Was told this port not worth seeng. . .True ?

[NorCalifs]

We were in Roatan Nov. 3 and the Carnival/Princess port is built specifically for the cruise ships and does not reflect the diversity and beauty of this island. If you want to play it safe, there is a beach right at the port that fellow passengers said was very nice...but beware, as we prepared to leave port, we watched from our balcony a crocodile swimming in the bay between the cruise ship and the beach!! Glad I didn't swim there!

 

Hubby took a dive excursion through the cruise ship that took him to Anthony's Key Resort. The diving was superb, as good as the Great Barrier Reef. I took a clear kayak/snorkel excursion through the ship (Princess) that took us to the West Bay area that is beautiful. Yes you see firsthand how the Roatan's live as you drive through town but they appeared happy, and why shouldn't they be...the island has such natural beauty! We enjoyed Roatan enough we plan to go back and spend some time!

[alaskamt]

I liked Roatan so much when I was in port for a day 7 years ago that I have been back twice since - once for two weeks, and then for a month. Rented a house in Palmetto Bay both of those times. Roatan is second only to Fiji for me for snorkeling. Warm water, great coral reefs, lots of fish. Blue Bahia was a favorite easy spot - great restaurant and really good snorkeling ( http://www.bluebahiaresort.com/ ) next to Anthony's Key. The dolphin encounter at Anthony's Key was amazing (I've done that twice). And South Shore Canopy zipline was great. There are sand fleas on most beaches, but they didn't bite us as long as we used bug spray. West End does have gorgeous beaches. If you like to snorkel or dive, skip the island tours and schedule a day trip with a dive shop.

[truchattycathy]

Roatan is beautiful. I booked South Shore Canopy zipline and beach break thru Island Marketing. Teris Dixon was our guide. She was great. I felt safer in Roatan than most Carribean ports. We ziplined and then went to West Bay Beach. There was a guy offering to take us out to the reef in his boat and I went and found Teris (she stayed with us all day) and asked her opinion. She assured me the guy was safe and legit. It was unbelievable. The view of Roatan's shoreline on that little boat was worth the $20 and he took us out to the reef and showed us just where to snorkel. The best $20 two old women ever spent. Roatan is absolutely worth seeing.

[sealovers]

We were in Roatan Nov. 3 and the Carnival/Princess port is built specifically for the cruise ships and does not reflect the diversity and beauty of this island. If you want to play it safe, there is a beach right at the port that fellow passengers said was very nice...but beware, as we prepared to leave port, we watched from our balcony a crocodile swimming in the bay between the cruise ship and the beach!! Glad I didn't swim there!

 

Hubby took a dive excursion through the cruise ship that took him to Anthony's Key Resort. The diving was superb, as good as the Great Barrier Reef. I took a clear kayak/snorkel excursion through the ship (Princess) that took us to the West Bay area that is beautiful. Yes you see firsthand how the Roatan's live as you drive through town but they appeared happy, and why shouldn't they be...the island has such natural beauty! We enjoyed Roatan enough we plan to go back and spend some time!

 

In early Nov 11, our taxi driver told us there was a man who raised crocodiles right at the port. He said he expects something really bad to happen there one day. After getting back on the ship, we and others on their balconys did spot one from our aft cabins. We never went to the created beach there at the port, but from the ship, did see some floats in the water that perhaps were attached to netting to keep 'things' out of the swimming area. I'm only guessing about the netting......could have just been markers for the drop off area. There are no natural beaches in that area of the island, so Carnival created one. From the ship, it looked very nice and pristine. It would be prudent to be cautious when lounging around that beach area.

[wnorman]

our favourite tour guide is Cynthia thru roatan culture tours - she is fantastic!!!!!!!!!!! We have used her twice and were going to use her in October again, but Roatan got cancelled on us due to Pauline storm - have sent many people her way and they have all been thrilled.

[Eeyoregon]

Absolutely not true! Just back from the Western Caribbean and hands down Roatan was our favorite port of the four that we visited. You have to get out of the man-made Carnival compound and you will find some of the most beautiful beaches ever!! And amazing snorkeling on the barrier reef. The people are kind and treat you like family. I liked it so much that I am considering flying there for vacation in the near future.

 

Don't miss this port. I highly recommend Victor Bodden tours.

 

Gina

[oratheeexplorer]

Absolutely not true! Just back from the Western Caribbean and hands down Roatan was our favorite port of the four that we visited. You have to get out of the man-made Carnival compound and you will find some of the most beautiful beaches ever!! And amazing snorkeling on the barrier reef. The people are kind and treat you like family. I liked it so much that I am considering flying there for vacation in the near future.

 

Don't miss this port. I highly recommend Victor Bodden tours.

 

Gina

 

 

Glad you enjoyed it......however, after reading everyone's problems with getting bit up like crazy from the sand flees/flies, I'm thnking more about staying on the ship.....sure wouldn't even want to have to cover myself in bug spray just to do some sightseeing.....

[Eeyoregon]

Glad you enjoyed it......however, after reading everyone's problems with getting bit up like crazy from the sand flees/flies, I'm thnking more about staying on the ship.....sure wouldn't even want to have to cover myself in bug spray just to do some sightseeing.....

 

Hmmm, I hadn't heard of any bug problems and we certainly didn't encounter any when we were there last month. We spent the day at various places on the island, in the water and in the jungle. I did get one ant bite while standing on one of the zip line platforms.

 

Having experienced Roatan I wouldn't let anything stop me from going again as it was just that amazing.

 

Enjoy the ship while it's quiet :).

 

Gina

[GeneHunter]

Glad you enjoyed it......however, after reading everyone's problems with getting bit up like crazy from the sand flees/flies, I'm thnking more about staying on the ship.....sure wouldn't even want to have to cover myself in bug spray just to do some sightseeing.....

 

Do you stay inside at home just to avoid a couple bugs? Just like at home, there are many variables as to the number of bugs in an area, including, moisture, temperature and time of year.

 

Get off the ship and enjoy this wonderful island.

[Roatan1]

Glad you enjoyed it......however, after reading everyone's problems with getting bit up like crazy from the sand flees/flies, I'm thnking more about staying on the ship.....sure wouldn't even want to have to cover myself in bug spray just to do some sightseeing.....

Seems Oratheexplorer may not be much of an explorer if the possibility of needing some insect repellant is out of the question. I think you can tour Epcot Center and visit all kinds of "countries/; with minimal bugs but even there, there may be some mosquitoes at dawn and dusk.

[Eeyoregon]

I think you can tour Epcot Center and visit all kinds of "countries/; with minimal bugs but even there, there may be some mosquitoes at dawn and dusk.

 

LOL! I actually got eaten alive at Disney after my cruise! I had plenty of bug spray in my room (that I didn't use on the cruise) but didn't even think about needing at Disney World.

 

Gina

[Roatan1]

LOL! I actually got eaten alive at Disney after my cruise! I had plenty of bug spray in my room (that I didn't use on the cruise) but didn't even think about needing at Disney World.

 

Eeyoregon,

This just further reinforces how everyone is affected differently and its best to be prepared

 

I hope the Explorer doesn't read to much into this, I wonder if she has read anything about bed bugs?

[Eeyoregon]

 

:eek: Oh mylanta!! :eek:

[lovevacadays]

Glad you enjoyed it......however, after reading everyone's problems with getting bit up like crazy from the sand flees/flies, I'm thnking more about staying on the ship.....sure wouldn't even want to have to cover myself in bug spray just to do some sightseeing.....

 

I hope you reconsider. It took me all of 5 minutes to apply bug spray but it was so worth it. This is a beautiful island with lots to offer. However, if you are happy hanging on the ship and don't want to apply bug spray, that's ok too. I love being on a cruise ship so I understand. Roatan just happens to now be one of the favorite ports I've visited. I'm so glad we didn't let all the posts about bugs scare us off.

 

Actually, of all the places I've been I was bitten up the most in Miami when we toured Villa Viscaya. I had bites from head to toe that ended up swollen and red. Yikes, it wasn't a pretty sight.