the reserve offers the tourist the boards to live the experience to go down the side of the volcano’s black sands.
Momotombo, Momotombito Volcano and lake Xolotlán
The most famous volcano is the Momotombo, 1300 high with an almost perfect cone. It is one of the most challenging volcanoes to climb, but you will be rewarded with spectacular views. In the Momotombo there are geothermal facilities of electric generation.
Another volcano that is hard to reach is the El Hoyo Volcano with an odd hole on one of its slopes.
You can also climb the Telica Volcano and reach its enourmous create with excellent panoramic views. Near the Telica volcano are the Hot springs of San Jacinto, a geothermic place with a collection of boiling mud holes. It is placed at the base of the Santa Clara volcano and it is known as thermal Aguzas in boiling state.
BEACHES
Poneloya & Las Peñitas beach
If you are a beach lover, less than 25 km from León there are two beautiful seaside resorts on the same coast line, Poneloya and Las Peñitas where you can enjoy the beach and surf. The picturesque towns offer surf classes and delicious seafood.
In front of Las Peñitas there is a long-stretched island called Isla Juan Venado (Juan Venado Island), a natural reserve with forest and mangroves that you can access in kayak.
ACTIVITIES IN TOWN
Churches
- Visit to the cathedral
- Sutiaba Church
- San Francisco Church
- La Recolección Church
- La Merced Church
- El Calvario Church
- San Sebastián Church
- Guadalupe Church
- Zaragoza Church
- San Felipe Church
- Ermita San Pedro Church
- El Laborío Church
- La Asunción Chapel
Buildings
- Art Center Ortiz Gurdián
- Municipal Theater José de la Cruz Mena
- UNAN - University of León
- Municipal Palace
- Guadalupe Cemetery Walls
- Guadalupe’s Bridge
- Sutiava Presbytery
- Railway Station
Ruins
- León Viejo Ruins
- Veracruz Ruins
- San Sebastián Ruins
- San Andrés Ruins
- Santiago Ruins
Museums
- Museum of Legends and Traditions
- Entomological Museum
- Indigenous Sutiaba Museum
- Rubén Darío Museum
BEACHES
- Poneloya and Las Peñitas
- Salinas Grande
- Juan Venado Island kayaking
- Finca Los Alpes horseback riding
VOLCANOES
- Cerro Negro Volcano: sandboard and twilight hike
- Momotombo Volcano
- El Hoyo Volcano
- Telica Volcano
- San Jacinto Hot Spings
- Asososca Lagoon
- León Viejo and Lake Xolotlán
