Catarina Mirador

The mirador at Catarina stands on the rim of the Apoyo caldera, and the view is the best-known in Nicaragua: the lagoon several hundred metres below filling the whole crater, with Granada, Lake Nicaragua and the Mombacho volcano lined up behind it, and on clear days Ometepe's cones far out in the lake. The village itself is known for plant nurseries, and the road up is lined with them selling ornamentals and orchids. At the viewpoint are restaurants, craft stalls, horse rides and marimba players, all of which make it busy and commercial, particularly at weekends. Trails and roads run down from the rim to the lagoon shore. It is the fixed stop on every Pueblos Blancos circuit.

What you actually see

• The Apoyo panorama - the lagoon, Granada, the lake and Mombacho.
• Plant nurseries - the village's ornamental and orchid trade.
• Rim restaurants and stalls - the developed viewpoint terrace.
• Ometepe on clear days - the twin cones far out in the lake.

When to go

December to April for the clearest views; haze builds through the day, so morning is better. Weekends and holidays fill the terrace with Nicaraguan visitors, marimba and vendors; weekday mornings are calm.

Honest expectations

It is heavily commercialised, with persistent vendors, entry and parking fees and a row of restaurants along the rim. Haze often blurs the distant volcanoes. The viewpoint itself is small and gets crowded.

Nearby

San Juan de Oriente is next door; Apoyo Lagoon lies below.