El Coyotepe Fortress
El Coyotepe Fortress
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.0
85 reviews
Excellent
27
Very good
33
Average
23
Poor
1
Terrible
1
Laura B
13 contributions
Nov 2023 • Friends
When we arrived we were not sure if this was really a tourist place. It seemed abandoned and not taken care of. In the first place we wanted to enjoy the great view but then a guy approached us and offered us a tour. We did not do the full tour but the gratis level 1 underground and he gave great explanations about the history of the fortress/jail. It seemed like history became alive. Bring a torch, it's dark inside.
Written 30 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jimmyihatetoregister
Boulder, CO355 contributions
May 2014 • Couples
Go with a guide. There is so much history here, so tragic. I've talked about this place as much as any other we visited in Nicaragua.
Written 8 June 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lori L
Red Deer, Canada68 contributions
Feb 2018 • Friends
We traveled in a group of eight with Eleda Transporte (Bosco) and he took us to El Coyotepe. What we learned there will always stay with me. The young man who was our tour guide was very friendly and pleasant. We paid $2 each to take the tour and it was well worth the time.
Written 20 February 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
watashiwaaustin
Chicago, IL1 contribution
Jul 2014 • Couples
DO NOT WALK TO THIS ATTRACTION IT IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS!!!
My wife and I were ATTACKED by a MAN WITH a butcher KNIFE while walking down from the fort towards Masaya. Several hours later we returned to the site with the police to show them where it had happened and a Nicaraguan couple reported to the police they had been attacked as well. The people running the fort did not seem surprised when the police told them so I assume it has happened before (they were of course concerned and disapproving). This was not a mugging this was a man jumping out of the bushes and charging at us full-speed with a large knife.
We took a taxi up the hill and therefore did not have any problems until we started hiking down (the other couple were attacked on their way up). The entrance fee is US $2/person. The fort itself was very interesting but somewhat creepy and dark. It has a unique of history as both a military fort, prison, and scout camp. I would recommend bringing a flashlight because the guides light was a bit dim, although it really gave us a feel for how awful the prison must have been.
If you choose to visit the fort you must take a taxi both ways. It is not safe to walk the path leading to the fort from the highway.
DO NOT WALK TO OR FROM FORT CAYOTEPE.
My wife and I were ATTACKED by a MAN WITH a butcher KNIFE while walking down from the fort towards Masaya. Several hours later we returned to the site with the police to show them where it had happened and a Nicaraguan couple reported to the police they had been attacked as well. The people running the fort did not seem surprised when the police told them so I assume it has happened before (they were of course concerned and disapproving). This was not a mugging this was a man jumping out of the bushes and charging at us full-speed with a large knife.
We took a taxi up the hill and therefore did not have any problems until we started hiking down (the other couple were attacked on their way up). The entrance fee is US $2/person. The fort itself was very interesting but somewhat creepy and dark. It has a unique of history as both a military fort, prison, and scout camp. I would recommend bringing a flashlight because the guides light was a bit dim, although it really gave us a feel for how awful the prison must have been.
If you choose to visit the fort you must take a taxi both ways. It is not safe to walk the path leading to the fort from the highway.
DO NOT WALK TO OR FROM FORT CAYOTEPE.
Written 13 July 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
baileylegleiter
Iowa City, IA29 contributions
Jan 2018 • Friends
Let me preface this by saying that I would not recommend this as a family attraction! Our tour guide was very informative and answered our questions. I was surprised that I had never heard of this place before going here because the history is pretty terrible and it wasn’t even from that long ago. Our guide talked about the brutal torture and rapes that occurred here which is why I wouldn’t recommend this if you have young children. If you are into historical sights this place might interest you. Beware of the bats!
Written 13 January 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TravelbugVietnam
Vietnam1,647 contributions
May 2017 • Solo
This fortress was used as a torture chamber for political prisoners during a brutal dictatorship and America's role in recent history. You need a guide to help you understand what went on here and why. An educational opportunity for older children. Take a torch.
Written 11 June 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
grace4865
Wausau, WI42 contributions
Feb 2017 • Couples
This visit here isn't for weak stomachs. This is part of Nicaragua's recent history of a brutal dictatorship and an American intervention. A guide will show the dungeons and cells beneath the citadel and give you graphic descriptions of the terrible things that went on there.
Written 4 March 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Maria L
14 contributions
Dec 2016
There are parts of this place that were used as a torture center. We went here with Jeffrey from Apoyo Spanish School, who told us he knows people whose fathers perished in the prison. The views are great. There was a general Zeledon who fought the US marines here and lost. We found the place intriguing but it left us with some questions that no one could answer. There is no written history for it?
Written 7 January 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nicaragua P
Leon, Nicaragua29 contributions
Jan 2016
The boy scouts operate this historical monument. It was a fort to defend the country against the United States, which at the time backed the Conservative Party. Sounds familiar. There is a story about a general who fought the US Marines here, and lost. More interesting is the political prison. It was a place of sadistic torture! Imagine the cries of agony. My guide, Jeffrey McCrary, told me he knows people whose fathers perished horribly in this place when Somoza ran the country.
Written 21 December 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
telvb
Virginia Beach, VA60 contributions
Jan 2016 • Friends
We traveled as a group of 16 to El Coyotepe Fortress. It was $2.00 per person to have the tour. We were blessed to have an interpreter with us as the tour guide explained the history. The history is important, but gruesome. The part when we went into the dungeon was the worst and I do not recommend it at all. Very dark, dreary and filled with graffiti. The rooms feel like they are oozing evil. I am an adult and had to get out of the darkness. This definitely would not be recommended for children. The last room that we were in before I left was in complete darkness and very claustrophobic as well as had a bat flying around in the room. If you enjoy history, you may like this place, but I will not return as I believe that evil is here. Also, some of the other reviews mentioned that the Boy Scouts run this place. We did not see any Boy scouts here. Our tour guide was dressed in regular street clothes and it was hard to discern whether he really was an employee or someone just wanting to take our money.
Written 3 February 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
What level of prisoners were kept at the prison and how often were there suicides
Written 14 May 2017
How long of a ride from managua is this?
Written 21 January 2015
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