Holy Week 2027 in Rivas and San Juan del Sur: Dates and When to Book

Holy Week 2027 runs from Palm Sunday, March 21, to Easter Sunday, March 28, with national holidays on Thursday the 25th and Friday the 26th. Rivas was the most visited department in the country during Holy Week 2026, with 1,251,750 visitors according to INTUR, and San Juan del Sur recorded 93.5 percent hotel occupancy in 2025. If you are coming on those dates, book before the end of February.

We are Monkeys Travels & Tours, a private operator based in Rivas. This guide gathers the dates, the official figures with their sources and what we saw over the last two Holy Weeks, for Nicaraguan and Costa Rican families and for visitors from farther away who want the Rivas coast that week.

Holy Week 2027 dates

Day	Date	What it is
Friday of Sorrows	March 19, 2027	Day of the Jesús del Rescate procession through the streets of Rivas, per La Prensa (2024)
Palm Sunday	March 21, 2027	Liturgical start
Holy Thursday	March 25, 2027	National holiday
Good Friday	March 26, 2027	National holiday
Holy Saturday	March 27, 2027	The biggest beach day
Easter Sunday	March 28, 2027	Everyone drives home

The liturgical dates come from the 2027 calendar of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, which sets Ash Wednesday on February 10 and Easter on March 28, 2027. In 2026 Easter fell on April 5; in 2027 everything moves two weeks earlier, so March, not April, is the month to watch.

What is a holiday and how long the country rests

Article 66 of the Labor Code, as worded by Law 1118 of 2022, lists as mandatory national holidays "January 1, Holy Thursday and Good Friday, May 1 and 30, July 19, September 14 and 15, December 8 and 25". Law 1272, in force since January 20, 2026 according to García & Bodán, added four dates, none in March. Anyone who works on a holiday is paid the day with a 100 percent surcharge.

The real break is longer for the public sector. In 2026 it ran from Friday March 27, after the workday, to Tuesday April 7, according to Radio Nicaragua as reported by Ground News. In 2025, from Friday April 11 to Tuesday April 22, per Revista E&N. If the pattern repeats, in 2027 expect traffic from Friday March 19 to Tuesday March 30.

What fills up, with INTUR figures

Figure	Holy Week 2025	Holy Week 2026	Source
Visitors in the department of Rivas	909,953 (most visited destination)	1,251,750 (first place)	INTUR via News in America
Vacationers nationwide	3,610,670 traveling for recreation	5,806,819	INTUR via News in America
Hotel occupancy in San Juan del Sur	93.5 percent	not published	INTUR via News in America
Hotel occupancy in Tola and Ometepe	96.2 and 90.5 percent	not published	INTUR via News in America
Visitor entries into the country that week	64,979	74,018, with Peñas Blancas as the main entry point	INTUR via News in America

The figures come from two News in America bulletins, dated April 27, 2025 and April 12, 2026, which cite INTUR as their source. We did not find the original bulletin on INTUR's website, which is why we attribute the numbers to the publication that carries them. The National Police gave another figure for 2025, 5,348,122 people, which counts every activity in its plan.

What that means in practice: the bay beaches, Maderas, Hermosa and Remanso are full from the Friday of Sorrows, hotels in Tola and San Juan del Sur sell out first, and the San Jorge ferry has lines. In San Juan del Sur beaches we explain which ones sit farther from the crowds.

Border, roads and police operations

• Peñas Blancas. During Holy Week 2026 the Peñas Blancas, San Pancho and San Carlos posts were open from 6:00 to 23:59, according to Nica-Biz (March 26, 2026). INTUR recorded 74,018 entries into the country between March 28 and April 5, 2026, with Peñas Blancas as the main entry point. If you come from Costa Rica, send the 7-day form and read how to cross Peñas Blancas; with children, the family crossing guide.
• National Police. The 2026 summer season plan ran from March 28 to April 5, with 13,000 officers, 50,000 breathalyzer tests, speed radars and 6,000 inspections of public transport. Expect checkpoints on the Pan-American Highway and on the road to San Juan del Sur.
• Ometepe ferry. Ometepe Nicaragua states the ferry schedule is the same on holidays, Holy Week included; the lanchas do not run on Sundays. Times in the ferry guide.
• Processions. EWTN News reported on April 6, 2026 that Holy Week celebrations were confined to the inside of churches, courtyards and atriums, with no processions through the streets. The oxcart pilgrimage to Jesús del Rescate in Popoyuapa did not go out in 2024 or 2025, according to Onda Local; its last edition was 2023. There is no announcement either way for 2027. More context in festivals in Nicaragua by month.

When to book, and what

1. Lodging: as early as you can. We do not sell it, but every year we watch it sell out before any tour.
2. Transfer from Liberia or Managua: before the end of February 2027. The Liberia airport transfer runs from US$45 per person in groups of 4 to 6.
3. Day tours: before the end of February. That week the ones that leave early or get away from the bay work best: the Ometepe day from US$55, Tola beaches from US$40, the private Playa Hermosa day from US$35 and the San Juan del Sur full day from US$45, all per person in groups of 4 to 6.
4. Holy Thursday and Good Friday: banks and offices closed. Change money beforehand.

What Monkeys does that week

• A private vehicle, only your group, with a driver who knows the back roads of Rivas.
• Early departures to reach the ferry and the beaches ahead of the lines.
• Price and inclusions in writing; free cancellation up to 48 hours before.
• WhatsApp +505 8506 1173, every day from 7:00 to 20:00, including Holy Thursday and Good Friday.