The perfect tour combination in Honduras
If you are looking for the perfect tour combination in Honduras, allow me to propose a combination of the Bay Islands, either Utila, Roatan or Guanaja, combined with the Cangrejal River Valley. The Bay Islands offers both outstanding diving in the Meso American Barrier Reef and the unique Caribbean village atmosphere of a British Antillean colony. Although the Bay Islands are part of Honduras, and the official language of the country is Spanish, the Bay Islanders have long held on to their British Heritage, and to this day, prefer the use of English as their household language. Their culture is quite different from that of Mainland Honduras, and to this day, they refer to those from mainland Honduras as “them Spaniards”. Visiting the Bay Islands of Honduras spoils most English speaking tourists, who find it truly enchanting that the locals speak their language; however you should be advised that they speak an “Island English” that will require a bit of an effort to understand!
The Bay Islands are part of a perfect tour combination in Honduras, they offer diving, Caribbean beaches, the advantage of an English speaking community and to top it off, there are now direct, nonstop flights from the USA to Roatan, the largest of the Bay Islands. This makes it really easy to get to! Delta, American, United and Avianca all offer service, that is not daily, but does operate on a regularly scheduled basis from gateways in Dallas, Houston, Atlanta and Miami. You should take note that despite the fact that the islands are very near to each other getting from one to the other is not necessarily easy! It has however become easier to travel from Roatan to Utila and viceversa using the services of a couple of a small, local airline, Island Air (www.islandairhonduras.com). Who offer on demand service between the islands and mainland Honduras, particularly La Ceiba and San Pedro Sula.
The second half to the perfect tour combination in Honduras lies on the mainland, close to the City of La Ceiba, you will find the Cangrejal River Valley. This area is one of the crown jewels of tourism in Honduras, and offers magnificent adventure activities, such as white water rafting and kayaking, zip line canopy tours and an activity that tour operators call “River Hiking” which consists of walking, hiking, climbing and swimming the river traversing the rough terrain and huge house size boulders of the Cangrejal River. Outstanding hiking can also be found for those interested in nature, with a network of trails into both Pico Bonito and Nombre de Dios National Parks, both part of the Honduran National Park System that protects the tropical rain forests of the Caribbean Coast of Honduras. The Parks are within the rugged Nombre de Dios mountains, that reach up to 8,000 feet of altitude at Pico Bonito, the third highest peak in Honduras and the highest peak on the Atlantic coast between Newfoundland and the Sierra Nevada on the coast of Colombia in South America!
Thus, the perfect tour combination in Honduras offers diving, Caribbean culture, idyllic white sand beaches on one side and adventure, tropical rain forest teeming with birds, wild white water rivers that offer the true sense of remote, barely accessible jungle where you will experience the thrill of interacting with nature. There are several lovely small, unique eco lodge accommodations in the Cangrejal River Valley, with something special for every taste and budget. Best of all, is the proximity between these two destinations. If you are in Utila, it will take you a short one hour ferry trip to La Ceiba and then an even shorter 30 minute trip to the Cangrejal River Valley. This means that you do not have to spend a fortune or travel for an entire day, losing time of your precious vacation time to enjoy a perfect tour combination in Honduras!
If you chose the Island or Roatan, the ferry trip is just under 2 hours, and the time between the ferry and the
Cangrejal River Valley is the same half hour as that from Utila. Finally, if you chose Guanaja, there is no regularly scheduled ferry between Guanaja and La Ceiba, so you will have to fly to La Ceiba, a short 30 minute flight, and then take a 40 minute transfer from La Ceiba’s international airport to the Cangrejal River Valley. So know you are aware of the perfect tour combination in Honduras, when planning your next trip to this lovely Central American country, make sure you arrange for the perfect match and visit both, the Bay Islands of Honduras and the Cangrejal River Valley. The end result will be a fantastic vacation with memories that you will cherish for a lifetime! Two completely different environments, each with its own unique character make the perfect tour combination in Honduras!
