We usually go to Tanayana Beach. You can do it by cab or through the ship. I have found that the cab only saves you $5 or so, so unless you want to do something special just do the ship tour there. The beach is nice, there is a buffet on the beach - burgers, hot dogs,, grilled chicken, and this sounds crazy,, but the best almond iced tea you've ever had.
The have bars along the beach and cheap massafges under the palm trees.
Great way to wile away the day.
Forgot to mention - if you are into diving then Roatan has one of the premier reefs in the world. But I figure if you were into diving, you'd already know that. Anyway, you can also rent snorkel gear at the beach and see some pretty sites.
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I second the Tabyana Beach choice, beautiful beach, live music (when we were there), nice bar, clean restrooms, massages on the beach, they charged a minimal fee for the buffet...they even had a Good Humor man stroll down the beach with his cart.
We were there in November. It is a beautiful island. Mountians and beaches. We did a ship excursion that went to Gumbalima park. There is a beach there and a swimming pool also an outdoor bar. Also we did the monkey tour there where you get to interact with the monkeys and birds. Very nice tour and we really enjoyed it.
here is a link to my pix from the island and our tour.
They have a brand new beach area that just opened for cruise passengers I believe it's owned by carnival . Very nice you can walk to it or for I think 14 dollars a person there's a chair lift that takes you there. The 14 is for all day use.
Were there in Jan. and had a ball. There were 4 of us and we wanted a tour & beach. Just got off the ship and found several booth areas that were selling tours. I chose the Victor Bodden tour booth. Got a wonderful guide by the name of Frank Thomas who took us on a tour then to the Beach Club. We spent about 3 hours there and had a wonderful experience. Food and drinks were very reasonable. Beach was great here. Just had several vendors pushing their wares but once we said no they stopped coming by. Guess word got out that we were cheap! We liked it so well that we are now planning a week vacation to Isle Rotan in the future.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Floridanamaw
We were there in November. It is a beautiful island. Mountians and beaches. We did a ship excursion that went to Gumbalima park. There is a beach there and a swimming pool also an outdoor bar. Also we did the monkey tour there where you get to interact with the monkeys and birds. Very nice tour and we really enjoyed it.
here is a link to my pix from the island and our tour.
It's been a while since I was there last. 4 of us rented a car w/driver from Victor Bodden for $100 for the entire day. That price may be more now since it was 5 years ago. You can google him and reserve a car or van. We just told the driver to show us the island. West End is the best beach area and lots of little shops there. A few shops right off the dock but over the mountain to the other side is where everyone goes. The island was not very developed back then, no big high rises or fancy resorts, pretty laid back. Roads were terrible.
It's been a while since I was there last. 4 of us rented a car w/driver from Victor Bodden for $100 for the entire day. That price may be more now since it was 5 years ago. You can google him and reserve a car or van. We just told the driver to show us the island. West End is the best beach area and lots of little shops there. A few shops right off the dock but over the mountain to the other side is where everyone goes. The island was not very developed back then, no big high rises or fancy resorts, pretty laid back. Roads were terrible.
We are booked with Victor Bodden on the 23rd of March and the rates are the same....100.00 for 4 people....he comes highly recommended...Well time to go....time for my Dream to set Sail....
I don't think I would try renting a car and driving myself. There is only one road on the island and the North/East end of the island has no roads only accessable by boat. The road is filled with potholes and other obstacles, not
really worth the effort. Cozumel has more than one road and is basically flat where Roatan has a mountain (if you want to call it that) that goes right down the middle.
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We've been to Roatan 4 times, last time about a month ago. Carnival has built a new docking /shopping area called Mahogany Bay. It's a little distance from the old dock, which I personally liked better.
Someone mentioned West End--that's an interesting place right now. Has shops, some bars, restaurants, etc. The road is dirt but from what I understand from talking to a local guy who runs a shop there they're talking about paving it, which in my opinion, will basically ruin it.
The waters normally very clear and beautiful.Most of the dive shops are at West End.
Re/ Mahogany Bay, everything's new, dock, buildings, beach area, etc. Just seemed sort of artificial to me. There's a chair lift that you can catch right in the shopping area that will take you to the beach area. It's only about a 10 minute ride or so or you can easily walk on pavement if you'd rather. We rode the chair lift --didn't even get off--just rode it over , circled around and back, just for the view and to see the beach.
Re/ renting a vehicle and going off on your own, I'm sure you'd be safe but
I would suggest you be sure of where you're going, don't try to drive onto a beach--you may end up stuck.
When we were there when it came time to sail, John Heald, the C.D. kept paging this one couple over and over--they weren't aboard and the Capt. waited about 15 minutes past sailing time. Finally John came on and said they were sorry to have to leave someone but it was time to go so away we went without them. He later came over the inter-com and announced that the couple had rented a jeep, went to a beach, got stuck and long story short, missed the ship and had to fly on to the next port , compliments of their own pocketbook---so be careful if you do go out on your own.
Roatan right now is a good port but I fear "progress " will turn it into a so-so port in the next couple years.
Go and enjoy while you can.
They have a nice beach with it's own reef to snorkel with easy entry from a raised platform. There is a nice pool, good restaurant on site, and an animal preserve, lots of monkeys and big cats, Parrots etc...
At Maya Key the beaches and sand are well cared for, you won't need to battle sand fleas which are common on many of the beaches there. Where ever you wind up, do bring insect repellant with DEET as it may well come in very handy between the mosquitoes and the fleas.
Contact them to arrange transportation to and from the port, it isn't too far away. Much closer than West End or West Bay.
Tabyana beach ( not sure of spelling ) was very nice. However we booked thru carnival and the bus ride was kind of long. We did the all inclusive and it was worth it. The drinks were good. The bus did not have AC and they really piled you in the bus. I was fine but my wife got a little sick. Next time I will take a taxi. The beach with the chair lifts looked nice.
We leave on the Triumph in 2 weeks and we have booked a tour with Bodden tours. Can anyone give me some must see ideas? Also is there anything special you can buy there that you might not find elsewhere? We haven't been on a cruise for 5 years and are so excieted.
Hey Beenie,
Nice to see your post, since we just booked a tour there. Want to snorkel without tons of people....or sand fleas!
Re, what to buy, Roatan has some amazing wood carvers. From small items to solid wooden doors carved with amazing detail. No idea how much they would charge to ship it home for you, but the door was not that expensive.
Marty
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We leave on the Triumph in 2 weeks and we have booked a tour with Bodden tours. Can anyone give me some must see ideas? Also is there anything special you can buy there that you might not find elsewhere? We haven't been on a cruise for 5 years and are so excieted.
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