EXPLORING ROATAN, HONDURAS (Outside of the Cruise Port)

Roatan, Honduras is my favorite port out of all of the Caribbean ports I have visited.  Of course I'm  leaving on another cruise next month out of Puerto Rico so this may change.  Either way, Roatan is still a great port.

Carnvial has an amazing free Beach, Mahogany Bay, which is beautiful and an easy walk from the ship.  

I have spent my time in port going only to the beach and I loved it.  

The last time I went with my daughter and some friends, we hired a driver right outside of the port and for $30 a person, they carried us anywhere we wanted to go.  You can check out my video HERE.

To get outside of the port, you will want to veer left once you get through the Dufry shop (#12 on map) and walk to the courtyard.  You will want to walk to the end building with the red roof(#3 on the map).  This is the car rental and information area.

Once you arrive, there will be a lot of people trying to get your business.  Listen to what they have to offer, and if you are comfortable with the price, you will go to an officer to pay your fee.  We paid a total of $150 for 5 people and it was a bargain.

Karla was our tour guide and not only was she beautiful, she was very knowledgeable and super sweet. She works for BIPTGA  which is a tour guide service outside of the cruise port.

Don't expect everything to be beautiful and pristine outside of the cruise port.  Like many countries, there is a lot of poverty.  The roads are horrible and full of potholes.  Take Dramamine if you get car sick because there will be a lot of swerving to miss the potholes.  

The road in the photo above is the first road we took to get to a beautiful view along with some local vendor.  This is the good part of the road, it gets worse and narrower.

Some local vendors.

Below are some photos I took while driving around the island.

The wiring in Belize City is crazy.  My SIL commented on it several times wondering why it didn't cause some type of electrical fire.

TIPS:

• If you want to save money, walk outside of the port and hire BIPTGA  to carry you wherever  you want to go.  They will carry you to the beach, resorts, and anywhere that carnival would carry you on an excursion.
• Carry a beach towel with you if you plan to go to the beach.
• We wanted to go to a pretty but inexpensive beach so they carried us to Henry Morgan Beach Resort.  The cost was only $10 each to get in this beautiful place.  You can read about the resort HERE with photos.
• If you need cash, as your guides to swing by the airport where ATM machines are located
• Take motion sickness medicine along if you get car sick.  There may be a lot of swerving to avoid potholes.

• If you like your guides, tip them when you get back into port.