A Supplement and an Update
ComputerGuy and others inspired me, so here is an update and a supplement based on my experience from April 19th to April 21st, 2007.
Spanish is essential in Managua. The exchange rate is still 18 Cordobas to one Dollar.
The taxi drivers wearing red shirts waiting outside the airport charged me 17 Dollars for the 20 to 25 minute ride to La Rotunda Rubén Darío. Upon leaving, my hotel arranged the same ride in reverse for 15 Dollars.
Club Fenix - This is a bar with women available on site located about 100 meters east of the roundabout that has the statue of Christ standing on a ball with arms outstretched (La Rotunda Christo Rey). For navigation purposes, the statue faces (basically) west, away from Fenix and toward the Mall (El Metro Centro), which is only maybe one kilometer up the road at the next big roundabout, which is La Rotunda Rubén Darío. It's walkable, but I, personally, would not make this particular walk after about nine p. m. for safety reasons. Fenix (pronounced FAY-neex) has kind of a Tiki bar theme, with little neon signs shaped like bottles of Corona outside. It's a larger place, very near to the large, green, neon sign that says "Llantas Kelly." There is no entry fee, and the girls are 200 Cordobas for 30 minutes or 400 Cordobas for 60 minutes. Two of the women asked for an additional 100 Cordobas for oral sex without a condom. The service was good. At midnight on a Thursday there were about 15 women there, including 5 to my taste (petite). There were only a few guys there then, but on Saturday night at midnight there were about 30 women there and probably 30 or 40 guys. Pay at the little desk up front in advance of services. I was told by several people that Fenix is open 24 hours a day, but I doubt they are open on Sunday.
Cueto Club (CC) - I thought this strip bar ("Night club") might have closed based on another report, but I passed it on the way from the airport to my hotel and saw that it was open. There is a square "Victoria Beer" sign out front that reads "Cueto Club." I was not charged an entry fee, and it is not a high-sales-pressure (or particularly high quality) place. At about eleven o'clock on a Thursday night there were about ten women there, but only about two to my taste. The others were too chunky for me. I was charged 4 Dollars for a Pepsi, and I was told that services were available on site for 600 Cordobas for 45 minutes.
Caribbean Morena - This is a bar with women available on site located on the same main road that Fenix is on, about 1 kilometer east of Fenix. There is no entry fee. There is a square "Victoria Beer" sign out front that reads "Morena Bar" or "Bar Morena" or something like that. I believe they are open from about ten in the morning to two or three in the morning. On a Thursday night at about 10 there were five women available, but none to my taste. On the following Friday morning at about 11:30 there was only one woman available, and she was quite nice. The service was acceptable, and she was fully unimpressed with my 100 Cordoba tip. Gina, the manager (and perhaps owner), a dark-skinned woman with a bright smile and beautiful hair in small braids (probably extensions), speaks English. The price used to be 400 Cordobas for an hour, but she told me that she has had to raise her prices, so I was charged 500 Cordobas for an hour.
Street action - South from La Rotunda Rubén Darío runs La Carretera a Masaya, which is kind of the main drag. Within about a kilometer or two, one may find a dozen or so women starting at about nine o'clock in the evening. Some were quite acceptable. I was quoted 400 Cordobas for an hour, but I imagine one could pretty easily bargain down from there.
Elite - This high-pressure, top-quality strip bar could be in Miami. It is located across the street (La Carretera a Masaya) from the Mall (El Metro Centro) and a bit south (not even a kilometer). The entry fee is 13 Dollars, which gets you three drinks for yourself. Drinks for the ladies, with tax included, are 17.50 Dollars. On an early Friday morning there were about 25 women there, and none of them were south of seven. I didn't even ask how expensive the services would be. There is no reason to go to this over-priced strip bar (or others like it in Managua like "Hollywood" or "Diamond Club") other than to try to get phone numbers for later, off-premises action.
Vale Todo - This high-pressure strip bar is located in a barrio named Moñsenor Lezcano, which is about two or three kilometers North-west of La Rotunda Rubén Darío. I was not charged an entry fee, drinks for patrons were three Dollars, and drinks for the ladies were ten Dollars. I was told that services were available on site for $100 per hour. There were a number of interesting prospects here, and a good floor show, but I believe that a particular manager seated himself near my table and watched me intently. I think at least one woman wanted to give me her number, but she could not touch my phone or the pencil I offered. When I left, I made eye-contact with that manager, who also stood up and retreated into the back area.
27 de Mayo - This lower-pressure strip bar, kind of like Cueto Club, is also located toward el barrio Moñsenor Lezcano but not quite as far from La Rotunda Rubén Darío as Vale Todo. I was not charged an entry fee, and before I could pay for my first drink, the electricity went out, so I left. This place, however, has promise and should be added to the list. There is square sign out front with the name on it.
Claudia's - This "belleza" (cat house masquerading as a beauty parlor) is located right around the corner from Vale Todo, in a residential area. There is a red "14" above the door. I arrived at about nine o'clock on a Friday night, and there were four or five guys standing around the front door. One of them explained that there was a considerable wait for any services because there were twice as many guys present as women. From the look of things, it seemed he was telling the truth, so my driver and I left.
Venus Super Club - This medium-pressure strip bar is located almost across the street from Aqui Polancos, which is located out toward the airport but South a bit. There is a sign out front with the name on it, and it is a pretty nice two-story building. I was not charged an entry fee. A beer was 40 Cordobas, a drink was 60 Cordobas, and drinks for the ladies were the same price. Most of the ladies were too chunky for me, but one of the chunksters brought me a delicious little petite number at my request. I was charged 65 Dollars for one hour with this quite nice young woman in a quite nice room (with an octagonal bed). The price was a bit high (half way between Fenix and Vale Todo), but this turned out to be the highlight of the trip. Note, however, that when my new friend and I came back down from upstairs, the place was filled with inebriated locals. It was a little tense, but it didn't seem too dangerous to me (I think I was the only Anglo in the place, and I had the hottest talent on my arm). I was surprised when my driver later explained that he would not use the restroom at Venus at that hour in that crowd for fear that he would be robbed once he had his pants down.
Hotel Casa Real - 278-3838, with a 24 hour desk that is guest-friendly and $75/night for a decent double. I'm sure discretion is appreciated because they have straight civilian guests here as well. They have a website and they honored my reservation. I don't believe that Hotel El Almendro is guest-friendly.
On one night, I used the same "Johnny" the cab driver that ComputerGuy used. PM me if you want his number. He charged me eight Dollars per hour.
I walked La Carretera a Masaya as late as two in the morning, but I almost got in trouble doing that and I don't think it's advisable. Walking up off the strip to the 24-hour Esso gasoline station and convenience store at that hour was fine (I was a surprising curiosity), but I could not then safely walk away. I do believe a small group of street teens (some of whom were a bit older) that were hanging around would have followed me. In fact, they came close to mobbing my taxi as I left. As others have said, situational awareness is a must, and it is silly to take risks when a short taxi ride costs about one Dollar.
