Nico Earhart bottoms turns into a nice lefthander near Gigante, Nicaragua
Located on the verdant Rivas peninsula, northwest of the Costa Rican border, lies the town of Playa Gigante, Nicaragua – a town that sits on the precipice of the development that has started to follow the sport of surfing around the developing world. Even thought this quiet town of just over 500 inhabitants is still primarily a fishing village, its strategic location next to three high-quality surf breaks (Playa Amarillo, Colorado’s and Manzanillo) has changed the dynamics of the town as more locals are drawn to the tourism industry as an alternative to their traditional means of support such as fishing and subsistence farming. It was my goal to find out how this new surf tourism boom had effected the Nicaraguan population of the town culturally and economically.
During a three-month stay in Playa Gigante during the summer of 2014, interviews were conducted with local Nicaraguans, to register their perceptions of surf tourism in the town. The three primary groups who were interviewed for the study were fishermen and boatmen, Nicaraguan women, and younger Nicaraguan males who had yet to enter the fishing industry. Even though it was primarily the interest of North American and European surfers that lead to the town’s increase in popularity, my concern lay with the effects upon the local population and whether or not they were seeing tangible benefits from the influx of surf tourism that had taken over their town. In all of the interviews questions were asked concerning the economic benefits from surf tourism, what surfing related developments had done for the town, and what future developments might have in store for the town as it’s popularity rose.
Surf Taxis, Playa Gigante
The results of the study presented a mixed bag as to which groups were seeing the primary benefits from surf tourism. Nicaraguan fishermen, who often own fishing boats that can double as “surf taxis,” were seeing the lion’s share of the financial benefits, but this was primarily a reinforcement of their long-established financial power hold over the town. Surf tourism provided an alternative to fishing for locals when the conditions for catching fish were poor, or when the greater financial incentive lied in taking groups of surfers out on day trips to the surrounding waves. The local women of the town, who had historically been relegated to smaller roles in the development of the community, were able to make their first entrances into earning a wage from tourism by working in local hotels, restaurants and bars. Younger males, especially those who had yet to enter the fishing industry, were also provided with new outlets to earn a wage that had been absent prior to the arrival of surf tourism in the area. It also allowed them more diverse options when it came to selecting a way to earn income, rather than just the traditional fishing industry in the area, which had previously been the main option.
In the end, the conclusion was made that the surfing waves that surround Playa Gigante were beneficial to the community, although some of the inhabitants were better suited to capitalize on the tourism boom than others – But it also provided many with their first means to enter into the cash economy of the area rather than to be relegated to the traditional means of support like fishing and farming.
To read Nico’s full thesis, contact nico.earhart@gmail.com
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