Somoto still has fewer than 10 hotels and is not a major stop on the Central American backpacker circuit. Tourists visit Somoto primarily to go tubing in the Monumento Nacional Cañón de Somoto. The Cañón de Somoto is featured on the 50 cordoba banknote and has been mentioned in both the Lonely Planet and Tripadvisor.

Somoto was settled by Olmec and Aztec peoples from Mexico, and subsequently inhabited by Chorotegas and Nicaraguas. The name Somoto originates from the Nahuatl Tépecxomotl, meaning 'Valley of Geese', while Spanish royal decrees of 1591 give the city's name as Santiago de Tepesomoto. Although the city is now universally known as Somoto, the name Tepesomoto is retained by the volcano overlooking the city to the south and its surrounding Tepesomoto-La Patasta Nature Reserve.

When someday comes you'll need to get in.

When someday comes you'll need to be able to get around.