Very rustic accommodations (and we stayed in the "Grand Casista", the nicest digs!) but liked the raw feel of the island and the intimate, warm welcome of the resort. Especially loved the communal dinners each night made by the American chef. Honesty bar was great too... we used wipe boards to track how many drinks we had! Brilliant!

The shacks at Casa Iguana, although clean and well situated, are just that: shacks. I cannot imagine why it costs so much money to rent a shack when the average MONTHLY salary of a worker in Nicaragua is $150 US dollars. The American owners of this place are charging a fortune for something that in my opinion is worth between 10 and 15 dollars per night.

Also the food is a complete rip off. 6 US dollars for breakfast, 7.50 for lunch, and 17 for dinner. And you really have very little choice in the matter as you cannot cook for yourself.

In addition, there is no internet as advertised.

We stayed in the basic room (no shower or wc) for three nights. The rooms were as clean and functional as you could hope for an eco lodge. The only downfall is there is no fans available which can lead to the odd restless night.

The service was excellent, no wonder as there always seemed to be more staff than residents on hand to help.

The one real snag was the meal service. Only a three course $16 meal was available which was way out of our budget so we passed it up on most nights. If you do try the set meal though, you will not be dissappointed, as the food was 1st class.

Casa Iguana is the kind of place that, if you’re not married already, you’ll want to plan your wedding at! We met a couple actually planning to hire the whole place for the occasion next February, and once you meet the awesome staff it’s easy to see why… not to mention those views from the Lodge decking. My first thought about the beach here was “Paloma Beach, Goa, 30 years ago”. It’s totally unspoilt, just a long, endless line of swaying palms reaching out over the blue sea. You can even see some of the coral reefs from the beach, although don’t just look at them, make sure you dive! The guys at the Little Corn Dive shack are so much fun, we did 5 or 6 excellent dives with Kevin, Emma, CJ and the others and saw nurse and reef sharks, spotted eagle rays, even a turtle. Stunning stuff (check out my videos!). And although I’m a new diver and was a little anxious at first, they were really relaxed, which helped me to relax, and they really love what they do… as you can imagine!

We spent a week there in August (allegedly the best time to visit) and although it rained a few times (once for a whole day) the majority of time we had clear skies and scorching sunshine. Betsy met us on the dock after we arrived on the panga (not too bad of a ride thank god) and walked us to our casita – basic but what do you expect? The bed looks like it’s on a tabletop and you can look straight out onto the sea. We watched an incredible thunderstorm the first night, too – if you’re a photographer, bring the tripod, chances are you’ll get some amazing shots if you can be bothered to set it all up. I couldn’t, and I regret it!

We ate most of our meals at Casa Iguana and found the food to be the absolute best on the island – three courses for $16 and Chris the chef was fully trained at the culinary institute. You see the passion he puts into every dish. One day we paid ($50 each) to go out with Chris, the fisherman, and caught 4 huge barracudas. The next day, they were on the menu at Casa, so we got our meals for free – a nice touch. Dinner starts at 7pm and everyone sits down together so you always end up meeting other people and having some interesting chats (shout out to Tricia, a crazy Irishwoman who had us cracking up at her craic, also to Andi and Lauren!) Oh, the lunch options are limited at Casa to wraps, served with overly crunchy fries. The pulled pork wrap is delicious, but if you want options it’s best to head out elsewhere for lunch and just come back for dinners.

We tried a few different places on occasion. The shrimp in garlic with rice and plantains at the Lobster Inn was fantastic. You can generally eat a lobster dinner for about $8 most places on the island. Most of the restaurants serve the same kind of food, very fresh, fried whole fish is a must (you are by the sea!) Local beer works out to about $1 a bottle.

I should mention, if you don’t like dogs, you are going to encounter them on Little Corn, but chances are you’ll love them once you get there. They’re exceptionally clever too. Each dog assigns itself to a visitor and helps you get around the island. Ours was Bushman, who Betsy told us once saved a tourist from getting bitten by a Boa Constrictor and regularly shows up when she needs a guide home at night, even when she doesn’t call him. Quite spooky, but the locals really look after all the dogs so it’s no wonder they’ve given themselves jobs to do in return.

Don’t be upset if you can’t check your emails on Little Corn – the whole week we were there, the net wasn’t working and the man who was meant to fix it never showed up. That’s just island life, everything’s done in their own sweet time, no worries. Who needs facebook anyway, right? ;-) Things to bring… bring extra suncream, and batteries for your flashlights, and any books you want to read and then exchange, there are tons in the lodge and a few on shelves in the casitas, too.

I should also mention this. It wasn’t a big deal but on one occasion when we were eating lunch at Delphine’s (above the Dolphin Dive shop) a group of local guys were going into the bathroom two by two and coming out with obvious white powder on their noses and in their nostrils. They weren’t being noticeably obnoxious, loud or anything, but as a warning, that’s the only place we saw such things going on.

What made the trip for us, really, were the staff on the island and at Casa. Betsy, John (who founded the Little Corn Dive shop), Chris the fisherman, Jonathan, the Israeli barman and Leah, the gorgeous Dutch lady who hasn’t left the island in four years and couldn’t be happier about it. They treated us and all their guests like family, eating dinner with us, chatting to us about life in general, really sharing their interest in the place with us and making us see what it would be like to live there, and not just visit. On a rainy day we played Boggle with Leah for about 6 hours in the Lodge – warning – she’s VERY GOOD! Buy her fabulous jewelry too, necklace charms carved from coconut shells. I bought the iguana, naturally.

If anyone wants any more info about the island, or wants to see my photos / videos, please just email me! You’re going to love Little Corn, and Casa Iguana.