Experience the best of Isla de Ometepe

Ometepe is shaped like an hourglass, two volcanoes linked by a narrow isthmus in the middle of Lake Nicaragua. Concepción, an active cone of 1,610 metres, is almost perfectly symmetrical, while the older Maderas is forested and holds a lake in its crater. Ferries cross from the mainland to Moyogalpa, the main port, and the smaller town of Altagracia lies on the other side of Concepción.

Hikers climb both volcanoes, and shorter walks lead to the San Ramón waterfall on Maderas. Howler monkeys and parrots live in the forest, and cool spring-fed pools such as Ojo de Agua are tucked among the trees. Pre-Columbian stone carvings and statues lie scattered around the island, and a small museum in Altagracia shows some of them.

Plantains, rice and beans, and lake fish such as guapote are the island's daily food, served with fresh fruit juices, and farms grow coffee, cacao and bananas on the volcanic soil. Life moves at the pace of the ferry timetable. The dry season from December to April brings the clearest skies for climbing.