The Republic of Nicaragua is a country of Central America located south of Honduras and north of Costa Rica. Spanning the isthmus, Nicaragua has coasts facing southwest on the Pacific Ocean and east on the Caribbean Sea. The most important port is Corinto, on the Pacific in the northwestern corner of the country. This page describes the lighthouses of the Pacific coast; there is a separate page for the Caribbean coast. Nicaragua, like all of Central Ametica, gained independence from Spain in 1821, but it did not control the Caribbean coastal region until 1860, when Britain ceded its protectorate of the Mosquito Coast. Nicaragua is divided into 15 departments (departamentos) and two self-governing "autonomous communities." The Spanish word for a lighthouse is faro; isla is an island, cabo is a cape, punta is a promontory or point of land, péñon is a rock, arrecife is a reef, bahía is a bay, ría is an estuary or inlet, estrecho is a strait, río is a river, and puerto is a port or harbor. Also, the Spanish word canal means a natural channel, not an artificial canal. Aids to navigation in Nicaragua are managed by the Aquatic Transport Directorate of the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume G of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. NGA numbers are from NGA Publication 111.
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![]() Isla Encandada Range Rear Light, Corinto, September 2024 photo copyright Capt. Peter Mosselberger; used by permission |
Information available on lost lighthouses: |
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Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: South: Costa Rica Pacific | West: El Salvador
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Checked and revised December 23, 2024. Lighthouses: 12. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.