Wawa Bar Community

Description

Lacated in Puerto Cabeza municipality's South littoral, the Miskito Wawa Bar Community offers visitors a mix of nature, summer landscapes, outdoor activities and the experience of knowing and sharing the local habits and traditions through the community-based rural tourism program, developed by the Indigenous Women from the Atlantic Coast Association (AMICA).

Visitors can make the most of thier experience throuh the local services in housing and meal (C$100 per night). You will see that the Wawa Bar Community is a fishing town, like the other communities in the area. If you get the town by sea, you will appreciate the fishing boat in the shore, in front of hight coconut trees. It is also common to find barefoot children playing and invite you to play in Miskito language.

One of the Wawa Bar main attractions, beside its beaches, are the houses elevated by wooden stakes, builts in green fields surrounded by trees like Mangoes and Malinches. In addition, during the tour through the community, visitors may notice the different religions that residents profess due to the three churches built there: Morava, Adventist and Evangelical.

If tourists prefer to have contact with people and learn more in depth about their ancestral culture and history, you may contact any agent of the Nicaraguan Tourism (INTUR) to have direct talks with the council of elders which controls the regulations and policies set forth in this native community. These rules must be followed by every member of the population and the visitors.

Tourists can stay in one of the houses of the families. The house is assigned by an elder and is equipped with basic furniture. The conditions are very rustic.

Furthermore, Wawa Bar is one of the few communities that has electricity from 6 PM to 10 PM, and telephone service. Also, they offer recreational activities such as fishing in canoes through Karata lagoon, bike rides through the streets of the community, cooking lessons of the traditional foods of the area, boat rides and swim time at the beach.

It is advisable to travel with a local guide to perform these activities. You also need to wear sunscreen, bring water, insect repellent, medicines, toilet paper, comfortable and sun protective clothing.

Getting There

Wawa Bar is located half an hour from the Haulover Community and 40 minutes from the city of Puerto Cabezas (Bilwi). To reach Wawa Bar from Haulover you can go through Karata Lagoon which is located behind the community. The ticket has a total cost of C$120 and the boat departs daily in the morning and returns at noon. During the tour you will pass the Intracoastal Canal which is the area where the Wawa River and Laguna Karata join. In this section you can see mangroves on both sides of the canal and fishermen in canoes.

The panga leaves from Wawa Bar to Bilwi costs C$100 and leaves at 11 AM. The trip takes 1 hour. If the visitor prefers, he can travel in a private panga with capacity for 15 people. The price varies according to the number of people traveling. If groups are large, then it is cheaper.

If you are in the city of Bilwi and are interested in traveling to Wawa Bar, you should go to the "Guili Landi" port, which means "water dolphin" in Miskito. Prices range from C$200 to C$250 to reach the community. In order to reach the port you can go by taxi as well. The cost of the trip is between C$50 and C$100.