Roatan?? Comments and Suggestions Please

[At Sea 4Ever]

Never been before and wondering if it's worth getting off the ship? Is it a safe and clean port? Any places we should visit? We enjoy beaches and snorkeling! Is it a better port than Belize?

 

 

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[Clarea]

Never been before and wondering if it's worth getting off the ship? Is it a safe and clean port? Any places we should visit? We enjoy beaches and snorkeling! Is it a better port than Belize?

Excellent snorkeling in Roatan.

[packedandready]

Check out Victor Bodden Tours....several options available. Have used him twice and will probable again for our next cruise.

[cb at sea]

Aside from Grand Cayman, the Caribbean Islands/Countries are pretty poor. Safe? Sure...as safe as anywhere. Clean? As clean as poor nations tend to be.

 

Get you a guidebook from your library, or google it...info is the key to having a good time!

[Brit-Cruiser]

We like to wander on our own rather than take tours. This is the only port where we have not felt safe, after 10 minutes, we went back to the ship. Not a pleasant experience. We were glad we had followed the cruise compass advice & removed all our jewellery.

[mickev99]

When we went in Dec 2013, we zip lined with South Shore Ziplining, it was absolutely amazing. I wouldn't recommend it for small children as they are not hooked in at all times.

 

I just read a review of Little French Key, which is where I will definitely go if we ever go to Honduras again. Here is the link. It should take you directly to the page, but if not, it starts on page 15, post 293. This person does detailed reviews with a lot of great photos. Snorkeling and beaches sound fantastic here!

[QTBabyNurse]

We roamed around the port area on our own where there were some shops and felt completely safe. We also went ziplining at a place not too far (walking distance) from the port and had a wonderful time!

[tdk]

We have been there for a week dive trip and once by cruise ship for the day. We have always felt safe. They have spent millions on their new port area. They have a beach very close with free beach chairs. They also have chairs umbrellas and cabanas you can rent for the day. Great port for snorkel and dive activities.

[Sat1]

Was there in Dec 2013, the "Visitors Village, or Port City" inside a security fenced area, no problems or beggars. I walked outside, and was approached bt a few, but a "no thanks" and kept on walking. Again, no problems. Enjoy it all.

[wieslaw]

Never been before and wondering if it's worth getting off the ship? Is it a safe and clean port? Any places we should visit? We enjoy beaches and snorkeling! Is it a better port than Belize?

 

 

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Hi,

there are hundreds of comments and suggestions in the threads in the Roatan section :

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=27

 

BTW. We walked from the ship (Vision) to the Cameo factory and back. No one bothered us, we felt comfortable.

[NightOne]

Never been before and wondering if it's worth getting off the ship? Is it a safe and clean port? Any places we should visit? We enjoy beaches and snorkeling! Is it a better port than Belize?

 

 

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In my opinion: always get off the ship in every port and don't let people talk you out of it.

 

When I go there I plan to go to this place:

 

http://www.littlefrenchkey.com/

[cruise2snorkel]

When we went in Dec 2013, we zip lined with South Shore Ziplining, it was absolutely amazing. I wouldn't recommend it for small children as they are not hooked in at all times.

 

I just read a review of Little French Key, which is where I will definitely go if we ever go to Honduras again. Here is the link. It should take you directly to the page, but if not, it starts on page 15, post 293. This person does detailed reviews with a lot of great photos. Snorkeling and beaches sound fantastic here!

 

 

The link didn't show up?

[Kik35]

Never been before and wondering if it's worth getting off the ship? Is it a safe and clean port? Any places we should visit? We enjoy beaches and snorkeling! Is it a better port than Belize?

 

 

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While we rarely book ship excursions, we did book Maya Key through RC(only way you could book, not privately:(). Nice beach day with buffet lunch and very good snorkeling.

[SueW]

In my opinion: always get off the ship in every port and don't let people talk you out of it.

 

When I go there I plan to go to this place:

 

http://www.littlefrenchkey.com/

 

 

This place is a great place, a little slice of heaven!! My sister and I went there a few years ago. I booked directly with the company and it included transportation and a very tasty lunch.

 

They had various animals (monkeys, parrots etc) as they are a wildlife refuge.

 

Check out TripAdvisor for reviews. (Not sure if I can say this) Oh well.

 

Sue

[American Bear]

Never been before and wondering if it's worth getting off the ship? Is it a safe and clean port? Any places we should visit? We enjoy beaches and snorkeling! Is it a better port than Belize?

 

 

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Not a great port, but OK!:)

Much better then Belize which is the worst port in the western Caribbean!:eek:

[kontraxed]

We went to Little French Key and really enjoyed it. It was not offered by Princess Cruises so we booked it directly with Little French Key. They have a van pick you up at the port and drive you to their boat dock (about a 10-15 minute drive). You pay your balance owed there and then they have a boat that gives you a ride out to their island (five minute boat ride). Rather than try to tell you everything they offer, I suggest you google their website. It was a wonderful way to spend the day!

[Ladysilver]

We've been to Roatan several times. Fantasy Island Resort and Maya Key are our favorites. :D

[Tony O]

DW and I did not feel safe there. After a few minutes beyond the fenced area we decided for our own safety to return to the ship as well as many others. Very poor country and very underdeveloped infrastructure.

No desire ever to cruise there again.

 

 

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[sun_lovin!1]

I would go on another cruise with Roatan as a stop in a heartbeat. My family of 5 were just there in December 2014. We went ziplining with South Shore Zipline, then enjoyed some beach time and then some shopping. I ended up getting separated from my family and ended up going back to the ship alone. I never felt unsafe for even a moment.

 

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[mickev99]

The link didn't show up?

 

Well, that would be because I can't keep one thought in my head until I'm on to the next one!! Sorry about that. Here's the link. She also reviews Maya Key which someone else posted about. Just go to the bottom of one of her posts and she has all of the places that she's visited. Tons of great information in each one.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2130767&page=15

[RN4Nsy]

Likewise, We used Victor Bodden tours. So much fun. We have also rented a taxi for the day, negotiated a price and then asked the driver to take us places he would take his own family to lunch, then buy his lunch. Nice way to learn from truly local people.

 

Enjoy your Cruise!

[The Sunset Glow]

We don't usually do excursions from the ship but we did one in Roatan. It was actually a decent price for what you got.

 

It was a beach snorkel tour to Tabanyana/West Bay beach with a snorkel tour and lunch included. They take you out snorkelling (right from the beach - no boat required) and once you've had a guided tour you can go back on your own as much as you want.

 

The reef is awesome - best snorkelling we've done! Food was pretty good and the beach was very nice. Drinks were a decent price as well. The only thing we didn't like were the beach vendors but if you ignore them it's not so bad. We'd do it again.

[bighairtexan]

For a tour I'd suggest Rony's Tours. Very reasonable even though we did it w/ just 2 people last time we toured.

Also for beach:

West End

West Bay

Bananarama

Mayan Princess/San Simon Beach Club

 

Good diving, snorkeling and good beaches.

Like Belize there is much of a "3rd world" feel and some grinding poverty outside the port area, if you do a tour. It is what it is. Don't let that stop you from enjoying it. Lovely welcoming people.

[trouble1964]

Victor Bodden is the way to go! I think we paid less than $100 for the 2 of us a couple of years ago for about 6 hours. You tell the driver where you want to go, and he will take you there. He will also take you places that are very scenic for photos, and show you some things you won't see anywhere else.

 

At some of the photo stops, we were approached by people selling things but a "no thank you" turned them away with no problem. At one place we were approached by a group of about 5 young men asking for money to pose for pictures with a monkey. Our driver said something to them and they moved on without another word.

 

We did the botanical gardens on our own and I think we were the only people there. We did walk up on some young guys with a machete who were obviously not supposed to be there, because they weren't too happy to see us. They had a dog with them and I petted the dog and asked if I could take a picture of their cashews that they were harvesting, and they complied with no problem. Then they just seemed to melt back into the trees.

[1interpreter]

We will be stopping here on our Next cruise on the Navigator in May. We will have our youngest daughter with is (will be 10 yrs old) so probably won't get to do much activities. I would like to go to the beach maybe and do some shopping. Interesting to hear about not wearing any jewelry. Our last cruise took us to Montego Bay where we did not feel 100% safe. I have no desire to go back there again. My daughter and I both had hair that is about mid back length. Would you suggest that we put it up in a bun or something? When we were in Montego Bay my middle daughter had hair down to her waist and when we were shopping these three women grabbed her (one on each arm and one around her waist) and practically dragged her into their shop so they could braid her hair. It freaked her out pretty bad and is not an experience I want to have happen again. Suggestions?