Roatan!
This past week was very different for me as I went on a tropical vacation. Admittedly, it’s not my thing but I was accompanying my girlfriend to the wedding of her son on the island of Roatan off the coast of Honduras. The direct flights from Seattle were just too long so we decided to break things up by using Houston as a stopping point. From Houston, we had two flights using Taca Airlines: one to San Salvador in El Salvador and then a second flight from there to Roatan. I had lowered expectations about the flights because the only thing I knew about the airline was their supposed tendency to lose luggage.
I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised. The plane was an Airbus model which only has two seats on either side of the aisle and each headrest has a TV screen built in which shows movies, TV shows, and even some regional travel guides (they even provide the headphones free). Unlike domestic airlines these days, they even provided a meal free of charge. The flight to San Salvador was about 2 ½ hours in length and went pretty smoothly. People on the plane were saying that the current oil spill in the gulf was visible from the plane (we were on the wrong side of the plane for that).
Unfortunately, there wasn’t as much to see on the flight down due to fairly extensive clouds. As we finally approached San Salvador, we broke through the clouds and finally were treated with some views of the landscape. The approach to the airport was a bit odd since it flew out over the Pacific and then turned around for the final approach to the airport. It was raining in El Salvador and that rain would be a common occurrence during the duration of our trip.
The airport in San Salvador is decidedly dated and stuck in the 1980s but fairly western in nature. Next to the duty free shops are small shops selling local gifts which characterize El Salvador and there are even a couple Subway Sandwich shops. Surprisingly, there was free wifi at the airport (though the speeds were more like cellular EDGE speeds). Our layover was only an hour so the time went quickly.
From San Salvador, it’s about a 2 hour flight to Roatan on a smaller twin turbo-prop plane. We sat in the plane at the gate for about 30-40 minutes before finally pushing away to take off (presumably to wait for passengers coming from connecting flights). As we got in line to taxi for our turn to take off, I spied a Southwest Airlines jet in a hanger at the airport. I later learned through internet searches that Southwest began farming out repair work to San Salvador last year (read more here, here, here and here. Also interesting).
Once airborne, the storm clouds persisted all the way to the Caribbean coastline of Honduras when it finally gave way to sunshine. In another ten minutes we had landed at the very small airport on the island. They had two people working customs and about 30+ people in line but we made it through without any issues. After customs, we waited for our bags which THEN are scanned for suspicious items before you are officially “on the island.” The airport is located roughly in the center of the island and so we took a shuttle bus to our final destination of West Bay and the Infinity Bay Resort.
Driving on the island is adventurous with tight streets and passing if you dare. Located near the airport is a cruise ship terminal with a capacity of two cruise ships. While the appearance of cruise ships has certainly brought money and additional revenue to Roatan, it comes at a price. Tourists from the cruise ships are carefully controlled in terms of what they do and where they can go. West Bay is one of the locations that the cruise ships bus their guests for some time on the beach. We spoke with a local shop owner who described their effort to get the shop’s location included as a bus stop. The cruise ship was willing to do so but wanted 50% of the store’s profits in return. Highway robbery.
Leaving the airport, you are located in the “real” Roatan. There are no glamorous hotels or resorts, just the weathered homes of the locals. As you travel further west, things change and larger homes with fabulous views to the ocean begin to appear. The main road to West Bay becomes somewhat of a roller coaster as it crests to a high point and then begins a rolling descent back down to the coast and Infinity Bay. The resort is fairly new, only being open for a little more than a year. There are 90+ units which are available for purchase as condos or use as hotel rooms. Not all units have been completed so construction was still underway. Their future plans include the construction of a spa facility, wedding/meeting venue, and ultimate expansion to 140+ units.
Landscaping is young but pleasant as is the main pool area which is situated between the two main buildings of the resort. We had reserved what is referred to as a “Studio Garden View” which is a 636 square foot room with queen size bed, full kitchen, balcony and sofa-bed. The construction of the units is VERY nice- stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops in the kitchen and bath.
After a small rest, we set out to explore our local surroundings. The resort is located just about as far west as you can get on the island so sunsets would be absolutely unencumbered. Roatan is known for its diving and snorkeling conditions and the waters off of our beach were very clear with reefs just 100 yards or so off the beach. Just south of us was a rocky outcrop which I had hoped to use as foreground interest for sunset photos. In the end, public access to this location wasn’t obvious so I thought better of pursuing it (all beaches in Roatan are public BTW).
The weather for our stay was atypical. We did not experience a single sunrise or sunset over the course of 4 days due to persistent cloud cover and temperatures hovered close to 90 degrees with high humidity. Like clockwork, every day at about 6pm, rains would appear and linger for a few hours. It could appropriately be called Florida weather.
The locals are extremely friendly and easy going and island time dominates. This is good because the frustrations of explosive growth would drive a person crazy. Roatan has been featured a number of times over the last year on HGTV’s show House Hunters International and exemplifies the influx of foreigners buying real estate on Roatan. What the show doesn’t tell you is that this explosive growth is much more than the island’s infrastructure can support. Power outages are very common, even somewhat scheduled. Many locals have trouble paying their electrical bills which might run $100 a month WITHOUT air conditioning and $400 a month with it.
Our stay at Infinity Bay was plagued with intermittent power outages. Apparently Sunday mornings are the favored day of the week for outages and typically occur between 5am and 11am. The resort had generators but had received a shipment of oil which had water in it. If you are planning to go, be sure and bring a surge protector. I did it on a whim and was really glad I did! BTW, the island uses the same power and electrical outlets as in the U.S.
The night before the wedding we were attending, we were treated to some authentic Honduran dancing and drumming:
The following afternoon we attended the wedding located at the end of the beach:
Our stay at Infinity Bay also included two free passes to a zip line service at nearby Gumbalimba Park. If you follow the resort’s instructions, you have to call ahead and they will send a vehicle to take you there. We decided to walk up the beach, although the use of a water taxi is also an option. To be honest, we didn’t have big expectations for our free rides. After all, how much do you get for free? Apparently a lot!
Our group had eight people in it and two guides. One thing the guides were quick to point out was that their zip line set up uses three wires for safety. Double wires for the pulley system and a third cable for a secondary safety system. One of our two guides would go first and then be in place to assist us with getting off the line once we had reached the next platform. The second guide would always be last and sweep us along. If you are going to go, you’re going because there aren’t any real options to back out once you start.
There were 13 reaches of zip lines of varying lengths, heights, and speed. Your speed is controlled by your hand using leather gloves which have a severely reinforced cradle in the palm. Simply pulling down your hand on the wire creates the friction to slow your speed. I thought it was pretty easy to get the hang of it. The starting point is near the top of a small hill so during the breaks in the canopy you are rewarded with views of the ocean and coastline.
By the 13th zip line, you feel like you’ve have a full day. During the last couple lines, they have a photographer that takes photos and you can buy them once your done. They usually charge $10 a person but because of our group size (and being a wedding party), we got 166 photos for $40 bucks. After we were done, we took a water taxi back to the resort for $3 a person.
That particular evening, we wanted to go back north to West Bay for dinner and wandering so we flagged down another water taxi and really lucked out with the guy we got. His name was Carlo and he was a great guy, friendly, knowledgeable and offered to take us on a several hour tour along the coast for $20 a person the next day. We took him up on that and had a fantastic end to our trip. He very patiently waited for us as we had problems getting going the next morning. He made a quick stop in West Bay where we could quickly duck into a store to pick up some drinks and snacks and then we headed off towards the north side of the island.
Our first stop was an inlet that had huge starfish, which were actually juveniles! After a little time here, we continued on towards the Anthony’s Key Resort which has a huge dolphin pen in their inlet. We hung out for a while watching the dolphins swim around and check us out. From here, we continued east towards a reef where we could snorkel and explore (he provided all the snorkeling gear). I regretted the fact that I didn’t have an underwater camera but enjoyed the surroundings none-the-less.
After we finished our snorkeling, we headed to a small restaurant for lunch before the boat ride back to our hotel. There was no better way to end our stay in Roatan! After changing, we said our goodbyes and headed to the airport to catch our flight. As an FYI, there is a $37 “fee” charged to each person to leave the island so be sure to have that money on hand (there was an ATM next to the ticketing area and before the payment booth). Our flight home retraced our route back to San Salvador and then on to Houston. Our flight to San Salvador did treat us to the only dramatic light of the entire trip as well as some views of mainland Honduras.
Thankfully, we were not impacted by the tropical storm that went through Guatemala and El Salvador. I have to admit that this was one of my favorite trips in quite a while. I’m not a person that loves tropical locales but had a great time even despite the lack of good light for sunrise or sunsets. The Infinity Bay Resort had some issues and at times, felt like this was their opening week. The foundation for the resort is very strong and hopefully the new general manager they have will steer things in the right direction.
Not many people get this kind of opportunity and I’m very glad that I took advantage of it!
