Masaya has two spots you will likely take the bus from. One is mainly chicken buses and the other is for UCA buses.
Masaya to Managua – Chicken bus
The main bus terminal in Masaya is at the Estacion de Autobuses Mercado Municipal. Ordinary buses to Managua leave every 30 minutes from 5:30am-9pm. 13C$, 1hr.+ (there is also an expreso bus which takes less than an hour for 15C$). You arrive at the Mercado Roberto Huembes terminal. You can also find microbuses to Jinotepe here. Note that there are both regular and expreso buses heading to Managua. Ask around to find the faster one as it is only 2C$ more.
Masaya to Managua – Microbus
Microbuses heading to the UCA in Managua leave from a small station about a half block down the street in front of the Parque San Miguel. You can walk between this and the Mercado Municipal in under 10minutes. Microbuses leaves when full and they cost 19C$ and take 1hr. Halfway through the trip the bus will pass the entrance to the Parque Nacional Volcan Masaya so if you’re getting off here try to sit close to the front.
Masaya to Matagalpa
There are only two express buses that leave early morning – 6am and 6:45am. They do not operate on Thursdays or Sundays. The trip takes 2.5hrs and costs 85C$.
Masaya to Rivas
The buses pass on route 4 and stop at the Puma gas station near the roundabout. There is one every hour, on the hour. The cost is 45C$ and takes about 2hrs.
Tip from a traveller
Tony says: One less visited spot in Masaya is the Malecon. It features a nice panoramic view of the Laguna de Masaya (do not confuse with the Laguna de Apoyo). You can get there by taking route 80 from the central park. It’s C$4. However, there are only two buses running this route, so you may wait a while. Alternatively, you can walk the eight blocks. It is a straight line from the park, but the way is isolated. I took a taxi to get back to the park and was charged C$20. The ride took less than 5 minutes.
Help your fellow traveller
If you have taken any of the buses on this page, please drop us a comment below about how the trip went, what time you left, how long it took and what it cost. And, definitely let us know if we have anything wrong.
Lets help each other in our travels!
Some updates.
Microbus from Managua UCA to Masaya cost now 23 Cordobas.
Microbus from Leon to Managua UCA cost now 71 Cordobas.
Microbus from Esteli to Leon cost 100 Cordobas.
Masaya => Laguna De Apoyo
There are 3 buses a day that leave masaya from the main bus terminal which is in the main mercado. Look for buses with ‘La Laguna’ written on the bus/destination board.
Times: 05:30, 10:30, 15:30
Cost: 15 Cordobas
Duration: ±1 hour
This bus goes all the way down to the lake. Tell the driver or ayudante where you are staying and they will drop you right in front.
Since the bus is so infrequent it fills to maximum capacity, nica style. It is recommended to board the bus at least 15-30 minutes before if you have large bags or want a garaunteed seat.
Enjoy relaxing on the lake ! 🙂
Hi I was just wondering which bus terminal the bus from Masaya to Matagalpa was at and if it was possible to leave early Saturday from Granada to connect with that bus? Thank you
We got a bus to Masaya today from San Jorge port, right where we got off the Ometepe ferry. It was there at 12:30 when we got off, but didn’t leave until around 13:30 (maybe it would have left earlier if it had been fuller?). Passed by the Puma gas station mentioned in another comment and dropped us on the edge of Masaya. Taxi or 15 minute walk to the centre. Bus took around 2hrs and cost C$ 75 each.
Hi, I took the bus this morning from Masaya to Rivas. The buses pass on route 4 and stop at the Puma gas station near the roundabout. There is one every hour, on the hour. I took the 8 o’clock one and the journey lasted 2 hours. The cost is 45c.
Thanks for the contribution, Sebastien!! I have added your helpful advice above.
We took a 10am bus today from Masaya’s main terminal to Lago de Apoyo! 10c each including backpacks stored at the back. We were told by our guesthouse host that there was just this bus to the Lago in the morning, but we didn’t check. It didn’t go all the way down to the front of the lake, so we walked the final 2k downhill. Will let you know if we manage to find out the bus back!
Hola, ¿Ah qué hora sale el bus a Estelí?
I went today back and forth from Metrocentro in Managua to Masaya. The microbus is C19.00 now. It still takes one hour. I also noticed the microbus stopped in front of the entrance to the Parque Nacional Volcan Masaya exactly half way through the trip. If you are going to the volcano, you probably want to seat close to the door as the microbus is always full. I also noticed the helper was charging a USD$1 bill along with all the cordobas, so it may be possible to pay in dollars, but I’ve never tried it.
One less visited spot in Masaya is the Malecon. It features a nice panoramic view of the Laguna de Masaya (do not confuse with the Laguna de Apoyo). You can get there by taking route 80 from the central park. It’s C$4. However, there are only two buses running this route, so you may wait a while. Alternatively, you can walk the eight blocks. It is a straight line from the park, but the way is isolated. I took a taxi to get back to the park and was charged C$20. The ride took less than 5 minutes.
I forgot to add I didn’t see restrooms at the Microbus station near Parque San Miguel, but I did see some for 5C$ at the central park, which is a 5-10 minute walk from San Miguel.
Tony! Another excellent contribution, thank you! I have added your info. Thanks for catching my mistake on the price and time. I had it updated on the UCA page but not here. You rock!
Only last week did we visit Masaya from Granada and walked from the bus terminal to the Parque Central and then down to the Malecon. I agree, a very peaceful spot to view the lake. We also walked back and it didn’t take long. Some good hammock shops by the baseball stadium.
I took in mai 17 the chickenbus from masaya to granada. Took me about 1h, in granada it stopped south of market. BUT the first time in my travel in central america happen that i had to pay for my big backbag on the roof. Busride 10C$ and backbag 5C$, still really cheap but i think not the way it should go. Same happen after from granada to rivas, there half bus full of tourists. Price 32C$, + 8C$, becouse alot tourist just payed it, i couldnt argue and had to pay aswell.
Thanks for letting us know. I keep hearing about this more and more and seems to be something that is new – since I have never until this year had to pay extra for bags but suddenly had to pay double fare b/c I had a surfboard that wasnt even taking up extra space where they put it. Charging for a backpack is definitely NOT cool especially if it isn’t taking up an extra seat or preventing someone from not getting on. I am definiltey going to investigate this further. Thanks.