What is it like to drive in Nicaragua?
Mike Cobb - ECI Development
Driving in Nicaragua is exciting to say the least. Defensive driving is a must and paying attention to the slow moving vehicles is key. One way street signs are tiny and it’s easy to find out you are heading the wrong way up a one-way, especially when the police man is there to remind you. Passing laws and lane changes are monitored closely and random pull offs by the police are common.
Driving in Nicaragua is exciting to say the least. Defensive driving is a must and paying attention to the slow moving vehicles is key. One way street signs are tiny and it’s easy to find out you are heading the wrong way up a one-way, especially when the police man is there to remind you. Passing laws and lane changes are monitored closely and random pull offs by the police are common.
Posted January 19, 2014
Martijn Priester - TOTOCO Eco-lodge
I think one should qualify the answer about what it's like to drive in Nicaragua by pointing out that there is a big difference between driving in Managua city and driving anywhere else in the country. Managua is large, crowded and chaotic and can be an intimidating place to drive around without anyone to guide you. Street signs are few and far between, other drivers are unpredictable and erratic and the Managua police are often on the lookout for foreigners in rental cars to stop...
I think one should qualify the answer about what it's like to drive in Nicaragua by pointing out that there is a big difference between driving in Managua city and driving anywhere else in the country. Managua is large, crowded and chaotic and can be an intimidating place to drive around without anyone to guide you. Street signs are few and far between, other drivers are unpredictable and erratic and the Managua police are often on the lookout for foreigners in rental cars to stop and invent traffic infringements for. If you're just visiting the country you can easily avoid Managua by renting at the airport and leaving in the direction of Tipitapa. After living in the country for a while with your own vehicle you'll quickly familiarize yourself and then Managua is actually not so bad.
Elsewhere it's a different story- a lot of roads have been improved over the past 10 years, traffic is limited and having your own vehicle offers a great deal of independence. There may not be many signs but people are always helpful and will point you in the right direction. There are still areas of the country where conditions will require a 4x4 vehicle during the rainy season - particularly out towards the Caribbean and in some of the more remote areas of the north. Roads in the popular south-east corner of the country (Ometepe, Granada and the beaches north and south of San Juan del Sur) are much better now than a few years ago and most of this area is accessible with a small sedan. Beware that whether you are in the city or out in the countryside, all manner of livestock is likely to appear in the middle of the road and visibility after 6 PM is bad. Don't be surprised to come across 3 people riding their bikes alongside each other in the middle of a dark road with no lights so be very careful when driving after 6 PM. The main north - south Pan-American highway can also be a bit scary with public buses and long-haul trucks slowly passing you on blind corners and all that kind of exciting behavior!
Posted June 13, 2014
Brett DeGreen - Century Twenty One Gold Coast Realty Nicaragua
Nicaragua is a great place to explore by car. The Pan American Highway is a well built and maintained roadway that runs all the way border to border, and Nicaragua has spent a lot of time and money building paver stone roads branching off of the major roadways into the smaller communities. However, there are still plenty of off-the-beaten path dirt roads, which I hope remain for years to come!
You do need to pay close attention when driving in Nicaragua....
Nicaragua is a great place to explore by car. The Pan American Highway is a well built and maintained roadway that runs all the way border to border, and Nicaragua has spent a lot of time and money building paver stone roads branching off of the major roadways into the smaller communities. However, there are still plenty of off-the-beaten path dirt roads, which I hope remain for years to come!
You do need to pay close attention when driving in Nicaragua. Many vehicles are poorly maintained, and they may not have functioning lights or be traveling much slower than the flow of traffic. You will also regularly encounter livestock and horse drawn buggies on major roads. Its hard not to be distracted by the amazing views and sights, but you need to be diligently focused on the road for slower moving traffic.
Posted June 16, 2014
Carlos Roman Gutierrez Solis - Casa Granada Properties
(Please also see my answers under “What’s it like to drive in Granada?” and “What’s it like to drive in Managua?”) In Nicaragua, in general, we don’t drive like you do in the States where drivers stop and let pedestrians pass. In Nicaragua, it’s different. In Nicaragua, drivers have the right of way. If the driver wants to be polite, he may stop and let pedestrians go, but he doesn’t...
(Please also see my answers under “What’s it like to drive in Granada?” and “What’s it like to drive in Managua?”) In Nicaragua, in general, we don’t drive like you do in the States where drivers stop and let pedestrians pass. In Nicaragua, it’s different. In Nicaragua, drivers have the right of way. If the driver wants to be polite, he may stop and let pedestrians go, but he doesn’t have to and most don’t.
When I first visited the States, I went to Miami. When I got to the street, I ran from one side of the street to the other because I thought that if I didn’t, the cars would hit me. After a few minutes, I noticed that the cars stopped and let me walk. That made me feel stupid. That was my first experience in the US, and it made me think, “Yes, this is another country!”
In all parts of Nicaragua, we don’t have street signs, names or directions, the street widths are not uniform, and can change from two way to one way streets without any notice. (Many times the only way you’d know if the street changed to one way is if you hear someone yelling at you “Go back! Go back!”) If you’ve never been to a place before, it’s a bit complicated to understand where you’re going. Posted August 15, 2014
Marissa Gabrielle Lolk - Jireh Dental Care
Drivers here in Nicaragua do not usually keep their distance and there is poor city planning. If you are an expat planning to move here, you have to be a defensive driver, which we are not used to in the States. In my 9 years here, I have had other vehicles crash into my car about six times and I don’t think that that would ever happen to me in the States by my age, which is 30. The accidents that I’ve been in are stupid accidents that could...
Drivers here in Nicaragua do not usually keep their distance and there is poor city planning. If you are an expat planning to move here, you have to be a defensive driver, which we are not used to in the States. In my 9 years here, I have had other vehicles crash into my car about six times and I don’t think that that would ever happen to me in the States by my age, which is 30. The accidents that I’ve been in are stupid accidents that could have been avoided if only the other drivers kept their distance. If I brake hard for any reason, they would crash into my car because they didn’t keep their distance.
However, I am not afraid to drive here. You just have to be a defensive driver. You will always have scratches on your car because perpetually you will never have a beautifully polished car. If you go to the parking lots here, you will see that they are narrow. If the car beside yours opens their door, they could hit your car. If there is a huge gust of wind, and people’s doors just fly open, they scratch your car. It has happened to me and I just thought, “Whatever…” It doesn’t bother me any more because it is stupid to get upset over something that the other person didn’t do intentionally. I’m sure I’ve probably done it to somebody else’s car. I would care about it if I was in the States but I don’t care about it here. I think I’d have oxidized my liver if I cared about it. There are other things that I would prefer to waste my energy on. What I do is just every so often, I paint my car. A lot of expats that I know just don’t care, either.
(Police car, Rivas, Nicaragua, pictured.)
Posted April 24, 2016