how far are the West Bay Beaches

[pinkgusto]

Hi! I'll be in Roatan next week on the NCL spirit, and originally planned on just getting a cab to take me and my husband to the West bay beach area. Now that we get in at 3:00, I'm wondering if we have time. Does anyone know how long it takes to get to the West Bay Beaches?

 

THANK YOU! :)

[robtx100]

It is about a 30 minute drive by tour bus, but we did stop for a photo op at a hill overlooking the bay where the ship was docked. A cab may be a little quicker than the bus.

[yuki5900]

Wanted to post our experience for all of you out there who, like us, prefer to give our money to the locals, not the cruise lines and foreign-owned tour operators (not that they all are). Also I am cheap and like to experience the not-so-touristy side of things. Our destinatiion was West Bay Beach via West End/Half Moon Bay.

 

Got off the ship and made our way through all the touristy stands selling t-shirts, etc. Made it to where the local bus picks people up by asking constantly along the way for directions. Total walk maybe 15 minutes. It is a minivan, white, I think, #2 but the # is only on the back, not the front. Keep in mind that there is no bus station or stop or anything, it is just an unmarked spot that all the locals know. Also, it leaves when it gets full...we caught it right as it pulled in, then waited around 10 minutes for more people. No a/c but you can just wait outside until it's ready to leave, they know you're there. The fare was 15 lempiras, I think, a bit less than $1. We bought a soda from a stall along the way with a $5 bill and got lempiras for change for the bus, but we found out you can just use a dollar bill (no change). The ride was around 35 minutes, the same time and route as if you take a taxi since there's basically one road....ok maybe like 5 minutes slower since we stopped in Sandy Bay and once or twice to pick people up/let people off. It was us and a bunch of locals on the bus. There was a little girl behind us pointing at my husband, saying "gringo! gringo!" (I'm Asian). She was cute. She asked me in Spanish if he was my husband. No, I don't really speak Spanish...just what I've picked up travelling. Gave her and the other little boy on the bus some cookies and candy.

 

You can tell when you get to West End because all of a sudden the road has water (Half Moon Bay) on the right and shops and restaurants on the left. You can get out wherever you want....we waited until the end of the road (literally), where I knew the bus turned around for the return trip. We then walked back to the beginning of town, probably a 15 minute walk if you're moseying but not stopping everywhere. West End has a beach, Half Moon Bay, but it's nothing special. You can snorkel here but we didn't, since I knew West Bay Beach was better. This area is where backpackers hang out, so there are some cool restaurants built over the water and some touristy shopping, lots of dive shops and a number of restaurants, some nicer, some more "rustic". We looked around for maybe half an hour, then made our way to the water taxi....again, no signs, just ask around. Had to wait around 20 minutes to fill a few more seats. The ride cost $2.50 each, they'll take $$$ or lemps. The boat will let you off wherever you want. Initially we had planned to go to the far end of West Bay Beach, but we got off before that and walked to the end, around 5 minutes. Passed by Tabyana Beach where we saw people from our ship lying out on beach chairs. Tabyana Beach is what the ships call a particular section of West Bay Beach that the ships charge $36 (I think) for round trip transportation and the use of beach chairs.

 

At the end of the beach dropped our stuff and went snorkelling. The reef is pretty much right there. It was awesome! Lots of fish and amazing coral, but be careful, in some places it's really close to the surface. Then headed back next to Tabyana and snorkelled there, more fish, less coral, still incredible! If you are into beach and/or snorkelling, this is the place for you. The sand is white and beautiful and the water is blue and clear and warm and gorgeous. There are places all along the beach to rent snorkelling stuff (not sure how much, we brought our own) and get drinks/food (again, don't know any prices, we brought our own snacks). I had been really concerned about the sandflies, since all bugs LOVE me, and took the precaution of planning what I was going to wear that day before we left home and sprayed it all with Permethrin (including my swimsuit), and am happy to say no bites at all! Didn't see anybody else with them either. I think it was just a good time of year, because I know from this and other travel forums that they are sometimes a major problem.

 

Caught the water taxi back to West End (since there is no bus that goes to West Bay). You can catch one at any pier you see a boat at. We saw a boat pull up as we were walking by a pier and asked, "West End?" and away we went. Back in West End we were about to get some BBQ from this guy cooking stuff on a big drum we had seen setting up earlier, but then the #2 came by and I guess we will have to get some next time!

On the walk back to the ship we did some quick shopping, bought some t-shirts and other stuff, made it back to the ship with people still coming behind us.

 

So all in all a fabulous day. Total transportation cost for 2 people: $14. We were in port 11 - 6 and while of course we would have loved more time, we didn't feel rushed. But we live in Florida now....if I still lived in Toronto maybe I would have just gotten a cab so I would have more beach time. Would have been quicker since we'd have gone straight to West Bay Beach from the pier and skipped finding the bus, waiting, West End and the water taxi rides.......but then we wouldn't have seen West End and had two boat rides! Eveybody we talked to said this was the best snorkelling they'd ever done, and that covered Belize, Cozumel, and lots of other popular places. Personally, the Great Barrier Reef was better but this was second!

 

I realize that lots of people are unsure about getting around in this manner in other countries, especially poor ones like Honduras. Even though we have done lots of backpacking (we are planning a trip to Honduras for a few weeks in the spring...yay!) and love taking local transport, just remember to use your common sense, as you would anywhere that is unfamiliar. Yes, you may run into people who want to rip you off, etc., but tell me that doesn't happen at home, too. The people here are very friendly and helpful and I was surprised how many people spoke English...WAY more than in most other Central/South American countryies we've been in. If you do research ahead of time you will pretty much know what you are doing.

[cruise-bunny]

Wanted to post our experience for all of you out there who, like us, prefer to give our money to the locals, not the cruise lines and foreign-owned tour operators (not that they all are). Also I am cheap and like to experience the not-so-touristy side of things. Our destinatiion was West Bay Beach via West End/Half Moon Bay.

 

Got off the ship and made our way through all the touristy stands selling t-shirts, etc. Made it to where the local bus picks people up by asking constantly along the way for directions. Total walk maybe 15 minutes. It is a minivan, white, I think, #2 but the # is only on the back, not the front. Keep in mind that there is no bus station or stop or anything, it is just an unmarked spot that all the locals know. Also, it leaves when it gets full...we caught it right as it pulled in, then waited around 10 minutes for more people. No a/c but you can just wait outside until it's ready to leave, they know you're there. The fare was 15 lempiras, I think, a bit less than $1. We bought a soda from a stall along the way with a $5 bill and got lempiras for change for the bus, but we found out you can just use a dollar bill (no change). The ride was around 35 minutes, the same time and route as if you take a taxi since there's basically one road....ok maybe like 5 minutes slower since we stopped in Sandy Bay and once or twice to pick people up/let people off. It was us and a bunch of locals on the bus. There was a little girl behind us pointing at my husband, saying "gringo! gringo!" (I'm Asian). She was cute. She asked me in Spanish if he was my husband. No, I don't really speak Spanish...just what I've picked up travelling. Gave her and the other little boy on the bus some cookies and candy.

 

You can tell when you get to West End because all of a sudden the road has water (Half Moon Bay) on the right and shops and restaurants on the left. You can get out wherever you want....we waited until the end of the road (literally), where I knew the bus turned around for the return trip. We then walked back to the beginning of town, probably a 15 minute walk if you're moseying but not stopping everywhere. West End has a beach, Half Moon Bay, but it's nothing special. You can snorkel here but we didn't, since I knew West Bay Beach was better. This area is where backpackers hang out, so there are some cool restaurants built over the water and some touristy shopping, lots of dive shops and a number of restaurants, some nicer, some more "rustic". We looked around for maybe half an hour, then made our way to the water taxi....again, no signs, just ask around. Had to wait around 20 minutes to fill a few more seats. The ride cost $2.50 each, they'll take $$$ or lemps. The boat will let you off wherever you want. Initially we had planned to go to the far end of West Bay Beach, but we got off before that and walked to the end, around 5 minutes. Passed by Tabyana Beach where we saw people from our ship lying out on beach chairs. Tabyana Beach is what the ships call a particular section of West Bay Beach that the ships charge $36 (I think) for round trip transportation and the use of beach chairs.

 

At the end of the beach dropped our stuff and went snorkelling. The reef is pretty much right there. It was awesome! Lots of fish and amazing coral, but be careful, in some places it's really close to the surface. Then headed back next to Tabyana and snorkelled there, more fish, less coral, still incredible! If you are into beach and/or snorkelling, this is the place for you. The sand is white and beautiful and the water is blue and clear and warm and gorgeous. There are places all along the beach to rent snorkelling stuff (not sure how much, we brought our own) and get drinks/food (again, don't know any prices, we brought our own snacks). I had been really concerned about the sandflies, since all bugs LOVE me, and took the precaution of planning what I was going to wear that day before we left home and sprayed it all with Permethrin (including my swimsuit), and am happy to say no bites at all! Didn't see anybody else with them either. I think it was just a good time of year, because I know from this and other travel forums that they are sometimes a major problem.

 

Caught the water taxi back to West End (since there is no bus that goes to West Bay). You can catch one at any pier you see a boat at. We saw a boat pull up as we were walking by a pier and asked, "West End?" and away we went. Back in West End we were about to get some BBQ from this guy cooking stuff on a big drum we had seen setting up earlier, but then the #2 came by and I guess we will have to get some next time!

On the walk back to the ship we did some quick shopping, bought some t-shirts and other stuff, made it back to the ship with people still coming behind us.

 

So all in all a fabulous day. Total transportation cost for 2 people: $14. We were in port 11 - 6 and while of course we would have loved more time, we didn't feel rushed. But we live in Florida now....if I still lived in Toronto maybe I would have just gotten a cab so I would have more beach time. Would have been quicker since we'd have gone straight to West Bay Beach from the pier and skipped finding the bus, waiting, West End and the water taxi rides.......but then we wouldn't have seen West End and had two boat rides! Eveybody we talked to said this was the best snorkelling they'd ever done, and that covered Belize, Cozumel, and lots of other popular places. Personally, the Great Barrier Reef was better but this was second!

 

I realize that lots of people are unsure about getting around in this manner in other countries, especially poor ones like Honduras. Even though we have done lots of backpacking (we are planning a trip to Honduras for a few weeks in the spring...yay!) and love taking local transport, just remember to use your common sense, as you would anywhere that is unfamiliar. Yes, you may run into people who want to rip you off, etc., but tell me that doesn't happen at home, too. The people here are very friendly and helpful and I was surprised how many people spoke English...WAY more than in most other Central/South American countryies we've been in. If you do research ahead of time you will pretty much know what you are doing.

 

Yuki

Great review and helpful tips. We go to Roatan in March.:p

Sandy

[Paumavista]

Thanks so much for an informative post!

 

Can you post again and let us know approximately how large the van/buses are? We've used the bus system on St Thomas and found it great!

 

We are a family of 8 (the kids are 2,3,7,8,19,20) - all we want to do is go to West Bay beach for the day (I was planning on packing a picnic lunch and buying drinks). Right now I've checked with Victor and although he won't charge for the little ones it will cost us $150r/t for transportation to the beach (we don't want to do or go anywhere else). My husband and I might like to rent a beach chair but not 8 chairs - so we don't want a resort package.

 

Right now $150+ sounds like alot for transportation to a free beach. We arrive early in port and I was thinking we could try your transportation plan to get to West Bay (if you think we could do it) - and then if it was just too difficult we could try to find a taxi back to the ship (even it it were $100 it would be cheaper than the r/t transportation I've looked into).

 

Thanks, Judy

[fatmorticia]

Yuki5900,

 

Thought you might like to read this about your insecticide permethrin, don't want to many fish and other marine life floating upside down.

It works wonders in areas where they put it on mosquito nets for malaria but extremely toxic to fish.

In agriculture, permethrin is mainly used on cotton, wheat, maize, and alfalfa crops, and is also used to kill parasites on chickens and other poultry. Its use is controversial since, as a broad-spectrum chemical, it kills indiscriminately; as well as the intended pests, it can harm beneficial insects including honey bees, aquatic life,[1] . Permethrin is toxic to cats and many cats die each year after being given flea treatments intended for dogs. Permethrin is extremely toxic to fish.:( Extreme care must be taken when using products containing permethrin near water sources.

[SolidGoldCruiser]

Paumavista - I would encourage you to get in touch with Mr. Juan Carlos Rodriguez (website Islandertours.com). For 6 or more, his rate is $10pp - and that is round-trip! Carlos is so reliable and friendly, and your family will be in good hands.

 

We were with him last October, and just last week I received an email from him announcing the birth of his new baby son. I know he would appreciate your business.

 

He will take you anywhere you want to go and will give you a little mini-tour along the way.

[LkMichigan beach bum]

:confused: If we take the local bus as described in this thread it sounds like we can get to Half Moon Bay very easy and much less $ than hiring Victor again. (Although, he is a favorite of ours.) As we only want to snorkel this trip. Is this correct? Which area is best for snorkeling in your opinion? We have been to Half Moon Bay several times and never to Tabyana Beach. Any other suggestions...you guys sound very transporation savy. We will be on the island in late feb 08. Bev