“A Day in the Life” at Colibri’s Yemaya Reefs (Little Corn, Nicaragua)

Let us set the scene. You’ve just booked a holiday to Little Corn Nicaragua. Everyone was shouting from the rooftops to book your holiday at Colibri Hotel’s Yamaya Reefs- an unforgettable boutique hotel in a hidden paradise, so you did. Now, as you anxiously await your departure, you start to drift off and daydream about what your days at might look like. You can picture the cerulean seas and the salt in your hair, but beyond that, your guess is as good as any. Well, not anymore. Sit back, relax, and let us walk you through what your first day at Yemaya could feel like, from sunrise to sunset. 

8:00 am 

You haven’t yet opened your eyes, but the kind groundsmen have just dropped off some fresh coconut waters to the doorstep of your oceanfront casita. This will be a pleasant surprise for you, as it’s your first morning here, but you’ll soon come to adore this morning tradition. 

10:00 am 

You awake to the sound of the gentle ocean lapping the shore after sleeping in for the first time in months. Because, why not? You’re on holiday time. The fluffy duvet is practically begging you to stay, but as soon as you feel the warm lick of the air hit your skin, you know you are ready to get this vacation started. You slowly sink into your luxurious hotel robe and seek out a place to ease into the day. You settle on the swaying hammock at the water’s edge and observe the warmth of the sand between your toes as you make your way over. You brought your book with you, but once you’ve been cradled you know you’re not going to do anything except breath into this moment. You sit there a while, just looking out over the water, and feel so lucky that you found this heaven-on-earth. 

10:45 am

In one startling moment, Yemaya’s resident dogs come barreling around the corner to greet you with morning kisses. Ye, May, and Ya are sweet and mild-mannered, reminding you of your own pups back home. You snap a quick picture (which turns out blurry because they won’t sit still) and as soon as they came, they are off to say hello to another guest or play on the beach with a fallen branch. 

11:00 am

Finally feeling ready for the day after a slow and restful start, you decide to head into town to do some exploring. On your way out, though, you stop quickly by the front desk to see if the concierge can help you choose some activities for the coming days. Jeffery the hotel cat is also sitting handsomely on the countertop, though he seems less interested in helping you and more interested in a few gentle scratches behind the ears. The concierge kindly informs you of your seemly never-ending options and you start to get really excited about the outlook of your week. At the top of your list? A diving tour promising rays, sharks and thousands of colorful fish, and a sunset sail. This wasn’t any sunset sail though. This traditional, 40-foot boat was handcrafted entirely by locals and presents you with an opportunity to dive deeper into the Miskito culture. In the end, you decide to surprise your lover by booking a private dinner and bonfire on the shores, complete with a bottle of fine wine, for tomorrow evening. You figure there’s plenty of time to go on some of the more exciting excursions, but it’s never too soon to set the romantic tone you’ve been dreaming of for so long when planning for this holiday. They offer you a bicycle to cut your travel time down, but you figure today you’d rather embark on a leisurely stroll and you head on your way. 

11:30 am

Your walk to town is short, but becoming increasingly tiring under the warmth of the afternoon sun. You’re glad you’re making this journey now, and not in an hour or two when it’s reached its peak. You marvel at how undeveloped the island remains, with long stretches of secret beaches, small but mighty rainforests, and pretty well no machine vehicles. You do a double-take as a horse-drawn buggy trots by and smile to yourself. There’s no confusion that you’re a long, long way from home. When you have finally made it, you stop first for a loaf of coconut bread- a local specialty- which you cannot wait to dig into. Though you meant for this to come back to the resort with you as an afternoon snack, you cannot help but tear off a corner with your hands and munch your way happily down the street. You’ll be back for more of this, you think to yourself. You weave in and out of a few shops full of artisan goods and iniquities and stop for a cup of coffee, realizing you haven’t one yet. 

1:00 pm

Though your walk to town this morning was rather relaxing, you decided to save yourself some time and energy and hop on a water taxi back to the Yemaya grounds. This is your first day and you’re still bursting with excitement so there’s absolutely no time to waste; you want to try everything. As you return to your casita, you decide to reset with a shower before continuing with your afternoon. You can feel the sun, salt, and (somehow) sand on your skin and think a little rinse is exactly the refresher you need. Though you had made a few quick trips to your indoor/outdoor bathroom a couple of times already, it was only now, in full daylight that you truly realized how marvelous it is. You turn the showerhead, let the steam fill the room and feel as though you’re bathing in the rainforest. Even the little rubber plant in the shower seems to perk up a little after that delightful experience. 

1:30 pm

One of the most incredible things about Little Corn Island is its plentiful and vibrant reef network. Though it would be tempting to lounge in the sand and work on your sunkissed glow (and you did, for a while) you also knew it would be criminal not to wade in and see what this island is known for. You pick up a snorkel and your partner rents a paddleboard. Admittedly, you keep taking “breaks” and sitting on the board to catch your breath a while, but can’t seem to pull yourself away from the water entirely. The hours slip away from you and your fingers and toes begin to prune. You feel tired from all of the activity, but also giddy- like a child. Eventually, your stomach growls and you realize it’s probably about time you consider changing into something nicer for dinner. 

4:45 pm

On your way back to your room, you decide to be self-indulgent for a moment and embrace your inner child once more. You noticed a few seaside/ overwater swings that you’ve been dying to try. You had always felt jealous as you saw pictures of Instagram bloggers in Bali on similar swings and so you knew you could walk past without snapping a quick picture for yourself. Your partner makes fun of you at first but only lasts a minute before hopping on themselves and suddenly you’re having a swinging competition and trying not to splash the camera, which was left recording the entire time. You might even post it later because #travelgoals. 

5:30 pm

As you prepare to head off to dinner, you notice a soft drizzle start to pour over the palm trees and splash neatly into the shallows below. Normally, this would feel like a bummer. But after a long, humid day you find the break rather tranquil and calming. You were planning to treat yourself to a spa service or two anyways, so you decide to lean into it. You call the front desk and just moments later, a lovely masseuse arrives at your casita. You assume she is setting up her massage table and so you wait on your terrace, swinging on the daybed and watching the clouds gently rollover. When you are called back to your room, you find she has set up a spa oasis full of flickering candles. You feel yourself immediately exhale and release any pre-holiday stress you might have been carrying. You hop under the sheet, close your eyes and allow yourself to melt away to the soundtrack of tropical, afternoon rain. 

7:00 pm

When you arrive at dinner, you’re thrilled to find out that is Garifuna night. Translation? Tonight you’re getting dinner and a show. This evening is all about experiencing local music and dancing and embracing the infusion of Caribbean flare. You’ve heard good things about Erizo, but even better things about chef Bayardo Jose Martinez Mejia’s tasting menu. You knew ahead of your meal that you would be sampling some traditional Nicaraguan cuisine with some Caribbean influence, and that nearly every ingredient had been grown out back in the community garden. What you didn’t know was how sophisticated and upscale it would be. I mean, you’ve never tried Conch Tarte before.

9:30 pm

Though the entertainment is now over and your belly is full, you’re not quite ready to call it a night. You remember that when you left your casita, the sun sinking over the horizon, you noticed some lights turn on in your private plunge pool. It might be too late to go running into the waves, but it feels like the perfect time to take a dip with your sweetheart and watch the ocean settle into its moonlit mystery. Before heading back to the room and hopping in, you decide to stop at the cocktail bar for one of their specialty margaritas. Every review you read mentioned them and you don’t intend to miss out. It’s only as you’re sitting at the bar waiting for your drink that you learn that the cocktail menu was designed by Jasper Soffer who has been featured by Time Out magazine for his craft bartending innovations. This really feels like the “cherry on top” ending to your magical day and you know you’ve chosen to stay at the best of the best.