best thing to do in roatan?!

[cnh05]

My boyfriend and I are going on the Carnival Legend in a couple weeks! Wondering what the best excursion to do in Roatan is? Never been there before! Open for anything!:)

[MDSue]

My boyfriend and I are going on the Carnival Legend in a couple weeks! Wondering what the best excursion to do in Roatan is? Never been there before! Open for anything!:)

To get an overall idea of all your options, I recommend the Best of Roatan tour with Victor Bodden. Basically, the will give you plenty of ideas and you can choose which you prefer. You will get your own guide for the entire day. His home is in the country and he has lots of animals to interact with. The monkees especially are a lot of fun. He also has a nice zipline there. To get an idea of what his tours are like check out his website- boddentours dot com. We have used his guides on both of our visits and have always had a great time. There are plenty of nice beaches to visit or snorkle from and other things to do.

You have to walk a bit outside the new port to get to the private tour guides, but their prices are much less than the taxi drivers that are allowed to pick you up inside the gates.

Enjoy your visit, Roatan is by far my favorite island to visit. We were on the Legend last spring. It has a great itinerary.

[Pirate's Cutie]

My boyfriend and I are going on the Carnival Legend in a couple weeks! Wondering what the best excursion to do in Roatan is? Never been there before! Open for anything!:)

 

Both Victor Boden and Rony's Tours are recommended over and over on this board. With either you will get a car and driver/guide for the day and can enjoy the island at your own pace doing only what you are interested in, just the two of you. The price is VERY reasonable! Beyond that, I hear good things about Maya Key (formerly called Fins 'n Flippers) which is a beautiful private island a 5 minute boat ride from Coxen Hole. The Legend will dock at Carnival's new cruiseport, Mahogany Bay, which is an attraction on its own. Just read the applicable threads here and see what appeals to you.

[caribbean_dream]

To get an overall idea of all your options, I recommend the Best of Roatan tour with Victor Bodden. Basically, the will give you plenty of ideas and you can choose which you prefer. You will get your own guide for the entire day. His home is in the country and he has lots of animals to interact with. The monkees especially are a lot of fun. He also has a nice zipline there. To get an idea of what his tours are like check out his website- boddentours dot com. We have used his guides on both of our visits and have always had a great time. There are plenty of nice beaches to visit or snorkle from and other things to do.

You have to walk a bit outside the new port to get to the private tour guides, but their prices are much less than the taxi drivers that are allowed to pick you up inside the gates.

Enjoy your visit, Roatan is by far my favorite island to visit. We were on the Legend last spring. It has a great itinerary.

 

I want to book a deep sea fishing excursion for DH and noticed Bodden offers this (the four of us could do the "best of" tour then send the boys on the fishing adventure while my friend and I go shopping or beach bumming)!! The prices say "2 Guests - $35 per person + $70 per hour"...does that mean the $70 is split amongst all passengers or is it $70 per hour per person?? I can always ask him directly but thought I'd get a faster response here. TIA!!

[caribbean_dream]

I want to book a deep sea fishing excursion for DH and noticed Bodden offers this (the four of us could do the "best of" tour then send the boys on the fishing adventure while my friend and I go shopping or beach bumming)!! The prices say "2 Guests - $35 per person + $70 per hour"...does that mean the $70 is split amongst all passengers or is it $70 per hour per person?? I can always ask him directly but thought I'd get a faster response here. TIA!!

 

I'll answer my own question if anyone else is interested since I emailed Victor and got a response within two hours! I found elsewhere on his web site where it said $70 per person but his email clarified to me "$70 per person NOT per hour."

[TxLnghrnz]

I'll answer my own question if anyone else is interested since I emailed Victor and got a response within two hours! I found elsewhere on his web site where it said $70 per person but his email clarified to me "$70 per person NOT per hour."

 

Don't you mean $70 per hour NOT per person? That's what we paid "years" ago -- a group of 4 of us, so each couple paid $35 for the fishing part per hour!

[MercedMike]

We absolutely love the Sante Day Spa in Roatan! It is very popular, though, and I don't know if you can get a booking at this late date.

 

Check out our review and pics at http://www.bully4.us/wcarib.html

 

Have a GREAT cruise!

[MamaParrotHead]

Tabayana Beach was WONDERFUL. It was probably my favorite stop of the entire cruise. The facilities are gorgeous, as is the water. I would go there again in a HEARTBEAT and recommend it as well. There are quite a few pictures in my album, link below in my signature. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them!

[vetpath09]

I liked Maya Key...like having your own little island.

[ShrinkinTexas]

We absolutely love the Sante Day Spa in Roatan! It is very popular, though, and I don't know if you can get a booking at this late date.

 

Check out our review and pics at http://www.bully4.us/wcarib.html

 

Have a GREAT cruise!

 

I second Sante Day spa! I have pictures on here in a different post. Might have to search but they are really good and snorkeling is wonderful here.

[Cayoooga]

My boyfriend and I are going on the Carnival Legend in a couple weeks! Wondering what the best excursion to do in Roatan is? Never been there before! Open for anything!:)

We've been to Roatan a few times. The best excursion to date was Upachaya Snorkel Tour. Roatan is known for the reefs off shore. Subway water sports also has snorkelling for cruise ship passengers. As for Victor Bodden we've used him twice, first time was great, second time was very disapointing. It really depends on the driver you end up with. There are a few zipline operators on the island, some better then others. Ziplines are popular most places, so I'd recommend snorkelling on the north side of the island away from West End and all the cruise ship passengers.

[styxscottii]

When we we're there we spent the day at Paya Bay Resort. They picked us up at the dock and brought us back there in the afternoon. Spent the day on their beach and snorkeling. Luch and drinks were included in the price. Don;t recall what it cost exactly, but was very reasonable.

 

Scott

[barbaraanne]

Hi, I've been posting on the Roatan board, but it doesn't get much action, and the reviews contradict each other. We're getting down to our last two weeks now, and trying to get some real answers Some say forget it, just stay on the boat there, others that it is the best port of the western Caribbean cruise on Crown.

 

There will be 3 ships in Roatan that day, with our ship being the only one at Mahogany bay.

My question is do you think with that many cruisers in port we should avoid Tabyana or West Bay beach? We had really hoped to go there, but I've been reading "too crowded" reviews lately. Some say stick with ship tours here, but other than Tabyana beach, there are none we are interested in.

 

Anyone done Fins and flippers, (now Maya Key)? We are looking for a good beach day, with maybe a little snorkeling (not all snorkeling).

 

We had planned to do an island highlights tour but wanted to spend most of our day at a nice beach, however maybe seeing more of the island is the way to go, I am totally confused at this point.

 

Any experienced Roatan cruisers care to give some advice???

 

Thank you!

Edited January 12, 2010 by Host Kat >^..^<
new thread post moved from incorrect forum by another Host & merged into thread with same title on correct forum

[mek]

Hi, I've been posting on the Roatan board, but it doesn't get much action, and the reviews contradict each other. We're getting down to our last two weeks now, and trying to get some real answers Some say forget it, just stay on the boat there, others that it is the best port of the western Caribbean cruise on Crown.

 

There will be 3 ships in Roatan that day, with our ship being the only one at Mahogany bay.

My question is do you think with that many cruisers in port we should avoid Tabyana or West Bay beach? We had really hoped to go there, but I've been reading "too crowded" reviews lately. Some say stick with ship tours here, but other than Tabyana beach, there are none we are interested in.

 

Anyone done Fins and flippers, (now Maya Key)? We are looking for a good beach day, with maybe a little snorkeling (not all snorkeling).

 

We had planned to do an island highlights tour but wanted to spend most of our day at a nice beach, however maybe seeing more of the island is the way to go, I am totally confused at this point.

 

Any experienced Roatan cruisers care to give some advice???

 

Thank you!

 

We were there last month and personally I would spend the time at Mahogany Bay if you're looking for a beach day. We did an island tour and Roatan is lovely, but not that much different from many other Caribbean islands. We were the first ship to dock there on December 1st so we didn't know what to expect and planned the tour, but after we came back from our tour we wished we had just spent the day on the beach relaxing

[tartan cruiser]

Went to Fins and Flippers last year when we were on the Valor. We really enjoyed it. DH and DS's thought the snorkeling was some of the best. Even better than Tabyanna beach ,according to them. Only about 30 people there the whole day. Very relaxing and clean. I don't snorkel but love the beach. Only negative was the sand fleas. Guess they're everywhere. We docked at the coxen hole dock last year and you could walk to the ferry that takes you to the island. From Mahogany Bay I think you have to go outside the gates and get a shuttle or taxi. I heard it's about $10 each way. Add that to the $30 fee and it's about $50pp. Still worth it IMHO. We plan to go again this year on our NCL Jewel cruise because they dock so close to the ferry. On our Crown Princess cruise I think we'll try Mahogany bay. Hope this helps. I'll try to answer any other questions you have.

[Jenbo57]

Rent a car and see the island for yourself! The island is small, and there's basically only one main road, so it's very, very easy to get around. We ate lunch at a fabulous little hole-in-the-wall restaurant, looked at property to buy, spent some time at West Bay...it was awesome!

 

Can't wait to head back there later this year. Roatan is beautiful, if you make an effort to get out there and see it.

[klmorg]

Just got back from the Legend cruise last week. LOVED Roatan! We went ziplining with South Shore Canopy (thru Island Marketing). All I can say is... AMAZING!!! Very safe (double zips), great guides who take your camera and take tons of pictures, transportation to West Bay Beach afterwards with a free drink coupon, etc. What a beautiful place, and an awesome excursion.

[yoyocruiser]

I'll echo the sentiments about Sante Day Spa. It is incredible! We did not even do any of the diving or snorkeling as the weather was not good. However, the spa is an absolute experience beyond compare. The place is totally beautiful, Angela is fantastic, the treatments are superb, and the ambience and total experience are completely relaxing.

 

yoyocruiser

[DivingCruiser]

Hi, I've been posting on the Roatan board, but it doesn't get much action, and the reviews contradict each other. We're getting down to our last two weeks now, and trying to get some real answers Some say forget it, just stay on the boat there, others that it is the best port of the western Caribbean cruise on Crown.

 

There will be 3 ships in Roatan that day, with our ship being the only one at Mahogany bay.

My question is do you think with that many cruisers in port we should avoid Tabyana or West Bay beach? We had really hoped to go there, but I've been reading "too crowded" reviews lately. Some say stick with ship tours here, but other than Tabyana beach, there are none we are interested in.

 

Anyone done Fins and flippers, (now Maya Key)? We are looking for a good beach day, with maybe a little snorkeling (not all snorkeling).

 

We had planned to do an island highlights tour but wanted to spend most of our day at a nice beach, however maybe seeing more of the island is the way to go, I am totally confused at this point.

 

Any experienced Roatan cruisers care to give some advice???

 

Thank you!

 

Please don't spend the day on the boat, you will kick yourself in the tail for doing so! Roatan is a gem that I've fallen in love with. I've been to Roatan both for a week long vacation (and booked to go back this May) and on a cruise this past October on the Carnival Valor (which was still docking in Coxen Hole at the time). From what I heard, Mahogany Bay is completely owned by Carnival, so you'd get Carnival's take on what is best about Roatan. By getting out of the immediate area of the port to another place on the island, you'll get a better chance to see why this is a small slice of paradise.

 

Maybe consider doing a mix of tour/beach time. I'm a diver and dove with Bananarama on my cruise stop (West Bay Beach) but my parents booked the private island excursion with Rony and LOVED it! I know they'll build in beach time for private excursion as well. IMHO, the better snorkeling on the island is off of West Bay beach, yes it will have crowds but is the best for that option. The reef comes right into the shore and at the far end of the beach there is some fantastic snorkeling which I'll do during my surface intervals from diving. It is part of the marine park, so caution is needed when snorkeling, i.e. please don't be "that guy" who decides to stand on the coral in the shallow water:-) Couldn't believe it when I saw it, but a couple of marine park volunteers in kayaks were quick to correct the guy.

 

West Bay Beach is also the prettiest beach on the island, Half Moon Bay is another nice one. Sandy Bay is a little more rocky and there is some sea grass if that bothers you. West End isn't much of a beach, but has shops and restaurants. I don't know much about French Harbor, but they've recently opened some stuff out that way. If you do go out to West Bay, Celeste's (across the main road from the beach) has really good baledas (a local dish) at reasonable prices.

 

Please don't just stay on the ship, Roatan is a lovely place and keeping in mind that Honduras is a poor nation, could use the tourist dollars as well. A lot of places will accept US dollars in addition to the local currency, lempira.

[Marla from NH]

My husband and I are going on our fourth cruise in February, 2020 on Harmony of the Seas. We've been on the Allure twice, absolutely loved it, and have decided to try the Harmony. I know it's a bit far into the future, but we really liked the itinerary this cruise has to offer. Any feedback from those who have already sailed on the Harmony?

 

Norwegian Majesty

Allure of the Seas

Allure of the Seas