While exploring any of the five departments of the northern highlands, observant travelers may notice posters and brochures around town promoting “La Ruta del Café.” Despite how it may sound, “La Ruta del Café” is not a specific route on a map nor is it an organized coffee-hopping tour, exactly.
Working in collaboration with a Luxembourgian development agency, Nicaragua’s tourism institute (INTUR) has been hard at work on “La Ruta Del Café.” It is a broad-based project whose objective is to strengthen the economic development of the region through tourism to both traditional and nontraditional attractions, of which coffee farms are a part. “La Ruta del Café” is one of eight development projects run by INTUR all over the country, collectively called “Rutas turísticas de Nicaragua.” Through funding, training, and promotion, each “Ruta” is slowly enabling different regions in the country to capitalize on the natural and cultural resources they already have and build the infrastructure necessary to become tourist destinations – albeit rustic ones.
Evidence of this investment can be seen in Jinotega, whose residents have long been growing some of the world’s best coffee, but who have only recently begun to open up their coffee farms to tourists, a move than can sustain them in the typically lean period after the harvest is over. See Jinotega’s coffee co-op section for more about these farms and how to visit them. Religious tourism to San Rafael del Norte and opportunities to visit historical sites relating to iconic revolutionary Agusto Sandino are similarly being developed and promoted in the area.
With marked hiking trails being cleared and homestay and camping opportunities created, the four natural reserves within Matagalpa’s borders are also being developed. As in Jinotega, there are plenty of coffee farms to visit here, too. Heavily involved in the area’s tourism development is Norlan Albuquerque, INTUR employee and passionate owner of Madretierra restaurant in Matagalpa. If you’re really interested, stop by his joint to hear the inside scoop on projects in the department’s future that are bursting with "potential" -- it's practically his favorite word.
Initiatives in Esteli are also being strengthened, including well-run community tourism projects in the Miraflor and Tisey reserves, and soap-stone production in nearby San Juan de Limay. Further north are the less-developed Ocotal and Somoto, both of which are surrounded by pristine natural spots, some ripe for exploring and others not quite ready for foreign footprints. Travelers looking to get a glimpse of the real northern Nicaragua, the majority of whose residents work the land, will find plenty of rural tourism opportunities in this region, as long work-in-progress tours, lodging and other amenities are taken in stride.