In the late 1990s Nicaragua, in an effort to create its own tourism industry, started looking south to Costa Rica’s boom in tourism. In 2001 the Poncon family investigated various options for the development of a tourism project on their property located on the Pacific Coast, in southern Nicaragua. They met with international experts whose recommendations included plans for a huge hotel development, possibly with a golf course and the capacity to potentially service 200 to 300 guests. The Poncon’s did not like the idea of massive development. Clemente, in an effort to ensure this would never happen, decided to plant another 30,000 trees on the area that was pointed out by the consultants as the site of a potential golf course.

In 2001 the Poncon’s contacted an ecolodge project in Costa Rica, called Lapa Rios located on the Osa Peninsula. The ecolodge embodied the type of development they could identify with. Conservation of nature, education and development of local communities were values that had always appealed to the Poncons. Lapa Rios is a world-renowned ecolodge that has received various quality and environmental awards such as Conde Nast Travler’s Reader’s Choice Awards and British Airways Tourism for Tomorrow Award.

The company that manages Lapa Rios developed a feasibility study for a 15-room ecolodge. The owners of Lapa Rios, John and Karen Lewis have also visited the project and have enjoyed seeing that their vision of sustainable tourism has inspired other people. Morgan’s Rock is managed by Cayuga Sustainable Hospitality, the same company that manages Lapa Rios therefore creating a quality seal and generating many synergies in terms of marketing, training and systems implementation.

Morgan’s Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge is a pioneer in tourism development in Nicaragua, being the first hotel seeking to combine strict ecological guidelines (following the CST, Certification for Sustainable Tourism guidelines developed in Costa Rica) and appealing to an upscale market providing high levels of service and world class facilities.

The bungalows and public areas of the hotel have been designed by Matthew Falkiner a young British architect and resident of Nicaragua. He combined local materials, traditional building styles and comfort to create one of Latin America’s most intriguing ecolodges.

Matthew and the Poncon family also co-own a furniture design and production company called the Exchange, which uses only certified and reforested woods for their products. The company currently produces some of the finest furniture in Central America. Through the Exchange local craftsmen throughout Nicaragua produce the hotel’s furniture and some items will be for sale at the hotel’s gift gallery.

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Morgan's Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge located on the Pacific Coast, in southern Nicaragua is more than just a hotel. It is a project of nature conservation, community development and reforestation offering Agro- and Ecotourism at its best. The Hacienda is located just north of San Juan del Sur, about a 30-minute drive from the Costa Rican border and an hour drive to the colonial city of Granada. It has its own private white sandy beach that is visited by sea turtles to lay their eggs and the property hosts ecosystems such as primary tropical dry forest and boasts almost the same biodiversity as the nearby La Flor National Park.

Private Bungalows with Ocean Views

Morgan's Rock Hacienda offers 15 private and west facing bungalows with views of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding forest. Most bungalows sit on a cliff overlooking the private bay and estuary. Each is carefully designed to emphasize a natural lodging experience, while offering shelter from the elements. All bungalows feature one king size bed and a comfortable sofa bed, hammocks, an open-air shower and a private deck. The architect used mainly local materials and the wooden furniture was custom crafted by local artisans. The bungalows are connected to the main lodge by a 100-meter suspension bridge, which crosses a natural valley. All wood construction material comes from the hacienda’s sustainable planted and managed forests or from legally logged traceable wood from northern Nicaragua.

Culinary Highlights

At Morgan’s Rock Hacienda guests will have the opportunity to eat food “direct from the source.” About 75% of the food served at the hotel restaurant are produced on site at the farm. Menus consist of tropical, organic and fresh cuisine featuring the use of local fruits, vegetables, and seafood. The local fishing grounds provide fresh fish and lobster, organic shrimp is raised at the hacienda, and the farm is almost self-sufficient in terms of producing grains and vegetables. The hacienda also provides fresh whole milk from their own stock of dairy cattle and also serves free-range meat products. The coffee comes from the owner’s coffee plantations in Matagalpa in northern Nicaragua.

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Unwind, relax, and enjoy this exotic and peaceful southern Nicaraguan paradise overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Hacienda Morgan’s Rock offers a variety of half and full day tours. Nature tours take guests to the Hacienda’s various ecosystems such as the primary tropical dry forest, secondary forest, hardwood plantations, pastures, untouched beaches and hills overlooking volcanoes, Lake Nicaragua and the Pacific Ocean. Cultural tours take visitors to the colonial town of Granada.

Activities and tours include:

• Catch & Release Sport Fishing
• Diving
• Dolphin & Whale Watching
• Sunrise Estuary Kayaking
• Sunset Sea Kayaking
• Riverbed Nature Walk
• The Magic of Reforestation
• Twin Volcano Overnight Tour
• Snorkeling
• Horseback Riding Excursion
• Baby Sea Turtle Tour
• Mountain Bike Adventure
• Nicaragua Canal Tour
• Granada, Handicrafts & Volcanoes
• Granada, Mombacho & Isletas
• Nicaragua Culture & History Tour

 All guided tours at Hacienda Morgan’s Rock support local community members and help the conservation of the forest and the acquisition of more land to be conserved and reforested.

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• Catch & Release Sportfishing

The Poncon family owns Morgan’s Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge located on the Pacific Coast, in southern Nicaragua. They purchased the farm where the Ecolodge is located in 1998 and began a large-scale reforestation and conservation project. A section of the farm with the most primary rainforest left standing was immediately declared a private forest reserve. The squatters that lived on the farm who hunted wildlife, cut down trees and stole turtle eggs were convinced to leave the property or to start on the farm’s payroll as employees. To stop hunting in the forest and to protect the sea turtle eggs, guards were hired in conjunction with the local police to patrol the beach during nesting season to ensure that the baby sea turtles hatch and make it safely to the sea.

Within five years of buying the farm over one million native hardwood and fruit trees were planted for tree farming purposes and for the enrichment of the local flora and fauna. As a result of these ecological and conservation practices more wildlife has returned to the farm and Morgan’s Rock has seen an increase in the hatchling of sea turtles. Iguanas have also been successfully reintroduced and there’s been more frequent sightings of sloths, and howler-, spider- and white face monkeys. A recent study revealed that the Hacienda hosts almost the same amount of wildlife as the nearby La Flor National Park. Furthermore, traditional agricultural techniques are used to work the farm and a variety of crops such as rice; corn and yucca are raised organically.

In 2002, the farm’s tree farming and reforestation activities were certified by The Forest Stewardship Council, a non-profit organization committed to the conservation, restoration and protection of the world’s working forests. This means that the farm now produces “certified wood” and fulfills a variety of environmental and social requirements following international standards.

Ecotourism is defined as responsible travel to natural places, which conserves the environment and sustains the well being of the local people. Morgan’s Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge's approach to ecotourism is not only to provide a great vacation experience for guests, but to make the project a model for the local community to understand how conservation can improve their lives and meet their economic needs. 

Agro-tourism is a concept of tourism involving the local communities and exhibiting traditional ways of agriculture that has been known throughout the continent of Europe for decades. Morgan's Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge provides a unique agro-tourism experience in Latin America that entails tree farming and reforestation as well as organic and traditional agriculture.

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The Poncon family owns Morgan’s Rock Hacienda and Ecolodge located on the Pacific Coast, in southern Nicaragua. Clemente and Claire Poncon, originally from the south of France near Marseille, first came to Nicaragua in 1974. Clemente, on assignment from the French government to provide aid in agricultural issues worked as an international agronomist.

The Sandinista Revolution in the 1980s forced them to relocate to Costa Rica. In 1992, after a democratic government was in place, they decided to return to Nicaragua to settle down. Clemente said that after visiting over 70 tropical countries around the world, he was most intrigued by Nicaragua and the friendly people he had met. He started to invest in agriculture ventures such as coffee, flowers, lemons and reforestation projects of local hardwoods. Today he heads a team of over 1,000 workers and runs farms in the north, center and south of the country.

Community Development

Claire Poncon is the driving force behind the NicaFrance Foundation. The foundation, supported by local and international companies, works on sustainable development projects in Nicaragua, which mostly involve children and education. Current efforts are concentrated in northern Nicaragua, but with the opening of Morgan’s Rock Hacienda & Ecolodge, the foundation is searching for projects in the San Juan del Sur and Rivas area close to the new hotel. 

Some of the successful work done by the foundation includes improvements of schooling conditions, which has resulted in higher enrollment and lower absentee rates. Thanks to the foundation’s work in the area of Matagalpa, over 600 children get fed in school every day. Another important part of the foundation’s efforts is education in hygiene and health and by introducing septic systems and regularly scheduled doctor visits. Most recently the foundation has helped to set-up a local community bread baking program and also supports a traditional folk dance group. Currently one of the biggest challenges facing the foundation is the supply of clean drinking water to the community. For more information about the foundation, please contact Claire Poncon at fundnicf@ibw.com.ni.

The Poncon’s oldest son Eric has been one of the driving forces behind the Morgan’s Rock lodging project. He is also the founder of the sailing project for children on Lake Nicaragua on the Granada shore called Optimistas de Nicaragua.

Nicaragua is the largest and most centrally located of the Central American republics. It equals England and Wales in size and is known for its intriguing scenery and friendly people. The landscape is filled with an abundance of lakes, rivers, colonial cities, untouched forests, sandy beaches and some of the greatest concentration of volcanoes and inland bodies of water in the world.

Today, Nicaragua is a county made for tourism. Its rich history, friendly people and dramatic landscapes are waiting to be explored. Its exuberant geography is a land of poets and artists. Nicaraguan culture flourished during colonial times and Ruben Dario is currently known as the “Prince of Spanish – American Literature”. His writings inspired modern poetry movements and literary currents. Today's visitors to Nicaragua will be rewarded with unforgettable memories and an authentic travel experience.

Is Nicaragua Safe to Travel?

Yes. Nicaragua, as a developing nation, has been blessed by relatively low levels of crime. And what crime there is has been “local” to the very remote northern parts of the country, and never directed at tourists.

The property where Hacienda Morgan’s Rock is located on the Pacific Coast, in southern Nicaragua is completely protected from public access and very safe. There are nature guardians stationed along the beach to ensure the security of the sea turtles and to discourage illegal hunting.

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