Roatan
My sisters and our husbands made arrangements to vacation together in Roatan this year. We have been getting together in February for the last few years in tropical locations: St Thomas in 2022 and Los Barriles Mexico last year. After Allen and I knew for sure that we were going to volunteer in Honduras for 13 months, the logical vacation destination was Roatan. We found a 4-bedroom home in West End on VRBO and booked it originally for a week, then later on added a few more days in order to spend quality time with each other in this beautiful location.
Although we all live in Oregon and Washington, we came from different directions as two couples visited Belize first, two couples came from home, and two couples (Allen and I) came from Tegucigalpa. Although there has been some wind and a little rain, for the most part we are having perfect weather with slight breezes, blue skies and sunshine. The beach is a short walk and the sea is warm so swimming and snorkeling in Half Moon Bay has been a daily activity. It is also a short walk to restaurants and shops so we have not felt much need to explore outside the town of West End.
We did not rent a car and Uber does not appear to be a viable option as there are few Uber drivers. However, there appear to be plenty of cabs, regular buses, and other transportation options (such as water taxis). Prices on Roatan are more expensive than we are used to in Tegucigalpa but cheaper than in the US. There are plenty of small stores in the West End and lots of local fruit stands, but for better prices and larger quantities, the bigger grocery stores in Coxen Hole are desirable so some of our group took a taxi for a grocery run early in the week. On these vacations, we typically enjoy making our own breakfast in the house along with about half the dinners and supplement with eating out. We found a couple of bakeries so were able to compare cinnamon rolls from The Bean Crazy (a local chain) and Sandy Buns. Both were good, but Sandy Buns was better as it was baked on site. The Chocolate Factory is nearby and has been worth a repeat trip just to buy the peanut butter brownies.
We took a water taxi to West Bay to check out a different beach and the all-inclusive resorts as well as have lunch. A different day we took a local bus ride to the Mayan Eden Sanctuary where we could get up close and personal with monkeys, sloths, and toucans.
Afterwards we commissioned a driver
who gave us a tour of the island before stopping at a viewpoint restaurant where
we enjoyed a great meal and got to try a Monkey Lala (the drink of Roatan) for
the first time.
The guys are able to buy local cigars so are enjoying a good scotch and ‘gar many nights and, of course, us girls are enjoying happy hours as well. All in all, Roatan has been an excellent place to get together with my family and recharge for another six months on the ranch. But the most important ingredient is not the place or the food, it’s the company!
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