Nicaragua

April 30, 2025Leave a comment

CITIES VISITED:

Ometepe – glorious island in the middle of Nicaragua Lake made up of two volcanos
Granada – colorful, colonial city
The Corn Islands (Little Corn) – magical car-less island known for its tranquil days & shark filled scuba diving
Leon – charming university city known for its volcano sand boarding and its heat

Other destinations to consider:

Popoyo
San Juan Del Sur

PRO TIPS:

Bring crisp, “perfect” USD to exchange or use as most places will accept it and then you will get change in Cordobas. This helps avoid ATM fees.
Bring some small USD bills for entry/exit fees that pop up at airports and land crossings in & out of the country
Chicken busses are a cheap way to get around the country, but take care of your belongings. A quicker (but more expensive) option is shared shuttles.
Rent a scooter in Ometepe. It’s one of my favorite things I find in Nicaragua
Knowing some Spanish definitely helps in Nicaragua as english is not widely spoken (but Google Translate does wonders).

CITY: OMETEPE

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed one night at Hospedaje Soma because I was arriving late via the ferry and didn’t want to traverse all the way to the other island after a long travel day. Also some friends I met in Colombia 10 months ago would be leaving early the next morning so we decided one night in the port city would be perfect! The hostel was great- it had a pool and AC, which was such a treat! The staff were incredibly generous and even let me store my big backpack there for a few days while I took my smaller backpack with me on a scooter to the other side of the island. Would happily stay here again.

The next three nights I stayed at Urrica Loca in Balgue on the other side of the island. It’s a very cozy, cute hostel. Easy to meet people but not loud. There’s a kitchen and fans for every bed. Plenty of hammocks and picnic tables for chilling. Great location off the main road. Would highly recommend.

WHERE TO EAT:

Café Campestre is a cute restaurant in Balgue that’s a favorite amongst backpackers. Plenty of food options and nice ambiance
El Pital (which you can also stay at) is a great trendy spot for sweet treats, great smoothie bowls and fabulous drinks. It’s had a beautiful deck over the lake with beautiful views of one of the volcanos. Filled with backpackers. It’s actually a cacao farm so you can also do a cacao tour! I went twice for the vibes and swimming
Pizzeria Mediterranea bar ristorante for some yummy pizza
Breakfast at the hostel was also great- especially the overnight oats!

WHAT TO DO:

My absolute favorite thing to do was rent a scooter for my whole time on the island. I just loved the freedom. I rented from here and had no issues 😀
Visit Ojo de Agua for some swimming in a manmade pool but with lovely fresh water. We also did one of the hikes inside the park to see some monkeys. Your entrance fee (~$11) also includes $5 to spend inside the park
Do a cacao tour at El Pital (they offer Spanish and English tours so find out their schedule) they only had a Spanish tour while I was there so I did mine in Spanish!!! Pretty cool 😎
Scooter around the entire island!!
Visit any pop up markets that are on (we went to a Saturday art market)
Go to Playa Mango for sunset. We had spectacular sunsets here

Other ideas (but that I didn’t do)

Hike either of the volcanos. One requires a guide, the other doesn’t. Both would offer great views but think about which volcano you’d want to be able to see from up at the top
Kayak at sunset
Go kite surfing or get lessons
Hike Cascada de San Ramon (if you aren’t a confident scooter driver then the hike is significantly longer or you can try to hitchhike part of the way)

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Wow I really loved it here! Having a scooter really made all the difference as I could be completely independent on what to do and when. Also it was quite unexpectedly social. I got to see Tammy (studied Spanish with her in Colombia in May of last year) and her BF for a night. Then I met Tessa (Dutch) and Cat (Australian) who I did the cacao tour and then sunset/dinner. Then Tessa and I spent 2 days scootering all around. While at El Pital I randomly ran into a British guy who I spent 2 days with in Cambodia exploring Angkor Wat. Lastly at Ojo de Agua, Tessa and I met a lovely local couple and chatted to for a bit. Then I ran into them the next day at El Pital and they offered to make us a local/typical dinner and bring it to us at our hostel to enjoy together. It was one of the highlights of Central America so far. Just so generous! I also loved that my Spanish is at a level where I can have dinner with locals now.

CITY: GRANADA

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

De Boca en Boca is a backpacker favorite. Lots of dorm rooms to choose from. The personal fan in each bed was enough to keep me cool at night. There’s a locker for your stuff. The outdoor common area has tons of seating and hammocks. There’s a pool table and a tiny pool to cool off. Free breakfast was great and changed each day. There were also tons of activities during the evening to meet people and they organized plenty of day trips you could sign up for. It’s in a good location, but I wouldn’t walk alone at night anywhere in Granada. 9/10

WHERE TO EAT:

I grabbed dinner to go from a yummy Mexican spot called Burrocks around the corner that I’d recommend for good, cheap food. It was convenient to grab and then bring it back to eat at the hostel since I didn’t want to walk late on my own.

For brunch/lunch I’d check out Cafe del Arte and The Garden Cafe. Both had lovely ambiances but not the cheapest.

I found a smoothie/bowl place (Pitaya) that was great. I wish I’d found it earlier in my stay in Granada.

WHAT TO DO:

I was burnt out from the go go go pace of Ometepe so I mostly just chilled while here.

I did a walking tour, went to the dentist and had a massage (90 min for $35!!). I also did a ton of booking of hostels and flights for the rest of my Central America trip.

Other popular options:

hike a volcano
Take a cruise of the Islets in Lake Nicaragua
Treehouse party

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I liked Granada and all its charming, colorful architecture, but I wouldn’t say I fell in love with it. It’s worth a stop in any Nicaraguan itinerary, but I wouldn’t say you need more than 2-3 days. Also a girl at the hostel got beat up while coming back to the hostel late at night, so just be sure to be aware of your safety while here.

CITY: THE CORN ISLANDS

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed 4 nights at Christina’s Guesthouse which was perfect! It was a 5 min walk to the dive shop and 4 min to most restaurants on the islands. Room had AC, a fan and a little table to sit at. Rocking chair outside the room. There’s no electricity at hotels from 6am-1pm so be prepared for that. It was such a treat to have a private room! I slept fabulously. 10/10

WHERE TO EAT:

The Shack– I had breakfast here twice and both times got the coconut French toast highly recommend!
Desi’s – I loved the pancakes and avocado/chicken sandwich here. Smoothie was also good!
Tranquilo – activities most nights and food was good. They also have a cute little library you can check books out from.

WHAT TO DO:

SCUBA DIVE! I did 6 dives in 3 days, including a night dive with Dolphin Dive. The main attraction is the high chance of seeing hammerhead sharks! Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate while I was here so we couldn’t get to the hammerhead filled dive sites. Given this, I wouldn’t say my dives here were all that spectacular with the exception of the night dive. We saw a nurse shark, doing lobsters, crabs and then the highlight was when we spent 11 min kneeled down in the sand and all turned off our lights. After a minute of our eyes adjusting, we were surrounded by bioluminescent plankton!! Truly magical. It felt like we were in outer space amongst the stars. We all felt like this was the best dive we did while here.
I also got a fabulous massage at The Little Corner.
You can also hike/walk around the island to get to some beautiful beaches that you’ll have to yourself.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

The island is darling! No cars and few people makes for a very cozy, friendly culture. By the end of your stay you’ll recognize most people in town! Everyone says hi to each other as you pass them. My biggest regret is only staying 4 days. I wish I had stayed longer not only because it would’ve given me a better shot at getting to the hammerhead dive spot, but also because this is just a little gem of a spot to spend some time!

CITY: LEON

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Poco a Poco hostel, another backpacker favorite. Some rooms have AC (check when you book), but all beds have a personal fan which does a great job of keeping you cool at night. Curtains, personal lights & sockets in the beds. Small pool to cool off in + lots of areas to sit (including long picnic tables and hammocks). Great location close to the center of the city. Lots of restaurants nearby. Cheap breakfast available for $2. Overall, I really liked this hostel. 8/10.

WHERE TO EAT:

I found a smoothie spot (Jugoso) as well as another Pitaya location to get a smoothie bowl. Pan y Paz was also a good cafe to get a treat at. The food trucks also had some yummy street food so I had dinner at those two of the nights.

WHAT TO DO:

The highlight here is sand boarding down a volcano before taking the party bus home! The sand boarding was fun but the party bus was less my scene haha. There are two main companies: Via Via and Bigfoot. I did it with Via Via because it skews smaller & slightly older, while Bigfoot takes a way bigger group, and has even more of a party vibe. Overall its a very similar tour!

You can also go on a great walking tour, check out the cathedral at sunset or head to the beaches of Las Penitas.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Leon was a slightly grungy, but very fun city with lots of energy. It was a great last stop. Worth 2-3 days, but you can certainly stay longer.

BUDGET FOR 15 DAYS IN NICARAGUA:

Nicaragua is a cheaper destination (for example I averaged only $18 on food per day), but you can easily find ways to spend money, especially if you head to the Corn Islands 🙂

Accommodation: $377 ($25 per night) – spent 4 nights in a private room in the Corn Islands
Food: $275
Activities: $460 (6 dives + 2 massages)
Local Transportation: $370 (including flights to the Corn Islands)
Miscellaneous: $93

Total: $1575 (Daily average: $105)

Transportation to next destination: $84 (Shuttle to El Salvador)

Panama

April 23, 20251 Comment

CITIES VISITED:

Panama City – great starting point to any itinerary, Panama Canal, beautiful old town
Valle de Anton – hiking town located in the base of an extinct volcano
Santa Catalina – beach town known for its diving!
Boquete – hiking town up in the mountains, including the tallest point in Panama
Bocas del Toro – popular beach town where you take water taxis from island to island

PRO TIPS:

No visa needed for US citizens as of March 2025. Both the airline & the immigration did ask for what date I was leaving the country but never actually asked for hard proof. YMMV.
Panama uses USD so that made it very easy for me. I brought some USD with me but also it’s easy to go to an ATM & get more without worrying about a bad conversion rate.
Panama wasn’t SUPER expensive, but it wasn’t cheap either. Meals were often $10-15 and hostel beds were $15-25 depending on how nice they were.
If it makes sense (aka you’re not a solo traveler) renting a car seems like a great way to travel. Roads were great and gas was cheap!

CITY: PANAMA CITY

HOW LONG: 1 NIGHT

ACCOMMODATION:

Eden’s Garden hostal – nice free breakfast and a few hammocks. No social vibe at all. Barely met anyone but luckily a couple arrived at the exact same time as me so we ended up hanging out! I’ve never seen this before but the bunks were handmade and you could completely enclose and lock the entire bunk. There was also room to keep your bag up in the bunk at the foot of the bed. Great for privacy and securing your bags but not great for social vibes in the room. Also it was pretty dark. Neighborhood felt safe but I wish I had stayed closer to Casco Viejo (luckily it’s only a 15 min / $5 Uber away). I would try somewhere else next time I was here. 6/10

WHERE TO EAT:

In Casco Viejo, I tried Mahalo for a cacao banana smoothie. Very aesthetic cafe & beautifully decorated.

Al Alma– small brunch chain based in Colombia with delicious brunch food available all day – so you know I love it ☺️ I had a French Toast sandwich for an early dinner.

Right around the corner from the hostel I ate at Oh My Burger! with the Dutch couple I met.

WHAT TO DO:

Visit Casco Viejo, the beautifully colorful colonial part of Panama. I had fun trying out my new camera here! It’s fun to just walk around the small streets of this old town. Also, visit the RAKO store – super fun store with hand crafted designs like beautiful, colorful bandana. I never shop but managed to spend $50 😅

I also visited Panama Viejo with Alex & Kai. For $17, we got to see the archaeological ruins of old Panama including a robust museum & a bell observation tower.

I didn’t visit the Panama Canal, but that’s a popular activity.

Another popular choice is a day trip to the San Blas islands, but I was too tired and jet lagged to attempt that long day. Pro Tip: If you are headed to Panama from Colombia (or vice versa) you can do a 5 day sailing trip through the San Blas Islands as you head to Panama City. It’s a popular backpacker bucket list item.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I was planning to stay 2 nights (to give myself a full day to recover from my red eye flight), but I ended up meeting the Dutch couple (Alex & Kai) who had rented a car and were headed to Valle de Ánton so instead of waiting around an extra day to then have to take a shuttle, I forwent my second night in Panama city and hopped in the car with them!

CITY: EL VALLE DE ÁNTON

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at a Bodhi Hostel & Lounge. Very cute and pretty clean. Free breakfast was great! Lots of areas to lounge indoor and outdoor, including an area to watch movies and lounge beds outside. Dorm bunks are three high so if you are afraid of heights then consider that. I spent one night in the dorm and one night in a private room (such a treat!). WiFi wasn’t the best but it did the job. Picnic table to eat any meals you cook for yourself in the kitchen. I never waited for a bathroom. Curtains and personal plugs in the bunk. Good location in town (but town is small). Helpful with organizing things to do or transport to your next destination. Would stay here again. 9/10

WHERE TO EAT:

Madre Pizza was right next to the hostel with yummy, reasonably priced pizza. Other than that I mostly ate at local restaurants with $3.50 menu del día meals with my Dutch friends.

WHAT TO DO:

There is tons of great hiking (here’s a great list) in El Valle, but Kai had an injury on the bottom of his foot so we picked a shorter, but popular one: India Dormida. After a $3 entrance fee, we quickly got to see some ancient petroglyphs. Then we passed some small waterfalls that you can swim in before or after the hike. Here’s a great guide to it.

After the hike we drove to another viewpoint, which was fairly underwhelming.

The rest of the afternoon I read, walked the main street of the tiny town, and enjoyed my private room by calling a few friends.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I honestly thought I would like this town more but it was little just okay. There wasn’t much to the town and the hiking was pretty but didn’t blow me away. However, it was certainly cool to stay inside the crater of an ancient volcano!

CITY: SANTA CATALINA

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at an awesome hostel called Bambuda Santa Catalina. It had a hotel vibe but in a good way. Pool is very nice with a swim up bar. Plenty of chaise lounges and seats to read or soak up the sun. Rooms are modern and clean. The four bed dorm has one bunk plus two single, which is awesome. Bathroom is incredibly nice (felt like a nice hotel). There’s a restaurant to eat at (not super cheap but food looked good) or you can walk down the main road 5-20 min to find a variety of other options. Annoyingly no kitchen, but not the end of the world. It overlooks the beach/ocean. I wouldn’t say it was incredibly social but my Dutch friends were staying around the corner so I mostly hung out with them. I loved reading by the pool in all the shady spots they had. 10/10 would highly recommend, even though it’s a little bit of a splurge for a dorm bed.

WHERE TO EAT:

I ate at three cute spots in town!

Cafe Panachocolate – the one super cute smoothie bowl cafe. Lots of backpackers hanging and working on their computers. Food was delicious and it wasn’t too expensive ($9 smoothie bowl).
Firestone Grill – Fun burger & taco joint up on a little hill. We played monopoly deal for an hour after eating! Fries were delicious – we even ordered a second round of them.
PanaWok – Located in a fun, new upscale outdoor food hall. It’s a build your own wok bowl with lots of options. Portions were huge and I had half leftover for lunch the next day!

WHAT TO DO:

Visit Coiba National Park! Whether it’s by snorkeling or scuba diving, it’s a can’t miss!
Sit by the pool & soak up the sun
Take surf lessons
Go on a horseback ride

My highlight was obviously doing 3 scuba dives in the National Park. We saw over 50 whitetip reef sharks, a bull shark, a huge Hawksbill turtle and 20+ green turtles! It was spectacular and one of the best dives experiences I’ve had. Highly recommend if you are a diver!

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Town is tiny, but between a cute cafe, an awesome hostel, and incredible diving, this was my favorite place in Panama! It was sadly my last stop with Kai & Alex, but we had a blast diving together, playing monopoly deal & eating lots of food!

CITY: BOQUETE

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at Socialtel – wow what a cool hostel. It’s a former Selina hostel so it has a co-working space. Such a cool property with a literal river running through it! Lots of hammocks and spots in the shade to chill. Best of all are the cool cylinder private rooms. I loved how cozy the space was (but there’s little room outside the bed 🤣). Shared bathrooms didn’t bother room, I was just happy to have my own space and a double bed! 10/10 would recommend – especially if you can splurge on a cylinder room.

WHERE TO EAT:

Café Unido – yummy breakfast sandwich at a simple, cute cafe with views of the stream!
Olga’s – best breakfast in town! Highly recommend a stop at this family run restaurant. You’ll be treated with a hug & kiss on the head.
Saori’s Ice Cream – great ice cream spot. Known for their pistachio ice cream. I added chocolate hard sauce to mine!
Gelateria La Ghiotta – I didn’t go but wish I had 🙂

WHAT TO DO:

The main thing to do here is a sunrise hike to the tallest point in Panama. You start at midnight if you want to hike or 4am if you want to take a 4×4 up (the more popular way). I honestly have done so many volcano hikes & I was exhausted from the fast past from the start of my time in Panama, so I decided to just enjoy my cute private room and the hostel property.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

It was nice to be up in the mountains as it was a very pleasant temperature each day and cooled off in the evening (very welcome after the past few towns). I enjoyed my very chilled time here. Definitely worth a few days here!

CITY: BOCAS DEL TORO

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

Bocas del Toro is a cute little area filled with tons of islands. There’s the main town aptly called Bocas Town and it has tons of cute beach restaurants and cafes. There’s plenty of hostels to choose from here. However, I stayed on an island a 5 min boat taxi away and it was one of my favorite hostels I’ve ever stayed at. Bambuda Lodge does a great job with everything from the food, to the views, to the social atmosphere, to the volunteers and customer service. Truly impeccable. You are isolated on the island unless you want to take the $5 taxi boat to the main island, which makes everyone hang out together most of the day/evening at the pool or other hangout areas. There are hammocks, a workout room, and plenty of chaise lounges. There’s also a 150 ft slide that goes into the ocean! The volunteers organize a welcome drink every night where everyone goes around and introduces themselves. Fun to see all the friends you are about to make. Also the food is excellent and portions are generous. The fans in the beds were enough to keep you cool at night but just remember you are on an isolated island with minimal infrastructure so don’t expect luxury. 10/10 would love to go back! I ended up extending to 4 nights here.

WHERE TO EAT:

I ate every meal at the property and loved every meal. Each night you have about 6 dishes to choose from on and it changes each night. Pro tip: Brownies were incredible! The family style meals are great for meeting people!

WHAT TO DO:

I didn’t do much besides pester all my new friends with questions about how to construct my Central America itinerary. They were all very helpful and I’m eternally grateful for the information exchange that happens at hostels.

Other than the fun evening activities the volunteers organize like trivia or drinking games, I also went on the island hike to see some of the famous red frogs & huge golden orb spiders. It was a fun way to move my body and meet some of the other travelers!

Other ideas:

Take a boat taxi to one of the main beautiful beaches
Do a day trip to snorkel and swim around the fabulous sites in the area
Go diving
Go to the epic, well known Filthy Friday party that happens every (you guessed it) Friday.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Bocas del Toro was a much needed break and I loved spending all day “trapped” at the beautiful resort with all my new friends! Also hilariously I ran into a girl (Bekah) I had met at a hostel 5 years prior in Gili T, near Bali. So random and so delightful!

BUDGET FOR 13 DAYS IN PANAMA:

Panama was definitely not the cheapest destination in Central America, but I also contributed to the high than average spend. Panama can definitely be done cheaper than how I did it 🙂

Accommodation: $600 ($46 per night) – I did double pay for accommodation one night as I last minute changed plans to leave Panama City a night early. Also, because I was feeling so burnt out, I did treat myself to some private rooms hehe (including 3 nights at $95 per night, which is abnormal for me)
Food: $350
Groceries: $20
Activities: $255 (diving + massage)
Local Transportation: $115
Miscellaneous: $90

Total: $1,430 (Daily average: $110)

Transportation to next destination: $129 (Bus to San Jose, CR, one night at hostel then bus to Ometepe) Basically I traveled from 9:30am to 5pm the following day straight with 7 hours to sleep in San Jose. This was a very long journey haha.

Costa Rica

February 18, 2025April 2, 2025Leave a comment

CITIES VISITED:

Santa Teresa
Nosara
Monteverde
La Fortuna
Manuel Antonio

PRO TIPS:

Costa Rica is expensive! Honestly not great for backpackers. I’d focus on the other countries in Central America.
To set expectations it’s filled with lots of US tourists who are here on 1-2 week vacations so Costa Rica tourism really caters & charges $$$ accordingly.
Life is slow in Costa Rica, so don’t expect anything to be on time.
If you rent a car, make sure to rent a taller car than a tiny SUV. Ours bottomed out a few times on the very pot-hole ridden roads.

CITY: SANTA TERESA

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at a cute hostel called Ico Living Hostel that wasn’t even listed on Hostelworld (I found it on booking.com). The beds were doubles not twins, which is a game changer. There were lockers, lots of hooks for wet swimsuits and towels, and the room was very clean. Wifi & AC worked great. There were two hammocks and lots of communal seating near the outdoor kitchen. Also it was a 5 min walk to the beach!! Overall would absolutely stay here again.

WHERE TO EAT:

Santa Teresa is basically a (longish) one street town that runs parallel to the beach. Near the hostel was Eat Street which was a hip, elevated outdoor food market with about 4-5 restaurants to pick from. I loved the smoothie bowls from here.

Gaucho Norte had some delicious but expensive ice cream!

WHAT TO DO:

It’s a beach town so the main thing to do is get surf lessons or just hang out at the beach!

I also took a day trip to go to Tortuga Island for some snorkeling, dinner, and swim with the bioluminescent plankton at night. Honestly, I didn’t love the tour. The snorkeling was pretty subpar, and I don’t need to spend the day in the sun, & the plankton weren’t that bright, so I should’ve just hung out at the shady beach in Santa Teresa, but you live and you learn.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I really didn’t like it here to be honest. The beaches were nice, but the place was overrun by Americans on vacation and it was SO expensive. I just felt like I wouldn’t be able to find “my people” here, and I was right. But if you like a lively party scene with expensive food & nice beaches, this might be your place!

CITY: Nosara

HOW LONG: 6 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at a homestay with a local family which was arranged through my Spanish language school. It was a little far from the school which was not ideal, but overall I enjoyed my time there. It was a treat to have a private room for a week! The room itself was basic, but I’m used to that these days 🙂

WHERE TO EAT:

I honestly ate 100% of my meals with the family because eating out here was so expensive. Like $20 a smoothie bowl level expensive! The host mom made delicious food and it was included in the price of me staying with them so truly a win-win.

WHAT TO DO:

Nosara is known for its yogi vibe & gentle waves for learning to surf. While I didn’t participate in either, my friend Emilie was here at the same time and did both activities. She raved about it. I was busy doing language classes (but I low-key hated my school so I won’t even recommend it ha!). There are some cute shops and a weekly market with handmade crafts which is worth checking out. I bought a new jumpsuit from a shop in town which was very beautiful (both the shop + the dress)!

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

If you have a lot of money and love yoga, I think this place could be great for you. Check out Bodhi Tree – it’s magical!! As a backpacker who doesn’t do yoga, I didn’t really connect with Nosara to be honest.

CITY: MONTEVERDE

HOW LONG: 1 NIGHT

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at the Monkey Hostel in a private room with an en-suite bathroom. The hostel itself was pretty dingy but it has street parking and a decent breakfast. It was located near the town center with restaurants so that was ideal. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t great haha.

WHERE TO EAT:

The only place I’d recommend was The Open Kitchen. The food was good, the vibes were great, and the service was fabulous. It certainly wasn’t cheap but there weren’t great options in town to be honest.

WHAT TO DO:

We went to Selvatura Adventure Park to do some ziplining & a swing bridge + canopy walk. Again it was fairly expensive but we had a blast. We paid around ~140 usd and it was about 3 hours worth of activities. Pro tip: bring a jacket as it can get cold, windy, & wet as you zoom through the canopy. We opted to take their free shuttle to as we were worried that our car wouldn’t make it and we were glad we did it. However, if you have a bigger car, you would be fine. But the shuttle times weren’t optimal for getting back so instead of waiting 2 hrs for the next shuttle, we hitchhiked back with a nice couple who happened to be getting into their car in the parking lot.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Other than doing the cloud forest walks & ziplining, you don’t need to spend much time here. It was incredibly windy and chillier than expected. We were happy that we only had one night here.

CITY: LA FORTUNA

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at the Hotel Arenal Lodge and it was quirky to say the least. It’s situated on 2000 acres of gorgeous tropical forest where you can’t seen any other signs of human activity. To get into the property you must drive on a precarious 2km road, but once you are in, it’s an adorable, rustic, well-loved lodge. There’s a pool & two hot tubs. There are STUNNING views of the Arenal Volcano. The staff were so kind and our room was beautiful. It had two queen beds + a big balcony that looked directly at the volcano. It had two big rocking chairs + enough space that we did yoga & morning workouts in the mist. However, because the road was a little gnarly, we always came back before dark so every meal was at the hotel. Luckily the food was very good and fairly reasonable compared to other restaurants in the area. This place isn’t the most luxurious place in La Fortuna area, but we thought its value was stellar and we kinda fell in love with it by the end.

WHERE TO EAT:

We ate the free breakfast and the paid dinner everyday at the hotel 🙂 We had one lunch at The Springs where we spent two days going to their hot springs. It was overpriced and not that good. The other lunch we had a smoothie bowl from Jungle Bowls in the main city center. It was pretty good, although of course expensive.

WHAT TO DO:

We enjoyed doing some walking/hiking through the 2000 acres at our hotel, but the main highlight was doing a two day pass at The Springs Resort. This place can cost $750 per night to stay so we were happy to just spent $130 for the (two) day pass. This place is FANCY; there are three different hot springs areas, including some down by the actual river. You can get a massage, go tubing, play ping pong, get a drink at the swim up bar, read your book in a hammock, and just stare at the beautiful views of the Arenal Volcano. Oh and dip into any of the 20+ hot springs that vary in temperature. This place gave us White Lotus vibes. We would definitely recommend this place for a visit.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

It was nice to have a break from the heat in this location. We even needed jackets at night! This was my favorite stop on our trip to Costa Rica. I loved spending time at the hot springs but also loved playing cards in our lodge with the views of the volcano. We saw lots of cool animals like frogs, tapirs, and lots of colorful birds, including my new favorite the Scarlet-Rumped Tanager.

CITY: MANUEL ANTONIO

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at Igloo Beach Lodge, which is ideally located about a 15 min walk to the National Park Entrance & it’s a 1 min walk to the beach. It’s very “instagram-y” with its white igloo rooms all surrounding a cute pool. There’s lots of comfy lounges to lay in the sun or shade & read. The rooms were cozy & nice. Our room was on the bigger side as it had two double beds + a shower room + a toilet room. The only weird thing was due to the dome shape, the acoustics were WILD. When Emilie & I were in our respective beds, we could whisper and it sounded like we were in each other’s ears via noise-cancelling headphones. It was fun and also caught us by surprise every time it happened haha.

WHERE TO EAT:

Thy mystery continued where there were no great restaurants. We walked to the area around the park entrance for dinner one night and most places were empty. We are guessing most people eat their meals at their hotels but it makes everything feel eery if you don’t. Food was just really not the highlight in Costa Rica.

Bar & Restaurant El Chante was the only place I’d recommend. Great food – especially anything with chicken in it!

WHAT TO DO:

The main two attractions are visiting the national park + enjoying the beautiful beaches!

When visiting Manuel Antonio National Park, I highly recommend signing up for a guided tour. We just booked through our hotel. They are unbelievable at spotting the animals throughout the jungle. There is no way Emilie & I would’ve seen 90% of the animals are guide spotted! Also he came with a portable telescope so we were able to see up close and personal the animals. It was awesome! There is also incredible beaches within the park. I definitely recommend planning to stay the afternoon with a book & swimming in the ocean (this beach is far more swimmable than the one outside the park we went to). There are plenty of walking trails and usually where a crowd has gathered you can bet there’s a cool animal to see. We saw sloths, birds, lizards, spiders and more!

We honestly couldn’t find much more to do here outside of going to the park, so we hung by the pool, went to the beach down from our hotel, and got a massage. We read soooooo much! We also played lots of cards. It was a very lovely place to chill and be very relaxed. Sunset swims were a must.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Outside of the fact that we never could find great food or even affordable food, Manuel Antonio was pretty beautiful from a nature perspective. We ended up enjoying our time here, but I don’t feel the need to race back.

BUDGET FOR 19 DAYS IN COSTA RICA:

Holy moly I was not expecting Costa Rica to be this expensive. I mean at one point I literally paid $20 for a smoothie bowl – eek!

Accommodation: $1285 ($68 per night) – Lots of hotel nights drove up the cost here.
Food: $420
Activities: $860
Local Transportation: $540 – this includes my half of the rental car
Miscellaneous: $200 (new jumpsuits, postcards, & stamps)

Total: $3305 (Daily average: $174)

Transportation to next destination: $313 for my flight to San Francisco

El Salvador

February 11, 2025February 18, 2025Leave a comment

CITIES VISITED:

San Salvador
Santa Ana
Juayua (Ruta de las Flores)
El Tunco

PRO TIPS:

I FELT SO SAFE. Like truly, I think this might’ve been the country I felt the most safe in which was not on my bingo card. The turnaround is very apparent.
This is the smallest country in Central America so it’s super easy to get around! I mostly took ubers or chicken busses! You can practically use uber to get around the whole country (that’s how small it is), but the chicken busses are incredibly cheap (I spent $2 on a 4 hr journey across 3 busses).
Although the chicken busses are incredibly efficient, El Salvador would be a great place to rent a car as it’s so small that you’d be able to really see it all in a rental car. The roads all seemed pretty great (not what I would’ve expected) so no worries there. They are super strict on drinking/driving so don’t mess with that.
Until very recently, El Salvador was very dangerous. With the turnaround so fresh, there are still very few tourists visiting the beautiful country
When flying to El Salvador, you likely will go to San Salvador airport. I thought that meant I should stay in San Salvador for a night or 2 to orient myself. However, turns out that this country is so small that the airport is actually just as close to the beach as it is to the capital. As such, I’d recommend skipping San Salvador entirely & go directly to your first destination.
They use USD so it’s pretty easy in terms of cash. Some places take card, but a lot don’t so take some USD with you.
There wasn’t much English spoken so brush up on your duolingo or get your google translate app ready.

CITY: SAN SALVADOR

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at La Zona Hostel and it was pretty good. The free breakfast was basic. The beds were capsule style and comfy. AC worked (just make sure to set it to a comfortable temperate as one night it was too hot and the other night was too cold). The area is safe, but there’s not much going on. A few restaurants near-ish by. They had potable drinking water on site. Fairly easy to meet people. I met a group of Canadians to hang with so that was fabulous! Katie, in particular, became a good friend!

WHERE TO EAT:

Honestly no recommendations, except try some cheap pupusas when you come across them.

WHAT TO DO:

I didn’t love the capital 😦 We never could find the “cool/fun” center of town to stroll. It all felt very rundown and chaotic. However we always felt safe and given the history of the country, I understand why the city isn’t necessarily bustling (yet). We did a free walking tour was fabulous to get the background on what’s been happening in this lovely country.

The highlight (if you can call it that) was “hiking” to the nearby volcano, but it’s really just a 15 min nature walk. Overall it was nice to see but also if you are going to do the Santa Ana volcano, feel free to skip this one.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Again, not my favorite and would recommend skipping the capital.

CITY: SANTA ANA

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at Rick’s Hostel. The room was huge and the bed was cheap (literally $7.50) so I can’t really complain. BUT the hostel was pretty loud and I gotten eaten by mosquitos. No AC, but the beds had a little fan which did the job (and helped a little with the mosquitos). It was centrally located. Again it was $7 so I have no issues recommending it 🙂

WHERE TO EAT:

Nothing notable. I had some good pupusas from a random spot and a hot dog from one of the stalls in the main square.

When we went to see the ruins though we had a local dish of chicharron + yuca (literally from this town) at a spot right outside the main entrance to the ruins. Absolutely recommend stopping here for a meal.

WHAT TO DO:

Main highlights:

Hike Santa Ana volcano – It’s a long hike and slightly complicated to navigate but just talk with the hostel front desk. Basically you need to do it with a tour guide so get there early. The hike was not hard but not easy. It gets hot so bring water + sun protection. Bring cash for the various entrance fees and in case you want to buy a snack/water from the folks near the top.

Do the walking tour – there is a guy (Hector!!) that does a fairly famous walking tour here. I sadly didn’t have time but everyone I met who did it raved about it!!! I am very sad I missed it. He talks very candidly about his experience growing up in El Salvador and how its changes have impacted those around him.
Visit the ruins! Parque Arqueologico Tazumal is a nicely preserved Mayan City (it’s small so don’t expect a whole city though!). We took a chicken bus from Santa Ana to get there and back. You could take a very cheap uber (would recommend seeing what this costs as it’s probably the more efficient move.

We loved walking around & hanging in the main square in the evening. We met an El Salvadorian Tik Tok star who danced with us on his Live and then we got interviewed by a YouTuber. It was a pretty fun experience.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Santa Ana was far more charming than San Salvador! 2-3 days here would be plenty to do all the activities mentioned above.

CITY: JUAYUA

HOW LONG: 2 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at a fairly new hostel called Que Ondas. It’s a small but beautiful property at the edge of the small town and you feel like you are in a magical garden. The rooms are nicely done and have curtains. No free breakfast but wifi worked well. Plenty of spots to chill and read and socialize. Would definitely recommend this place.

WHERE TO EAT:

There are two great pupuserias that are a must try!

Pupuseria Esmeralda – the pupusas can take a while so be patient – they are worth the wait!
Papusas y Panes Rellenos Sugey – also a great pupusa spot. Literally like $1-2 per pupusa!

Cafes to check out:

Bourbon Coffee Roasters – I had a delicious breakfast sandwich and my friends loved their baked treats.
Bloom Coffee – not a huge food menu but the drinks were good!
With Love Crepes – I didn’t have time to eat here but I wish I had!

WHAT TO DO:

Visit the other towns on the Ruta de Las Flores! Either rent a motorbike or hop on a chicken bus. All the towns are tiny, cute and charming. I only had time to visit Concepcion de Ataco, but I really enjoyed it! Pro Tip: Eat at Axul Coffee Artesanías – I had a croque madam here. Super cute vibe in the backyard patio & a cute store was attached. Gekos Cafe right off the main square also looked cute!

Do the 7 Cascadas (waterfall) tour! You do a nice hike that starts near town and you get to walk through upwards of 10 waterfalls. You even get to hike up one of them (it wasn’t too scary/slippery). You also get to do a facemask with the local mud & then finish the tour with a lovely swim in the last waterfall! Don’t miss this activity!

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

Juayua was such a tiny, small town and I loved the slow pace of it. Also the flowers blooming around town were stunning. They don’t call it Ruta de la Flores for nothing 🙂 2-3 days here would be perfect. I’d recommend basing yourself in Juayua as it’s probably the biggest town and then just visit the other towns from here.

CITY: EL TUNCO

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

This was a unique one: Katie (who I met in San Salvador and went to Santa Ana with) went to El Tunco before me and met a Jamaican/American guy who ended up buying a hotel with plans to turn it into a hostel while they were in El Tunco. So by the time I showed up, Katie invited me to stay with her and a bunch of friends she had made that were now staying at the newly purchased hostel. Kemar literally was transforming the place into a hostel while we were there. It was pretty fun to be able to give input on what makes a hostel great and he was super receptive to ideas! It’s now called Karma Muse! It has AC (such a win) and is located about as close to the beach as possible. There are lovely hammocks where you can watch the waves crash on the beach. Highly recommend this spot!

WHERE TO EAT:

Finally a spot with smoothie bowls!!!

I loved the following spots:

Day Cafe & Salad Bar – my daily sunset smoothie spot (but the smoothie bowl was also great!)
Point Break Cafe – lots of yummy brunch options
Ohana Surf Cafe & Ice Cream Shop – more great breakfast options
Garage Burgers – yummy burgers in a nice courtyard area
Esquina Los Amigos – our pupusa spot in town

WHAT TO DO:

Surf, read in a hammock, eat a smoothie bowl, find a friend with a pool, watch sunset, rinse, repeat.

Life here is so tranquil and just a series of chilling. I love it 🙂

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

This was probably my favorite part of El Salvador. The town is so small so you literally know all the backpackers in town by day 2. It feels like you and your friends are all just running around doing fun, chill stuff all day. One day we sat on the beach and read. One day our friends with a pool invited us over. One day people went to hike the waterfalls nearby. And everyday a bunch of people went surfing and everyday we all would watch sunset on the beach together and then grab dinner. Pure magic!

BUDGET FOR 10 DAYS IN El SALVADOR:

El Salvador was so cheap – what a gift before I go to Costa Rica which is unreasonably expensive!

Accommodation: $143 ($14.3 per night) – SO CHEAP 🙂
Food: $170
Activities: $30
Local Transportation: $105
Miscellaneous: $50 (visa + new pair of shorts)

Total: $498 (Daily average: $50)

Transportation to next destination: $225 for my flight from SFO –> San Salvador + $156 for my flight to San Jose, Costa Rica

Oaxaca, Mexico

September 26, 2024September 27, 2024Leave a comment

City: Oaxaca

How Long: 3 nights

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at the lovely Airbnb, right in the center of town. It had 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms & a washer! It was very modern and clean. It also felt very safe & had a clean water spout in the sink. It was perfect for a girls weekend in Oaxaca 🙂

WHERE TO EAT:

Boulenc – Fun, delicious brunch spot! I obviously got the french toast & added crispy bacon. Everyone’s meal looked great.

La Tribu – Fun pizza spot with a lovely outdoor terrace. I had a great, healthy rice & veggie bowl.

Tierra del Sol – Upscale, nice dinner. Our fanciest meal. Service was excellent & menu was very unique.

One night we stopped at a Marquisitas stand for a fun waffle/crepe-like dessert. I chose one with peanut butter and nutella – yum!!

WHAT TO DO:

Abbie is a master planner of events so she curated an incredible week for us all. I mean do you see this itinerary????? 🙂

We did a food tour through a large market, had a pool day, ate our hearts out, and had a fabulous day trip to Hierve El Agua (hot springs + one of two certified waterfalls in the world), Teotitlan Del Valle (cute town with small market), & Arbole de Tule (widest tree in the world). We also just walked around Oaxaca, checking out small stores, trying snacks & fun drinks, and seeing the Cathedral.

Such a fabulous few days celebrating Abbie!

Overall Thoughts:

Oaxaca is a charming, small city that is worth a visit, but the highlight for me was the petrified waterfalls, hot springs, & the widest tree. There is just nothing that beats cool nature things for me haha.

It was so fun to have a girls trip be a part of my larger grand adventure. Very grateful Abbie included me and I had a blast going abroad with Haley for the first time!!

Our first international adventure together

Budget for 3 days in Mexico:

This was not my typical backpacking trip so costs are a bit more than usual. There were plenty of things that could’ve been done to make this cheaper, but I was not in charge & it was a 30th birthday so all in all not too bad!

Accommodation: $315 ($105 per night)

Food: $117

Groceries: $0

Activities: $175 (some transport & other miscellaneous expenses were rolled into here but my friend just charged us one venmo for all pre-paid activities so I just lumped it in this category)

Local Transportation: $5

Total: $612 (Daily average: $204)

Transportation to next destination: $365 for the flight to Oaxaca from SFO & $525 for the three flights it took me to get to Buenos Aires (lol)

Bonus photos of me having alcohol for the first time in 6 months hahah

San Francisco, CA

July 3, 20241 Comment

Well I’ve never really “traveled” here but since I’ve spent most of my adult years living in San Francisco (when I’m not galavanting around the world), I thought I might write out a few of my favorite things to recommend to people when they visit my favorite US city.

It’s not comprehensive but it’s a list of some of MY favorite things to do 🙂

Pro tips:

Don’t call San Francisco “San Fran” or “Frisco”. Do call it SF, San Francisco, or The City.
Don’t leave anything in your car when you park it. Notice I didn’t see leave anything valuable, I said don’t leave ANYTHING in your car. It will get broken into.
While SF can be expensive, lot’s of my favorite things to do are free/cheap. Play pickleball in the most beautiful location in the Presidio, walk along Chrissy Fields, explore Haight Ashbury, picnic in any of the incredible parks, etc.
From a weather perspective, I think September & October are the best times of year to visit. This is our summer when we get the most sun & it’s fairly warm (although SF has a microclimate and it’s always much cooler than any of the surrounding areas so DO NOT FORGET A JACKET). Runner up would be April/May when spring is doing its thing.
Public transport & Uber are pretty widely available in SF, so if you can avoid renting a car, I’d recommend it. But if you are leaving SF, then just wait to rent a car once you are leaving.

Where to Stay:

I don’t have actual recommendations since I’ve never stayed in a hotel, and weirdly most of the hotels in San Francisco are in downtown or near Pier 39, which can be touristy or in the less cute parts of SF. My favorite neighborhoods are Hayes Valley/Alamo Square, North Beach, & Cow Hollow. There aren’t many hotels in these areas, but if you are staying in an Airbnb these would be good places to start. That being said, Downtown or Pier 39 are still good/central places to be since you’ll be running around the city anyway. If you want a guide on all the districts, check them out here. Here’s a comprehensive list of hotel options to check out.

Alamo Square (I lived right around the corner from the Painted Ladies)

Where to eat:

Here are some of my favorite restaurants. Caveat- I am not a foodie nor am I known for being in the know for the best restaurants so I humbly just offer where I like to go as an average eater living in San Francisco 🙂

Coffee/Bakery Spots

The Mill – Cute coffee shop with spots to work on your computer in Nopa.
Arsicault Bakery – very well known bakery in SF. Plan ahead and go early, but expect long lines no matter what 🙂 Their croissants (especially their almond croissant) are out of this world. Two locations (Inner Richmond & Civic Center).
Jane the Bakery – fabulous baked goods near Japantown.
b. Patisserie Famous for their chocolate almond croissant! Line can be long, but moves efficiently. Located in Lower Pac Heights.

Brunch spots (all are popular so factor in wait times)

Zazie – Delicious brunch in Cole Valley! They pay livable wages so tipping isn’t required.
Plow – in Portrero Hill, known for their crispy potatoes!
Kitchen Story – known for Millionaire’s bacon & has an Asian influence. Located in the Mission.
Brenda’s – soul food brunch (think French, Creole, and Southern cuisine, including beignets and po’ boys), but in a more dicey area of the city (Tenderloin) to be aware as you walk around or park (wouldn’t advise parking here).
Devil’s Teeth Baking Company – less brunch and more of a breakfast sandwich to go type of place in Outer Sunset. Grab one (there will be a line) and then head to Ocean Beach to eat it.
Le Cafe du Soleil – cute cafe with all day breakfast in Lower Haight.

Lunch spots

Lucinda’s – Great sandwich to grab and then eat in Alamo Square.
Gott’s burgers – Local Bay Area chain with yummy fries, burgers (including Impossible of course), and shakes. Located at the Ferry building so fun to walk through there.
Radhaus – German pub vibe located right next to Fort Mason. Great beer options.
Cheese plus – Great deli spot for a sandwich on Polk Street.
Mayflower Market – Another favorite with my friends. We like grabbing a sandwich here and eating it in Alta Plaza in Pac Heights.

Dinner spots

Beretta – reasonable Italian food (one location in NOPA & one in the Mission).
Souvla – cheap, casual, yummy greek food (there are a few locations around SF).
Flores – in the heart of the fun going out young part of town (Marina/Cow Hollow neighborhood). Known for delicious margaritas and good Mexican food.
Burma Superstar or Burma Love – well known delicious Burmese food.
Cotogna– Expensive, but worth it! A very special, delicious Italian place. Requires reservation!
Rich Table – High end California fare. Used to have a michelin star.
China Live – yummy Chinese food in North Beach near China Town.
Delfina – Located in the Mission, a great pizza spot.
Wildseed – best vegan spot in SF, you can’t even tell all their food is plant-based. Love their Impossible burgers & they have fun drinks.

Dessert

Bi-Rite Ice Cream in the Mission (Pro Tip: come here while hanging in Dolores Park on a hot afternoon).
Over the Moon Creamery – yummy ice cream + cookie spot in the Marina.
Bob’s Donuts – they have two locations (NOPA & Polk). Delicious donuts, including great vegan options (their vegan apple fritter is so yummy).

Bars

Balboa Cafe – known for Espresso Martinis in the Marina
Wilder – very fun vibes + a backroom with jenga & other games in the Marina
Westwood – cowboy, western bar in the Marina
Harper & Rye – Upscale, rustic vibe on Polk Street

What to do within SF:

See the Golden Gate Bridge
Walk along Chrissy Fields for the best views of Golden Gate Bridge
For a European moment, walk around the Palace of Fine Arts (near Chrissy Field so easy to couple these together)
Visit Alamo Square for the Painted Ladies & views of the SF skyline (great during the day or sunset). Pro tip: as mentioned above, get a sandwich from Lucinda’s and sit in Alamo Square for some fabulous people watching
Picnic in Dolores Park for some even better (read: weirder) people watching, but also great SF skyline views
Visit Coit Tower for panoramic views of SF on a clear day! Pro tip: if it’s foggy, don’t both coming here
Drive or walk town Lombard Street, the most crooked street in the world!
Take a cable car
Visit Alcatraz! Pro tip: tickets CAN sell out so it’s worth booking tickets ahead of time if you don’t have lots of flexibility
Explore the hippy neighborhood of Haight Ashbury for great thrifts shops
Walk around Golden Gate Park & discover lakes, Bison, art, & windmills. Pro tip: rent a lyft e-bike & cycle your way all the way to Ocean Beach. Grab a Devil Teeth’s breakfast sandwich and enjoy it while sitting on the beach, listening to the waves
Head to Fort Mason for sunset, especially on a warm Friday afternoon. There’s always tons of people enjoying the green space, with plenty of dogs to say hello to!
Walk around the Presidio – tons of lovely walks to do
Peruse all the fun shops & food stands at the Ferry Building. Great spot for picking up some artisan gifts. Pro Tip: There’s a great farmer’s market on Saturdays!
Visit any of the fabulous museums like the De Young or Museum of Modern Art. Check out this guide to some of the best museums. Pro Tip: if you are visiting on a Thursday, go to the Exploratorium after dark. It’s a very cool interactive science museum & on Thursdays it’s open for 18+ with alcoholic beverages available
Check out a Bay Area sports game. Between the Giants, Warriors, 49ers, the A’s and the Sharks you have plenty to choose from!

What to do outside of SF (Day Trip):

North of SF

Muir Woods – Get lost in some big beautiful old growth coast redwood trees. Pro tip: you need to reserve parking permits ahead of time & there is little service in the park so plan ahead.
Sausalito – Drive over from the city or take the ferry over & enjoy the gorgeous views of SF. Tons of cute restaurants & a yummy ice cream shop.
Hike Mt Tam – a lovely, big hike with great views on a clear day.
Napa Valley – some fabulous wine tasting. Pro tip: Sonoma, St Helena, Calistoga, & Livermore all also offer great wine tasting (and can be less busy & often less expensive).

South of SF

Santa Cruz – have yourself a beach boardwalk day, complete with some roller coaster rides.
Pacifica – it can often be foggy, but it’s a classic Northern California beach town. You can often spot whales in the ocean on their migration.

East of SF

Berkeley – fun, hippie city across the bay. Easy to take the metro over for a few hours to walk around.

What to do outside of SF (overnight/weekend Trip):

Yosemite – my favorite national park in the US
Lake Tahoe – my favorite place in the US (but I grew up coming here so there’s nostalgia mixed in) & it’s great year round, but summer & winter are the most popular times. Pro tip: of course spend some time at Lake Tahoe itself, but don’t be afraid to spend time hiking to one of the many other lakes in the region during the summer. Desolation Wilderness is beautiful!!
Mendocino – moody, green, & quiet is how I would describe this area. Check out the fun airbnbs up there for a cozy weekend.
Carmel & Monterey – charming seaside towns along the central coast
Big Sur – where Big Little Lies is filmed. Gorgeous ocean views, but check out road closures as access here often is tough with Highway 1 collapsing at times.

Events to visit SF for:

There are tons of events throughout the year in SF (see a more comprehensive list here), but these are some of the most popular:

Bay to Breakers – Usually in May. This is a classic SF event. It’s a 12k race from the SF Bay (east side of SF) all the way to Ocean Beach (West side of SF). Essentially you run from one side of the city to the other. The aim of the game is to dress as silly as possible. In classic SF fashion, you will see plenty of boobs & dicks – any excuse to get naked. Pro tip: You can still participate even if you don’t sign up for the race. Most people just get dressed up with friends and drink along the course 🙂
Bottle Rock – Usually in May. A music festival held in Napa Valley, so there’s a heavy wine influence on the festival. Past artists include: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Imagine Dragons, Bruno Mars, Tom Petty, Eric Church, Kygo, Post Malone, Ed Sheeran, & Stevie Nicks.
SF Pride Parade – Usually at the end of June. It’s a beautiful, vibrant day celebrating folks from all colors of the rainbow flag. One of the best in all of the US 🙂
SF Marathon – Usually in the back half of July. Very fun event to see all the runners take over the city. I’ve done both the 1st half marathon & the 2nd half marathon. It’s a very fun route. Enjoy as a spectator or a runner!
Outside Lands – Usually in August. A very fun music festival in the gorgeous Golden Gate Park. Past artists include: Paul McCartney, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Killers, Elton John, Kendrick Lamar, Childish Gambino, & Megan Thee Stallion. Pro tip: Uber/lyft can get very expensive during the festival so think about your transportation ahead of time. Also if you don’t plan to go to the festival, I would avoid visiting SF this weekend.
Fleet Week – Usually in October. More than a million people gather to watch the Blue Angels fly overhead. It’s quite spectacular to witness. There’s also a parade to celebrate veterans & active duty military members
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass – Usually in October. A free bluegrass festival held in Golden Gate Park.
SantaCon – Usually in December. A fun day of drinking & merriment, where everyone dresses at Santa!

Overall Thoughts:

While folks often read/see horrendous things about San Francisco on the news, I think it’s one of the best cities in the US. Yes, there are some homeless people, but this isn’t unique to SF. Yes, there are some neighborhoods to avoid. Yes, cars do get broken into (seriously don’t leave anything, and I mean ANYTHING, in your car at any time). But truly San Francisco is magical. It’s charming. It’s a foodie’s playground. It’s a nature lovers’ heaven. It’s inclusive. It’s has everything. I just love it! It has so much to offer in such a tiny footprint (Fun fact: San Francisco is only ~7 miles by 7 miles). In a weekend, you would barely scratch the surface, so start planning your second trip, before you even take the first 😉

San Miguel de Allende + Mexico City

May 31, 2024September 26, 20241 Comment

CITY: San Miguel de Allende

HOW LONG: 3 nights

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at the cutest Airbnb. It’s a bit of a walk uphill to get back, but you always have the option of a cheap uber. Garden & patio are very peaceful. Fresh fruit & water were provided at the beginning of our stay. Bed was very comfortable and wifi worked great. There was a fan which helped cool the room since there was no AC. They also provided beach towels to go to the hot springs. Wish we had more time here & would absolutely stay here again!

WHERE TO EAT:

San Miguel De Allende has some incredible restaurants. You definitely won’t go hungry! Here were our favorites:

The Restaurant – Ambiance is incredible & was higher end than where I usually eat at while backpacking, but it was a nice treat! The patio had beautiful plants & we loved the al fresco dining. I had a yummy burger! This was recommended to us by our Airbnb hosts.
Cafe Muro– French toast was fab & this cafe is located in a quiet area out of the hustle bustle. The staff were incredibly nice and we had the place to ourselves most of our meal. Great place to work on a computer as well.
La Parada – Dinner with the wedding party on Friday night was at this restaurant. Really great food & cocktails!
La Sacristía – yummy breakfast & cute outdoor seating
Rosewood – The rosewood has a rooftop bar with incredible views over the city. Pop up for a drink at sunset!

WHAT TO DO:

There are supposed to be amazing hot springs here, but Ellie & I attempted to go to one (La Gruta) and were severely unimpressed. Kinda a bummer. Here’s a list of other options.

We also had a run in with a family friend who was also here for a wedding! Turns out San Miguel de Allende is a popular place for getting married 🙂

We loved walking around the streets of San Miguel; it’s just beautiful. The cobblestone streets are treacherous so plan to wear comfy shoes (aka no heels!!).

Besides that, the only thing left to do was attend a fabulous wedding!! Congrats to Billy & Monica!

Overall Thoughts:

We loved San Miguel de Allende. It’s charming, quaint, safe, colorful, easy to navigate, approachable & more. While it’s not the easiest to get to flight-wise (closest airport is 1.5-2 hrs away), you won’t want to leave. It’s definitely worth visiting!

CITY: Mexico City

HOW LONG: 3 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

We stayed at Wanderlust Hostel and honestly wouldn’t recommend it. We wanted to like it, but there were too many things that made us wish we had stayed elsewhere. Our private room had no outside window, which made it feel like a dungeon. The free breakfast was very strictly between 9:30-10am. The bathrooms weren’t that nice. But the toughest part was that the owners were weirdly short, curt and gruff with us. Every time we interacted they seemed to think we were bothering them. It was very strange. It wasn’t HORRIBLE but there are enough other great hostels to choose from in Mexico City.

WHERE TO EAT:

Ellie & I went to a few fun cafes & restaurants. I love traveling with her because we get to pick two meals and try them both!

La Ventanita Cafe – We ordered pancakes and French toast, and both agreed that the French toast was better!

Cibeles gran café– We got some yummy drinks and played cards here.

Freims– hip, trendy cafe with a lovely back terrace. Plenty of dogs & digital nomads doing their thing. Yummy brunch food!

Churrero El Moro – Small churro chain that makes delicious churros. Pro tip: get the thick hot chocolate to dip your churros into! We literally went back for seconds after the first round.

Antonella Caffe– we needed a quick bite to eat before heading to the airport and this place was great!

WHAT TO DO:

So in full transparency, Ellie & I were EXHAUSTED from my 30th birthday party + the wedding in San Miguel de Allende. This meant when we arrived to Mexico City, we both looked at each other & said “let’s not over do it here.” Well….. that turned into basically doing nothing. At the end of our time we both agreed that the trip to CDMX was a bit of a wash and we will need to come back here before we can really say that we’ve been to Mexico City. Whoops, but it happens when traveling this much!

We slept late (helped by the lack of natural light in our room lol), played lots of cards in cafes, caught up on life, walked through Parque Mexico, and went to movie with the hostel (we saw the Challengers and it was trippy but in a bad way; we both kinda hated it). That’s basically it haha.

Overall Thoughts:

I feel like I can’t even give real thoughts on Mexico City since we didn’t do much and our hostel wasn’t great. Mexico City definitely felt HUGE so I know there’s a lot to explore. I hope to come back soon and actually do so.

BUDGET FOR 6 DAYS IN Mexico:

I invited Ellie as my date so I paid for her trip to Mexico. Does this make the world’s best big sister?? I would think so!! But this explains why these numbers are higher than usual; it’s for two people 🙂

Accommodation: $540 ($90 per night)

Food: $300

Groceries: $0

Activities: $48

Local Transportation: $241

Total: $1,142 (Daily average: $190)

Transportation to next destination: $218 for the flights to Mexico (for both of us) + $152 (my flight to the Colombia)

New York City

July 4, 2023Leave a comment

Disclaimer: this highlights my favorite things/places to eat, reflective of two different visits to NYC. Both trips were about 4 days, one in June 2022 & one in June 2023

CITY: Brooklyn/Gramercy Park

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS 2x

ACCOMMODATION:

Stephen’s apartment in Brooklyn- everyone is welcome!! JK

Honestly I can’t even imagine visiting NYC and having to pay for accommodation. So expensive! Luckily I have a few friends in NYC that have kindly hosted me 🙂

WHERE TO EAT:

Food:

Friend of a Farmer– Great brunch place right next to the famous Caffé Panna. Food was yummy and the vibe was fun/happening.

Sisters– Vibey, earthy brunch spot in Brooklyn. Great food and great atmosphere.

Baker & co. – brunch in the West Village – fun spot.

Novita– Super cute Italian spot. Food was delicious and is a family run restaurant. Great for dinner near Gramercy Park.

Malt & Mold– Came here to have a late lunch/snack. They have great beer + charcuterie boards. We sat outside and played cards, while munching on cheese + prosciutto. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon.

I Sodi– Tuscan food on Bleeker Street in the West Village. So yummy!

Emmy’s Squared Pizza– While they are known for their pizza, the burger is out of this world!

Union Square Cafe– Danny Meyer’s casually refined spot for dinner. Not cheap, but worth the $$$. Very cool building. Food was incredibly delicious & sophisticated. A friend described it as “a great spot to take parents when they are in town” 🙂

Cipriani Dolci – Located in Central station. Great spot for drinks + people watching.

Bergen Bagels – Yummy NY bagels – need I say more??

Modern Love – Great vegan restaurant in Brooklyn.

Lil’ Frankies – Delicious NYC pizza!

Ice cream/dessert

Caffé Panna – very famous ice cream stop. There is always a very long line, but just go and enjoy the experience!!

Magnolia Bakery – my favorite banana pudding.

Levain Bakery – Delicious cookies – but I still think mine are better 😉

Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream – Fun ice cream shop – line is long but there is ice cream on the other side of it so just be patient.

Ralph’s Famous Italian Ices & Ice Cream – such a fun spot to get a highly customized ice cream experience. A million fun, random flavors + toppings.

Ample Hills – Closed, but it was so delicious!

Van Leeuwen Ice Cream – A NYC staple. Such fun flavors!

WHAT TO DO:

I admittedly am not a museum person, and given both visits were in June, the goal is always to be outside to soak up the delicious sunny warmth.

Highlights include:

Walking around Central Park
Running through Prospect Park
Walking the Highline
Eating our way through NYC (see above haha)
Going to a Yankees game
Board game nights with friends
Rec league volleyball game

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

New York in June is fabulous. Both times, as I walk around without needing a sweater during the day or night (compared to SF), I thought to myself, why don’t I just move here?! But then I remember this weather is not representative of what NYC faces the rest of the year haha. Honestly, even though I am from another major metropolitan area (the Bay Area), I find NYC to be incredible overwhelming. Not necessarily in a bad way, but it just always makes me feel so small. It’s a humbling city. That being said, I thoroughly enjoy it when I go! The list of great restaurants are never ending, and there is always something to do. I also can’t say enough good things about the people watching. There is always something fun to see or a conversation to overhear. Can’t wait for the next visit!

The Bahamas

April 15, 2019Leave a comment

CITY: NASSAU

HOW LONG: 6 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

My sister and I stayed at two very different locations while in the Bahamas, one a hostel, the other a resort!

The first: BahaSea Backpackers Hostel This place was great! I’ve never stayed at a hostel that was beachfront before 🙂 It’s literally on the water and there are two pools. We stayed in a 10 person all female dorm, which had a en-suite bathroom and lockers under the bunk beds to lock up out stuff. My sister and I had a great time meeting other travelers. We met two lovely German gals who we played cards with each night. Overall this was an awesome hostel and to stay in the Bahamas for $50 per night is nothing to complain about.

BahaSea

View from our room!

Lounging around at the hostel

The second: Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Normally I wouldn’t stay at a resort like this because I would choose being able to travel for longer by staying at hostels, than traveling for shorter, but staying at more luxurious hotels. However, this trip was part of a Christmas gift from my parents, so hello Grand Hyatt! This place is magical. It’s right on Cable Beach, has 7 pools and 20 dining options! My sister and I felt like it was an adult Disneyland. We spent each day getting up to workout at the gym, going to a lovely breakfast, then heading to the pool for some sun, reading time and a drink. It doesn’t get much better. Each day we had fun deciding which pool we would make our home base for the next 6 hours. Our two German friends came to the hotel to spend two days by the pool/beach with us, and it was fun to share the resort with them. If you’re not on a budget, then this is definitely the place to stay in Nassau.

Looking out at Baha Mar

Bahamas

Exploring

Enjoying the pool

Our beautiful German friends

Soaking up the sun

Janni

Exploring the aquariums via the pool

Waterfalls

Supermodel much?

Our last night at sunset

WHERE TO EAT:

While at the hostel, there were two main restaurants in walking distance: News Cafe, which we went to for breakfast twice, and Spritz Restaurant & Bar, which we went to for dinner twice. Both were fine, but nothing to write home about. Spritz had a nice view though, so points for that.

View at Spritz Bar

At the Hyatt, you can’t really go wrong, but our favorites for breakfast were 3 Tides Fish House for their Breakfast Sandwich and Stuffed Brioche French Toast, & The Palms Cafe for their Acai Bowl and Banana Bread French Toast. For lunch/dinner (we would often do linner at around 4:30/5pm) our favorites were Umami Burger for it’s Impossible Burger & The Swimming Pig for their Truffle Pizza, Truffle Fries, and the best Spinach Caesar Salad you have ever had! The food at the Hyatt, while not cheap, was delicious.

Umami Burger

The Palms Cafe

3 Tides Fish House

Our favorite spinach salad

Pancakes at The Palms Cafe

WHAT TO DO:

Honestly, if you are in the Bahamas, your plans for what to do should center upon spending time at the beach and at the pool. BUT if you want to leave the relaxation of being by the water, there are many options for you! First, you can go to another island and sit by the water there 🙂 My sister and I did a day trip through Sandy Toes. It was about a 30 min boat ride to another island and once there you can swim with pigs, go snorkeling, or just lay back in a chaise lounge by the turquoise water.

Wind in our hair as we take the boat to Rose Island

Approaching the island

Rose Island!

Meeting the pigs

What a good boy!

No complaints here

Lounging around

Unbelievable water!

Look at this water!

The private beach

Ellie

The other must-do is to take a walk around the downtown area. Visit Graycliff to see a whimsical street, the chocolate factory, and the cigar factory. After Graycliff, just walk along Bay Street for some window shopping and some ice cream.

Ellie’s new date

The pretty street where Graycliff can be found

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

The Bahamas were the perfect spot to relax, catch up on reading, and sleep in. The water is unbelievable beautiful and we had the best time soaking up the sun. In the weeks leading up to our trip, I had read some travel advisories warning of some safety issues, however, my sister and I never felt unsafe, either at the hotel or when we were walking around in the downtown area. We even took the public busses and taxis, and not once did we have issues. Overall I would highly recommend a trip down the Bahamas!

Austin, Texas

March 10, 2018Leave a comment

Austin was my first solo trip since getting back from Europe, and it was awesome! What a cool city.

CITY: AUSTIN

HOW LONG: 4 NIGHTS

ACCOMMODATION:

I stayed at my first hostel in the States! Drifter Jack’s was located near UT Austin and about a 10 min bus ride to downtown Austin, which was perfect. The hostel, while not my favorite, was overall pretty good. It was fairly easy to meet people in kitchen, common room, or the pool table outside. There was no free breakfast, but there were lockers in the room (although mine was hard to reach because I had the one on top unfortunately). The rooms were spacious and clean. Overall would stay here again.

One of the walls within the hostel

WHERE TO EAT:

WOWOWOW Austin has some amazing places to eat. I was here for four days and felt like four weeks wouldn’t be enough time to try all the places I wanted to try. I started with Waltons Fancy and Staple, a yummy, clearly popular, brunch spot. I tried a biscuit sandwich, which had eggs, smoked cheddar, bacon, and an aioli. It was delicious.

My biscuit sandwich

I couldn’t go to Texas without trying BBQ so with the group of British guys I met at my hostel, we visited Freedmen’s Bar. I ordered a barbecue benedict and was not disappointed. Meanwhile the guys ordered one pound of meat each and ate every last bite.

The Brits enjoying the BBQ

BBQ Benedict

Voodoo Doughnuts, made famous in Portland, OR, also has a location on 6th street in Austin. In my time in Austin, I tried 3 doughnuts: Maple Bacon Bar (Raised yeast doughnut with maple frosting and bacon on top), Old Dirty Bastard (Raised yeast doughnut with chocolate frosting, Oreo cookies, and peanut butter), and Blueberry Cake (Blueberry cake doughnut with a glaze). Hands down the best one is the Maple Bacon Bar. After the pub crawl we can came here and the Brits were asking which one to get and I told them to get the Maple Bacon Bar. They were skeptical going in, but after trying it they couldn’t stop talking about how unbelievably good it was. ALSO it’s a great spot for pictures!

Inside Voodoo

The long line for DOUGHNUTS

Maple Bacon Bar

Old Dirty Bastard

For a quick and easy breakfast, Blenders and Bowls is perfect. I ended up eating there twice it was so good. Both times I had the O.G. acai bowl and added spinach.

O.G. Acari Bowl

I was delighted to spot a Modern Market while in Austin as I used to eat there probably 3 times a week when I lived in Boulder! They have great, healthy, fresh food with plenty of gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian options. I ate a yummy truffle potato pizza and side of sweet potato mash.

Last, but not least, was The Grove Bar and Kitchen. The reason I went was to try the Impossible Burger, but I ended up having the best bruschetta I’ve ever had (outside of Italy of course!). But honestly it was so good!!

The Impossible Burger!

I tried three: Heirloom tomato, garlic, basil, & mozzarella. Avocado, bacon, tomato, arugula, & aged balsamic. Apple, fig chutney, & brie. I can’t even pick a favorite because they were all delicious in different ways.

WHAT TO DO:

Austin has so much to do! You definitely need more than 4 days to do it all. The first day I was there I spent the day walking around the city. I probably walked for over 8 miles. Highlights include walking along the Colorado River, which runs through Austin. I would walk for a bit then stop at a bench and read my book. I also ended up walking through the capital building which was a highlight.

Walking along the Colorado River

View of Austin

Capital building

Hinges in the Capital building

View of looking up at the dome

Underneath the Capital building

Austin

View from the Congress bridge

6th street is famous for its great bars and nightlife and it didn’t let us down. I went on the pub crawl through the hostel and was headed straight for this spot on Saturday night. Among our crew was four Americans, one Australian, and five Brits so I knew it would be a fun group. Essentially 6th street becomes a city sponsored block party every weekend starting at 11pm as they shut down access to pedestrians only. Such a cool idea and it ends up being one big party in downtown Austin. We had a great time going from bar to bar.

6th Street

Enjoying the live music

Friday night

Rainey Street is one of the coolest spots in Austin. Each building houses a different and unique bar with cool food options (some restaurants and some food trucks). It definitely has a more laid back vibe compared to 6th street, which houses more club-like bars. I was here with the Brits and we spent our night at a bar that a grassy, backyard space with giant jenga, picnic tables, and cornhole. They had never played cornhole before so it was a blast teaching them!

Backyard at one of the bars on Rainey Street

Anther great activity is watching the bats at dusk. Over 1.5 million bats roost under the Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge. This makes it the largest urban bat colony in the world. Crazy right?!

Waiting for the bats to come out

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I really liked Austin! There were so many cool things to do, and I can’t wait to come back when it’s a little warmer to explore all the water activities Austin has to offer between the lake and the river! There is such a young, hip vibe to Austin and I think it’s only going to get cooler. Other than the blistering heat during the summer, Austin seems like an amazing place to visit and live. No wonder so many start-ups have started to move to this incredible city!

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