About Our Company
Tours Nicaragua

Located in Managua, the nation’s capital, Tours Nicaragua is Nicaragua's only private tour outfitter owned and operated by native English speakers. We take pride in being the industry leader for high quality, personalized programs that offer fully private services, tailored to the interests and desires of our clientele. Each and every one of our staff shares a deep love for Nicaragua, its nature and people. Tours Nicaragua exists to share the beauty of Nicaragua and to make your visit to Nicaragua hassle free, interesting, safe and rewarding.

TOURS NICARAGUA - QUICK FACTS
* Named “Nicaragua’s Best Tour Operator” by Latin Trade Magazine
*Selected as one of the “50 Tours of a Lifetime” by National Geographic Traveler
* Featured by The New York Times, BBC Holiday, The USA Today, Washington Post, The Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Miami Herald, Outside Magazine, Seattle Times, London Times, Baltimore Examiner, CNN Magazine, World Adventure Magazine, Explore Magazine, Saint Luis Post-Dispatch, The Observer in London, Vokrug Sveta Magazine, Travel Weekly, International Travel News, Time Out Magazine, Channel 4 London, ESPN Outdoors, BBC Radio, The Discovery Channel.
* Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism License #060505-0V-1216J (Since 1996)
* Member ANTUR - Nicaraguan Association of Incoming Tour Operators
* Member CANTUR - Nicaraguan National Camera of Tourism

TOURS NICARAGUA - TRAVEL & EXPEDITION TEAM

Mike Newton A native of New Orleans, Louisiana, Mike has been coming to Nicaragua since 1984 until finally settling permanently in Managua with his Nicaraguan wife and 3 children in 1999, when he took over the reigns at Tours Nicaragua. An expert on Latin America, Mike has traveled on business to most countries in both South and Central America. He is a graduate from the Loyola University School of Law and aside from being an attorney he is also a light aircraft pilot and boating enthusiast. Mike is an experienced businessmen and he has run a variety of companies successfully for more than two decades.

Richard Leonardi - GM A native of Boston, Massachusetts and a graduate of Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, Richard is considered by many to be the country's foremost English speaking expert on Nicaragua tourism. He has been the creative and operational force behind Tours Nicaragua since its founding in 1996. Richard Leonardi does product R&D, manages our team of guides, drivers and boatmen, office staff, writes our web site text and programs, answers client requests and designs custom trips. Mr. Leonardi is the author of several books such as Footprint Nicaragua and The Nicaraguans and is an accomplished photographer published in Europe, the US and Latin America. Richard spends his free time working on reforestation and wildlife conservation at his non-profit, private nature park, Lost Canyon Nature Reserve: www.Lost-Canyon.org

Dulce María García – Accounting, Reservations & Tour Coordination A native of Managua, Nicaragua, Dulce María has been making reservations and coordinating our many logistical tour services since 1999. She also handles accounts receivable and makes a lethal pot of Nicaragua coffee. Dulce's great sense of humor and hard work ethic has made her an integral part of our team. Her immense discipline, dedication and earnest sense of responsibility has earned her the nickname of "Sarge".

Maura Salgado - Operations Manager A native of León, Nicaragua, Maura is a key player for our office staff. Maura oversees Tours Nicaragua tour operations and shares duties with Laura and Dulce María making reservations, coordinating travel logistics and doing cost analysis. Having grown up in the countryside near the active Cerro Negro Volcano, Maura has a deep love of nature and intimate knowledge of Nicaragua’s most impressive volcanic chain. In her free time Maura likes to listen to music from the 80’s and 90’s (vintage stuff for someone her age) and visit family in León.

Laura Hernández - Cost Analysis, Reservations & Tour Coordination A native of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, Laura is the newest member of our office staff. Laura makes reservations, helps with coordinating travel logistics and doing cost analysis. Having grown up in the lush northern mountains of Nicaragua and worked in some mountain hotels there, Laura has fine appreciation for both culture and nature, as well as first hand experience in how hotels operate. In her free time Laura likes to go to the movies, visit Nicaragua's most beautiful sites and listen to rock and roll music.

Lenín Obando - Bilingual Guide A native of León, Nicaragua, Lenín is a well rounded political history, cultural and naturalist guide. Lenín not only holds a B.Sc. degree in biology from UNAN in León, as well as a masters degree from the same institution. Unlike many naturalist guides who earn degrees and work in only tourism, Lenín continues to do important research on Nicaragua's mammal, reptile and amphibian life. Lenín's good sense of humor and intelligent demeanor combined with his in-depth knowledge of Nicaragua's flora and fauna make him a valued travel partner for our nature loving visitors. Lenín is very well versed in Nicaragua's history, politics and culture.

Roberto Lumbí - Bilingual Guide A native of Muy Muy, Nicaragua; Roberto is our most gregarious guide. He is loved by all for the care he takes of our clients on the trips and 24/7 positive spirit. With more than a few head of cattle to his name and riding horseback since the age of 4, Roberto is known to our office staff as the “Cowboy” or “Vaquero” in Spanish. His sense of humor and knowledge of Nicaragua can be rivaled by few. Roberto learned his English while attending high school in the USA and has a degree in accounting which helps him keep track of all those cows

Gerald Durán - Bilingual Guide A native of Managua, Nicaragua, Gerald learned his English during a 10 year stay in Houston, Texas. Gerald is a true tourism professional with a degree in hotel management from UCC in Managua and more than six years experience as a tour guide. Gerald counts amongst his favorite destinations as the Island of Ometepe, Jinotega and Granada. He enjoys sharing Nicaragua with our guests above all and spends a great part of his spare time playing with his baby daughter.

Rigo Sampson - Bilingual Guide A native of León, Nicaragua, Rigo (pictured at right with guide Lenín Obando) is one of our most versatile guides, a medical doctor trained in Sweden where unmatched experience in volcano trekking and ample coastal kayaking hours meet in-depth knowledge of Nicaragua's poetry, nature and political history. Rigo's cool medic bedside manner carries over to his guiding and clients enjoy his calm professional demeanor as much as his warm and sincere spirit that represents what makes Nicaraguans some of the nicest people on earth.

Jaime Salazar - Bilingual Guide A native of the USA, Jaime is Tours Nicaragua's resident Marine Biologist, with extensive experience in study and protection of coastal ecosystems, Jaime is also well versed in Nicaragua's bird life, as well as its history and culture. Jaime is truly a citizen of the word: born to Salvadorian parents in the US, Jaime graduated from high school in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, received his B.Sc. in Marine Biology in El Salvador and his masters degree in Marine Aquaculture in Guayaquil, Ecuador. He has been a resident of Nicaragua for the last 15 years. His hobbies include surfing and photography.

Ricardo Henríquez – Motorboat Transportation A native of Cardenas, Nicaragua, Ricardo is our boat captain on the San Juan River and in Lake Nicaragua. Trained as a marine mechanic, Ricardo has been at the helm of our private boat tours since 1997. Ricardo's familiarity of Nicaragua's lake island regions and his all-encompassing knowledge of the inner workings of an outboard motor make him Nicaragua's best boatman. Ricardo's sense of humor is as dry as the Mojave, but as big as Lake Nicaragua. His razor sharp eyes also make him a valued spotter of wildlife.

Martín López – Motorboat Transportation A native of San Carlos, Nicaragua, Martín is Nicaragua's finest river navigator. Martín has been steering everything from motorboats to barges on the San Juan River since 1955 and he seems to know every single person who lives along the river. Known as the "birdman", but no one can explain why, perhaps it is preference to sleep in a hammock wherever he navigates, his nest goes along. Martín comes from a great tradition of Rama Indian navigators who have been exploring the warm waters of the San Juan River since long before the arrival of the Spanish. A true gentleman, Martín can be found smiling at the crack of dawn and long after sunset.

Eduardo Urbina – Transportation A native of Rivas, Nicaragua, Eduardo brings 27 years of driving experience to every tour. Eduardo enjoys tourism for the beautiful locales he routinely visits, counting Granada, León and Matagalpa amongst his favorite trips. Eduardo also is interested in foreign cultures and enjoys interaction with our customers to learn more about their way of life. In leisure time Eduardo can be found reading books on Nicaraguan history and spending time with his two children.

Pablo Urbina - Transportation A native of Managua, Nicaragua Pablo is part of our dynamic duo of Urbina brother drivers. Pablo was a postal dispatcher before following his brother into tourism and his attention to detail reflects those years of work. Though now instead of making sure the mail arrives he delivers our passengers to some of his favorite destinations like León and Selva Negra. When not at the wheel he enjoys watching nature programs and spending time with his family.

Freddy Juárez – Transportation A native of Granada, Nicaragua, Freddy is Nicaragua's finest tourist bus driver and a successful businessman. Freddy first found his way into tourism with Tours Nicaragua in 1998. Since then Freddy has become the most successful tourist bus company in Nicaragua and has finished his law degree. Like all of our tour and expedition team, Freddy is a member of our family; a family that works together to assure our visitors the best service Nicaragua has to offer.

Francisco Barrera - Transportation A native of León, Nicaragua, Francisco has been exploring the earthen roads of Nicaragua's spectacular countryside since he was a young boy. Francisco has been a professional driver for 20 years and been taking care of Tours Nicaragua's clients since the year 2003. Amongst his favorite destinations in Nicaragua are Jinotega and Ocotal. In his free time Francisco likes to sleep. All the better we say, so that he is well rested for your trip.

TOURS NICARAGUA
Centro Richardson, contiguo al
Banco Central de Nicaragua
Managua, Nicaragua
Tel: + (505) 2265-3095
Fax: + (505) 2271-5659
info@toursnicaragua.com
www.toursnicaragua.com

Our Company Name: Over recent years new and existing Nicaraguan tour companies have begun to incorporate "Tours Nicaragua" into their company name. We take this as a sincere form of flattery, but hope it does not lead to confusion. In reality there is only one Tours Nicaragua: The original.

Web Site Copyrights: All written content on www.toursnicaragua.com is copyright of Tours Nicaragua. Any reproduction of any part of this site's written content is strictly prohibited and violators will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

Photography Copyrights: Reproduction of any of the photographs on this site is strictly prohibited. Violators will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.