This post details my experience of crossing the Nicaragua-Honduras border at Las Manos:
Important:
Visitors can travel between El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua for up to 90 days, under the Central America Border Control Agreement (also known as CA-4). However, since 15 August, 2024, British nationals are required to have a visa.
I used public transportation. And that meant riding the chicken buses. No Gringo Shuttles, no Tica Bus, no Nica Bus for me.
As I hot-footed my way back north to Mexico in 2022, I travelled to Honduras, a country with one of the worst reputations in the world.
The day before, I had taken a bus from Esteli to Ocotal. Despite it being a distance of only 78 km, it had taken me more than 2 hours.
I stayed the night at the El Viajero Hostal, which later proved to have been a stroke of genius.
My travel tip is always to start your day early and plan on doing short hops. This way, you have plenty of time to reorganise when things don’t go to plan. Buses break down. You may end up waiting ages for the next bus.
I had, of course, like a good traveller, checked out the departure times the day before. Breakfast was a cup of coffee, en route to the Ocotal bus station:
I rode the 7.55 am chicken bus for 25 C$, for the final 25 km to the border at Las Manos:
My last Nicaraguan Chicken bus, from Ocotal to the border at las Manos:
The Las Manos Border
For once, the process of clearing Nicaraguan immigration was fast. I filled in the immigration form, checking the EXIT box and then presented myself to the immigration officer. Paid my 3 USD departure tax payable in USD ONLY! Make sure you have change, as they don’t:
I managed to change my remaining Cordobas into Lempiras at quite a good rate. Back in San Miguel, El Salvador, I had already acquired 20 USD worth of Lempiras based on the idea that I would visit Honduras at some future point. I now had 50 USD worth.
Always good to have a comfortable amount just in case!
This was October 2022. To enter Honduras, you had to do the online pre-check, uploading your passport and COVID-19 vaccination certificate.
I entered one office for all the Covid vaccination paperwork and was asked for a little cadeau. I gave them 50 cents just because!
And then to the immigration office. Again, all was very easy. Everyone was nice. No stern faces like in Mexico or Nicaragua. Smiles do go a long way to make everyone’s life a little brighter.
Honduran entry stamp:
Inside Honduras
By 9.40 am, the border crossing was done and dusted. I had to wait almost an hour for the chicken bus to El Paraiso, pictured below, to leave. 20 Lempira, it took about 40 minutes.
I got to El Paraiso and then changed to a Danli bus. After that, it was a bit of a nightmare. They say that 2,000 Venezuelans were fleeing their home country daily and I was faced with the task of trying to organise a ticket to Tegucigalpa along with over one hundred migrants, all heading north. I had last encountered the migrant trail back in Paso Canoas, the Panama Costa Rica border. Having looked at the map, I don’t know how they all ended up in Danli as the town wasn’t on the migrant trail and I hadn’t seen any at Las Manos.
I eventually managed to get a ticket, but then the bus guys said that the ticket I has secured was for locals only. Really? It cost me 7 more USD to get a seat.
It was only 152 km from Ocotal to Tegucigalpa, but it had taken me all day. So I was grateful that I had spent the night in Ocotal and not come directly from Esteli. I took a bed at the only backpacker hostel in town, the Palmira Hostel.