Finca del Sol Eco Lodge

The location was beautiful and peaceful, and the outside space was a lovely place to sit - especially as it had a view of Volcan Concepcion. The grounds were nice, and well maintained, with plenty of plant and animal life (e.g. we saw a Capybara). The location was good, and close to most of the restaurants / bars on Ometepe.

The room itself was dark and unclean. There were mosquito nets for the beds, but they were old and had a lot of holes in them making them pretty ineffective. Also, more importantly, every morning that we woke up there would be 3-4 dead cockroaches around our bed. Whilst we understand that this is an 'eco-resort', it seemed like these came from the bathroom due to a lack of cleaning. The toilet is a compost toilet (which is fine), but there was a note on the door that said it would be cleaned/changed every day which did not happen once whilst we were there. Because of this, it seemed a number of cockroaches had taken up residence in the bathroom, and then (we assume) migrated into the bedroom at night. The presence of these, and other insects, in the bathroom attracted 2 tarantulas whilst we were there (which caused us no harm), but could have been prevented by closing up a number of the holes in the walls of the bathroom.

The hut I stayed in was absolutely beautiful, the view to the volcano and the surrounding forest is an experience worth paying for. The place was spotless and very comfortable. The shower worked very well and the toilet was very clean. Staff were helpful and responsive to all my questions right away. There is a chicken bus stop in front of the entrance so can use public transport to and from Moyogalpa. I’d definitely stay there again.

The only suggestion I have is to provide a kettle. I understand there is no kitchen and thats’s fine, but it would be nice to have a tea/ coffee facility in the huts as it was quite a hike to the village just to get a quick morning coffee.

There were several restaurants, cafes and tiendas within walking distance (including a supermercado), the staff was fantastic, and the grounds were stunning. A true paradise!

Upon arrival no one was there. Fortunately the cleaning lady let us in.

Quiet and natural surroundings, views to volcan Concepción, trees, flowers, birds and lots of space. At the same time it was close enough to the main road right after the junction to Balgue. We could do a lot by walking or renting a bicycle. Busses also pass nearby. The breakfast was good and the accomodation very spacious with great mosquito nets which were not even necessary because all windows had screens. The bathroom is made with beautiful tiles there is a hot water shower. We loved the natural building materials and the compost toilets that are cleaned every day. Hammock, table, chairs to sit outside on the veranda. We could see hummingbirds during breakfast and the blue morpho passed by as well :)

Only that inside the room it is rather dark because the overhang of the roof is quite large. The lights are good though and it was much nicer to sit outside anyway.

Staff super friendly and good communication w host. Friends staying at the property enjoyed their stay. Good manual left in the room to help navigate Ometepe.

Unfortunately the private loft was not as advertised. Not private at all. However after communicating with the host we were able to resolve most of our issues without problem.

The location was nice, there were howler monkeys in the morning. The lodge is not really a hostel but more 3-4 nice huts (no hammocks as in pictures) where you can sleep, shower and have breakfast. Apart from that, there is no common area where to meet other guests (one breakfast table) or no reception or desk with a person where you can go to in case of questions or problems. Not really suitable for a solo traveler who wants to meet other travelers, it’s more am Airbnb. There is the manager in Canada who helps via WhatsApp. He is very responsive and helps where he can (sometimes it’s limited due to him being in Canada, such as if there is a problem with the hut). The shower was hot which was a plus. The lady serving breakfast and the guy giving the key were very nice but they don’t speak English but that’s on me as I don’t speak Spanish in a Spanish speaking country. There was supposed to be a guard but I never saw one. However I felt safe as the island seems to be a very safe place.

The above positive things may be positive or negative depending what you are looking for. As a solo traveler I was on my own and felt a bit lonely . The other hostels are too far away if you don’t have a scooter or quad. I prefer hostels where you can meet people. I wasn’t sure whether the bed linen where washed but I just slept in my silk sleeping bag.