Question 1

Roatán on Your Own

Accepted Answer

You can do Roatán on your own, but you will need a ride, because the beaches and dive shops of West End and West Bay are at the western end of the island. Take a bus or taxi to West End, walk the beach or take a water taxi to West Bay, and leave yourself time for the ride back. By bus: In the daytime, buses run about every 15 minutes between Coxen Hole and West End, leaving from opposite the market in Coxen Hole. By taxi: Agree the fare before you set off, and if it seems high, ask another driver. West End to West Bay: The walk along the beach takes about 45 minutes. Water taxis make the trip in 10 to 15 minutes, usually wait for at least four passengers, and may stop running around sunset. Getting back on time: All-aboard is usually about 30 minutes before sailing, and your ship posts the exact time. A ship will not wait for passengers touring on their own. Leave West Bay early, because it is at the western tip of the island. Watch the clock: Honduras is on Central Standard Time, six hours behind UTC, so check which clock your ship is using for all-aboard. ID and valuables: Always carry photo ID and a copy of the photo and visa pages of your passport. Petty theft happens in the Bay Islands, especially on isolated beaches, so take only what you need.

Question 2

Getting Around Roatán

Accepted Answer

A paved road runs along most of Roatán, from West Bay through West End, Sandy Bay, Coxen Hole and French Harbour to Oak Ridge, and buses and taxis use it. Beyond Punta Gorda the road turns to dirt. Buses run about every 15 minutes between Coxen Hole and West End during the day, and about every hour from Coxen Hole to Oak Ridge by way of French Harbour. There are hundreds of taxis on the island, so agree the price before you get in. From Mahogany Bay, taxis on the main road outside the port can cost less than those inside. Water taxis link West Bay and West End during daylight. From West End, the drive to Camp Bay at the far east end takes at least an hour.

Question 3

Where to Eat on Roatán

Accepted Answer

Seafood is everywhere on Roatán, and lobster and Argentine-style steak are both common on menus. The restaurants along the beach at West End cost a little more than those on the mainland. Look for the baleada, a traditional Honduran dish of a flour tortilla with mashed refried red beans, which is thought to come from the north coast around La Ceiba. Roatán has its own brewery. Prices for meals rise when cruise ships are in port.

Question 4

Garifuna Culture and Roatán's Communities

Accepted Answer

Roatán's people come from several histories: English-speaking islanders descended from British and African settlers, Spanish-speaking Hondurans from the mainland, and the Garifuna, who have their own language. Most islanders speak both English and Spanish. The Garifuna descend from people Britain deported from St. Vincent in 1797. Of more than 5,000 sent, about 2,500 survived to land on Roatán on April 12, 1797. From Roatán, Garifuna communities spread along the Caribbean coast of Central America, including Honduras, Belize and Guatemala. Island Talk is spoken by the island's native Caribbean people. Oak Ridge, toward the east end, has brightly painted wooden houses on stilts along the shore, and boatmen offer water-taxi tours around its harbor. About 110,000 people lived on Roatán in 2020, most of them in the west of the island.

Question 5

Roatán's History: Pirates, Garifuna, and the Bay Islands

Accepted Answer

Roatán passed between Spanish claims, English occupation and pirate camps for two centuries, before settlers from the Cayman Islands and the Garifuna shaped the island in the 1800s. Today it is an important diving and cruise destination for Honduras. Before Europe: The first islanders may have been related to peoples of the mainland such as the Paya, Maya, Lenca or Tolupan. Columbus, 1502: Columbus reached the neighboring island of Guanaja on his fourth voyage, and the Spanish soon began trading in the islands for slave labor. Disease brought from Europe did even greater harm. English and pirates: The English occupied the Bay Islands on and off between 1550 and 1700, and English, French and Dutch pirates used them as bases to raid Spanish treasure ships. A castaway, 1722: The fisherman Philip Ashton escaped from the pirate Edward Low on Roatán in 1722 and wrote about his year on the then-empty island. A British garrison: British soldiers held the island from 1742 to 1749, during the War of the Austrian Succession. The Garifuna, 1797: Britain deported the Garifuna from St. Vincent to Roatán in 1797, and some of them founded Punta Gorda on the north coast. Cayman settlers, 1830s: After Britain abolished slavery in 1833, former slaveholders and, in larger numbers, freed people from the Cayman Islands settled the western coast, and their descendants became the island's largest group. Back to Honduras: Britain declared the Bay Islands a colony in the 1850s and returned them to Honduras within a decade.

Question 6

Roatán with Children and Families

Accepted Answer

With children, the simplest Roatán day is a beach day at West Bay, where the reef is a short swim from the sand, with a water-taxi ride to or from West End. Older children who swim well can snorkel, and children who want to try diving can ask a dive shop about its minimum age. Younger children: Several large resorts stand on West Bay beach, and the water taxi between West End and West Bay takes 10 to 15 minutes. School age: Snorkeling from the shore at West Bay or West End puts the reef within reach. Keep children close and away from motorboats. First dive: A West End dive shop runs a one-day first-time diving program with some classroom time and a session in shallow water. Ask about minimum ages. The island also has four zip-line canopy tours. Bites: Mosquitoes bite most at dawn and dusk, and sand fleas bite along the coast, so bring a strong repellent and light long sleeves.

Question 7

Shopping on Roatán

Accepted Answer

Handicrafts are easy to find on Roatán, from Central American crafts and painted pottery to wood carvings and cigars, and the first price is the start of a haggle. Prices rise when cruise ships are in port. US dollars are accepted across the island, but change usually comes in lempiras. Use cash machines in shopping centers where you can, check them for signs of tampering, and avoid withdrawals at night.

Question 8

West Bay Beach and the Reef

Accepted Answer

West Bay, at the western end of Roatán, is a white-sand beach with the reef a short swim from shore. West End, next door, is the village of dive shops, restaurants and bars. Snorkeling is especially good near the western point of West Bay, also called Tabyana Beach. From West End, strong swimmers can head about 200 meters out toward the white buoys to a reef 10 to 30 feet deep. Watch for motorboats. Camp Bay, at the east end past Oak Ridge, is the largest natural beach in the Bay Islands, with free access at a couple of points. Sand fleas and mosquitoes bite on the coast, and sand-flea bites may not show for hours, so use a strong repellent. Take extra care on isolated beaches, where petty theft happens.

Roatán (Bay Islands), Honduras

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What Cruise Travelers Should Know About Roatán