Nicaragua

At a Glance:

Nicaragua is one of Central America’s most beautiful, safe, and peaceful countries. The cost of living is sufficiently low to make “The good life at a great price” an easy reality for expats living on as little as $1,000 a month. The people are friendly and industrious. The government is largely unobtrusive.

Little wonder that in 2009, Forbes Magazine’s “2009 Retirement Guide” named Nicaragua one of its top five destinations for Americans considering retiring abroad, saying, “With 450 miles of coastline,  charming Spanish colonial towns, a cost of living up to 50% less than in the U.S., and a good reputation for safety, it’s an exotic Florida on the cheap.”

Wrote the editors of the highly popular Moon Handbooks, “Principal in your endeavors to understand this country is getting to know its people, whose charm, strong opinions, and casual hospitality are probably their nation's greatest attraction. They will show you that there is more to do and see in Nicaragua than you'll ever have time for--even if you make this your home for several years.

“If you let her, Nicaragua--and all her children--will take you in.”

Healthcare:

High-quality health care in Nicaragua is widely available and easily affordable. Currently, Managua, the capital, offers several first-class hospitals, with the Vivian Pellas Metropolitan Hospital being the most advanced. Opened in 2004, it is considered one of the best in Central America, offering health care comparable to most hospitals in the U.S., often provided by doctors trained in the U.S., Europe, and Cuba.

Yet, the cost of health care in Nicaragua is a fraction of that in the U.S. or Canada. A doctor’s visit usually costs between $15 and $30; a private room in a first-rate hospital rarely exceeds $100.

Wrote Dr. Lori Estrada, owner of the country’s premier orthopedic clinic (and the highly popular Montecristo Beach resort community), “It is easy to be a happy practicing physician in Nicaragua. The low cost of health care is easily understood as we don’t have hours of paperwork to fill out and insurance headaches to justify ordering routine exams that our patients require. “

Public Safety:

Nicaragua has the second lowest crime rate in Latin America (right behind Uruguay). And it has a lower reported crime rate than France, Germany, and the United States according to a recent United Nations/Interpol study.

Population and Geography:

About the size of New York State, Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America. It has a population of 4.8 million scattered over some 50,000 square miles. Managua, its largest city has a population of approximately one million.

The country is bordered to the east by the Caribbean Sea and to the west by the Pacific Ocean. To the north lies Honduras; to the south, Costa Rica. The country’s extensive Atlantic coastal plains give way to central interior mountains. Its Pacific coastal plains are punctuated by picturesque volcanoes. The weather varies between tropical in the
to cooler climates in the highlands.

Type of Government:

According to the U.S. Department of State, “Nicaragua is a constitutional democracy with executive, legislative, judicial, and electoral branches of government.”

“Nicaragua's constitution guarantees freedom of speech, peaceful assembly and association, religion, and movement within the country, as well as foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation …. The constitution prohibits discrimination based on birth, nationality, political belief, race, gender, language, religion, opinion, national origin, and economic or social condition.”

CLC Don’t Miss This Alert!:   

If you get amped about A-Frames, stoked over sweet swells, and pumped up over pipelines -- then cowabunga, dude, Nicaragua was made with you in mind!

Here’s how CentralAmerica.com sums it up: “Nicaragua is one of those places that offers everything a traveling surfer could want. There is consistent year round surf, warm water, and a chance to surf a great break all by yourself.”
LineupExplorers.com puts it even more succinctly: “The surf spots are rockin’, the beaches breathtaking and the surf holidays epic!”

But, perhaps, the Beach Boys put it best (with a little help from your Club scribes):


In short: in Nicaragua, the surf’s up!


For Additional Information:

• Heritage Foundation Economic Freedom Index:
http://www.heritage.org/Index/Country/nicaragua

• Freedom House Index:
http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2011&country=8103

• State Department Country Report:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1850.htm

• CIA Country Factbook:
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nu.html

• World Health Organization Rankings 2000 (dated but still useful):
http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html

• Nicaragua Handbook & Country Report:
http://www.granpacifica.com/contact-us.html