Best of La Ceiba

October 4, 2014

Best of Central America, Best of Honduras, Best of La Ceiba, Best of the Bay Islands Caribbean, Cayos Cochinos, Central America, La Ceiba 0

Wouldn’t it be perfect if you could combine two vacation destinations in one? Let’s say a lovely beach destination, with white sand beaches and turquoise blue waters with, let’s say the tropical jungles of Central America? These are two different, very distinct destinations, but they can actually be found in one place: Honduras! Yes the heart of Central America’s Caribbean is located in the lovely, truly unique country called Honduras, which is located in the Heart of Central America and has over 600 kilometers of shores bathed by the Lovely Caribbean Sea!

The Gateway to Central America’s Caribbean is the port city of La Ceiba. Blessed with 4 national Parks, including one, the Cayos Cochinos Marine Reserve which is actually a small archipelago in the Caribbean! (https://www.facebook.com/cayoscochinos.fundacion), La Ceiba is a magnificent platform to make the perfect combination of beach and reef plus tropical jungle vacation. Perhaps the best spot on the mainland Honduras, near La Ceiba to experience the true Central American tropical rainforest experience would be the Cangrejal River Valley. This area, with two National Parks, one on each side of the river, and only 10 miles from the sea, is truly the heart of Central America’s Caribbean. Here you can choose between hiking in the tropical rain forests of Pico Bonito or Nombre de Dios National Parks, raft in the crystal clear waters of the Cangrejal River, take a bird watching tour around the parks or simply relax in a hammock. You also take a one day tour to Cayos Cochinos, as well as take the local ferry to the beautiful Bay Islands of Honduras, the best kept secret in the Western Caribbean. There is regular daily ferry service between La Ceiba and Roatan (www.roatanferry.com) as well as between La Ceiba and Utila (www.utilaprincess.com).

For these and many more reasons, I can clearly state that the heart of Central America’s Caribbean is located in the City of La Ceiba, which is the lovely country of Honduras.

October 2, 2014

Best of La Ceiba, National Parks El Bejuco Waterfall, Rio Zacate Waterfall, Unbelievable Falls 0

Waterfalls are one of the most spectacular of nature’s expressions. Everyone dreams with being under a waterfall, jumping down from the top of a fall into a lovely pool or simply hold your beloved companions hand while staring into a waterfall. The rugged mountains of Nombre de Dios and the tropical rain forests around Atlantida provide the perfect setting for scenic, magnificent waterfalls, however plentiful and actually quite common, most of the Pico Bonito Waterfalls require an effort to get to see them and appreciate them!

Without doubt, the most popular of Pico Bonito Waterfalls is the Rio Zacate Waterfall. This fall is at the end of the Rio Zacate trail, and is a magnificent reward for those who have made the effort to hike up the steep slopes of the trail to get to this point.

Another of the more famed Pico Bonito Waterfalls is the El Bejuco Waterfall, located in the Cangrejal River Valley. www.cangrejalriver.com This lovely waterfall can actually be seen from the dirt road the leads from La Ceiba through the valley and on to the community of Yaruca.

However, if you are adventuresome, and follow any creek flowing towards the major rivers, you will surely find a variety of waterfalls of different altitudes hidden in the rain forests.

Perhaps the most beautiful and unique of these Pico Bonito waterfalls are those known as “Unbelievable Falls” This magnificent fall is about a two hour hike from the Lodge at Pico Bonito and will require that you are in shape, but you will be rewarded with a truly beautiful site.

If you are looking for a unique experience check out the waterfall climbs and descents that are offered through Honduras Waterfall descents. https://www.facebook.com/HondurasCanyoning Beware, this activity is not the feeble at heart, but is truly is the best way to get to know the Pico Bonito Waterfalls personally!

September 29, 2014

Best of Central America, Best of Honduras, Best of La Ceiba, getting to La Ceiba Bay Islands, Cangrejal River Valley, Cayman Islands, Honduras, La Ceiba, Roatan 0

Searching for the perfect weekend getaway is always a chore… You want some place nearby, but affordable, and that offers both, the option to relax and get rid of your stress or to have an action packed getaway and experience a new adventure! (Perhaps you want a bit of both!)

There is a little known, absolutely beautiful valley tucked away in the rugged Nombre de Dios Mountains, where the tropical rain forest co exists with a relatively large city nearby… a place where you will relax with the sound of running water and singing birds, where you will experience the thrill of white water or hiking in the rain forest… This little known secret place is called the Cangrejal River Valley, and it is located near the city of La Ceiba on the Caribbean coast of Honduras. Truly the perfect weekend getaway! It is easy to get to from the main cities of Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula, as well as from the main tourism hubs of the Bay Islands of Honduras: Utila and Roatan. It is also just a short one hour flight from Grand Cayman, allowing you to arrange a perfect weekend getaway using the Cayman Airways flights from Georgetown, Grand Cayman Island to La Ceiba operating scheduled flights on Friday and Monday. For updated information regarding the Cayman Airways flight schedule to La Ceiba, Honduras, check out https://www.caymanairways.com/flight-schedule

Best of all is the fact that the Cangrejal River Valley offers a variety of hostels, inns and jungle eco lodges that will fit into any budget, with everything from a true luxury eco lodge accommodation to a back packer’s hostel, with everything in between. For a complete list on hotels in the Cangrejal River Valley, check out www.cangrejalriver.com

If you are In the Bay Island of Roatan, and want to take advantage of the perfect weekend getaway, make use of the Galaxy Wave Ferry, they have a twice daily schedule that allows you to travel between Roatan and La Ceiba in the morning or afternoon in both directions, for detailed, up to day info on the schedules, check out www.roatanferry.com.

The perfect weekend getaway is also available from the Bay Island of Utila, with daily service aboard the Utila Princess Ferry. www.utilaprincess.com

Last but not least, easy access to La Ceiba from both San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa, make it easy to get to the perfect weekend getaway using either your own vehicle, taking the excellent public bus service provided by www.hedmanalas.com. As well as using the local airline, www.aerolineassosahn.com, who services both the Tegucigalpa to La Ceiba and the San Pedro Sula to La Ceiba routes.

Take advantage and come to the Cangrejal River Valley, the perfect weekend getaway in Honduras!

getting from the USA to Honduras is easy via Roatan and using the Roatan Ferry

September 28, 2014

Best of La Ceiba, Best of the Bay Islands, getting to La Ceiba Bay Islands, Cangrejal River Valley, Roatan 0

Honduras is located in the heart of Central America, with its face towards the Caribbean. Its main tourist destination is the island of Roatan, gateway to Honduras, which has steadily developed into the fastest growing port of call for cruise ships in the Caribbean. Roatan also has an international airport, and although a few years ago there were virtually no scheduled international flights into the island, today several international airlines offer regular scheduled nonstop service from major gateways in the USA, including Dallas / Fort Worth, Miami, Atlanta, New York City and Houston. Additionally, there is regular charter air service operating out of Toronto and Montreal, as well as from Milan in Northern Italy!

Many travelers visiting Roatan for a vacation prefer flying directly into Roatan, despite the fact that the airfare is a bit more expensive than that to the airports in San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa, because they avoid the hassle of the larger airports as well as having to find transportation towards their main destination in Honduras: Roatan. In addition, with the bad reputation that San Pedro Sula has, which in my own mind is completely overdone, travelers simply prefer to feel safe and not risk themselves unnecessarily. Because of the above todays travelers use Roatan as a gateway to Honduras, and visit the country from there. Although Roatan is somewhat detached from much of mainland Honduras, there is regular, easy communication between Roatan and the port city of La Ceiba on the mainland. The Galaxy Wave water jet catamaran offers twice daily service between both ports, with the passage being under two hours and the cost of a ticket, one way is just over $25 US dollars. For updated info on schedules and costs, check out www.roatanferry.com. Roatan’s International Airport also has regularly scheduled flights to La Ceiba, San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa, so traveling around Honduras is easy from Roatan. This is why we consider that Roatan is a great gateway to Honduras!

This being said, the easiest, fastest, safest gateway to Honduras, especially the Caribbean Coast is Roatan, “the” gateway to Honduras! Many travelers are unaware of this fact and therefore do not travel to Honduras or Roatan. Although Roatan is a lovely truly beautiful island in the Caribbean with lots to offer, there is so much more to see just a few miles away in the mainland. Visiting Roatan and not taking the time to venture into the mainland for a few days is truly a mistake. National Parks, wildlife reserves, Garifuna culture, and some of the best adventure and nature destinations in Central America are just a short jump away from the Bay Islands of Honduras. Because of the above, I fully recommend using Roatan as your personal gateway to Honduras and consider flying into Roatan on your next trip to stay in the Caribbean mainland of Honduras. Come and discover the magnificent Cangrejal River Valley and spend some days in this magical tropical world! For more information on hotels and options in the Cangrejal River Valley, visit www.cangrejalriver.com. There is no doubt in my mind that the perfect combination for a vacation package in Honduras is to visit the Bay Islands of Honduras and the Cangrejal River Valley, just outside the City of La Ceiba.

Cangrejal River Valley, home to the Best Hotels in La Ceiba

September 26, 2014

Best of Honduras, Best of La Ceiba, Best of the Bay Islands 0

Looking for a list of things you must do in Roatan? Look no more! Here are my suggestions!

Roatan is the largest of the Bay Islands of Honduras, and has steadily been receiving more tourists over the years. Most of these tourists arrive on cruise ships and therefore really do not have enough time to get around the island and explore the more unique aspects of Roatan. In my humble opinion there are several different things you must do in Roatan, following is my list with suggestions on what you must see and not miss:

The first on the list of things you must do in Roatan is a visit West Bay Beach. West Bay Beach is considered the best beach in Central America, and one of the best beaches in the Caribbean… This is a must place to visit. The downside to West Bay Beach is the fact that it could be overrun by tourists from cruise ships, most of whom actually run to see the beach and take a picture to prove they have been here…

While you are in the West End of the island, you should take advantage and visit the town of West End. This small, beach front community has become the heart of tourism in Roatan. A funky, Key West atmosphere, with nice beach bars, gourmet restaurants, small hotels, bed and breakfasts and inns all come together to offer a unique setting and is definitely one of the things you must do in Roatan. At night, the atmosphere turns into a more bohemian touch, and bar hoping between beach bars can easily become your favorite island activity. If a few cocktails make you hungry, you have dozens of eateries, from gourmet to street side baleadas to choose from. A night visit to West End is definitely on my must to list while in Roatan! As a matter of fact, if you are still trying to decide where you should spend the night in Roatan, think no more, West End is the place to do so!

Next on the list of things you must do in Roatan is a visit to east end of the island. This is the original, authentic Roatan, which has not changed much over the years. There are several small, truly authentic communities in the area, and if you want to see how life was in Roatan before it was discovered as a tourist destination, then visiting one of these communities is a definite must! My favorite community is Calabash Bight, but Jonesville and even Oakridge are worth a visit! These communities are extremely picturesque, and are certainly a window to the past, how a sleepy, colorful, Caribbean community used to be.

As long as we are in the East End of Roatan, we might as well push further east. You will find that the paved road ends in Oakridge, so from there on you will be traveling on a dirt road. The road is accessible throughout the year, even during the rain season, and although you do not need a four wheel drive vehicle, your traveling will slow down significantly because the road will become quite bumpy. Be patient, there are two different reasons to continue down this road… One of them is one of the most secluded of Roatan Resorts, Paya Bay. This hotel offers fantastic views, access to two small private beaches, and great food. If you are looking for hideaway to relax in where no one will find you, where you will enjoy some of the nicest beaches in the Caribbean and where you will be serviced like a king, you should certainly consider Paya Bay Resort!

Past Paya Bay you will come to Camp Bay. While Camp Bay is a small, unimpressive little beachside community, which is not really worth the trip on itself, the Camp Bay Beach is certainly worth your time. If you are looking for a lovely, unspoiled, uncrowded beach, this is where you will find it. Camp Bay Beach is my favorite beach in Roatan, and in my humble opinion, is the best beach in Central America! There is a small beachfront, actually on the water restaurant here called La Sirena. It offers great food in a rustic, very authentic Caribbean atmosphere.

If you are looking for a more jungle like experience, you should consider jumping to the mainland. Even if you cannot spend the night there, you can easily take the morning ferry to La Ceiba, arriving there before 9:00 a.m. and then continue to the Cangrejal River Valley, a lovely are very close to La Ceiba, where you will find a myriad of adventure and nature activities, including white water rafting, horseback riding, hiking, zip line canopy tours, outstanding bird watching, etc. The trip between the ferry terminal and the different businesses in the Cangrejal River Valley will be only 30 minutes, so in the end, your trip from Roatan to the Cangrejal River Valley will give you more than 6 hours on the site to enjoy one or more of your favorite activities. If you do have time to spend some nights here, there are several different hotels that you can enjoy and at least one of them will fit into your budget. For a complete list of hotels in the Cangrejal River Valley, visit www.cangrejalriver.com

Regardless of whether its for a day tour, or for one or several nights, a visit to the Cangrejal River Valley is one of the things you must do while in Roatan!

September 23, 2014

Best of Central America, Best of Honduras, Best of La Ceiba 0

When traveling, there is always a need to feel at home, or even better, to feel you are an honored guest at a good friends home. This is where the term guest house comes from, and it is certainly something than any traveler cherishes to feel. There are always many hotels and inns to choose from in today’s modern world, so finding the best guest house is always a chore in itself, and an important one at that! Finding the right spot to stay in will make your visit to a city much more pleasant, finding the wrong one can turn into a nightmare! With this in mind, which is the best guest house in La Ceiba?

There are not many guest houses in La Ceiba, and those that do exist are mostly out of town. Your best bet is the Cangrejal River Valley, where you will find several different options. For a complete list of options in this area, check out www.cangrejalriver.com, here you will find a variety of options with different prices. Evidently, if you are looking for the best guest house in La Ceiba, you will want a true home feeling, where you have access to the house, but at the same time have the privacy of your room. You will certainly want to find that you can communicate with your hosts and innkeepers in your own language, English, however you would also love to be able to see how daily life goes about for a family in this part of the World, so it would be preferable that the family is local, but bilingual, that they can serve you a local meal, with the cleanliness and hygiene you would expect back home, and who can help you arrange for local activities, both through a local tour operator or on your own, depending on what you are looking for.

In my opinion, another important factor to be the best guest house in La Ceiba, you need to be able to offer your client outstanding local information. Information not only on a local level but also on a national, level, how to get around, where to stay, what are the must visit attractions in the other cities and regions in the country, and what you should look out for and completely avoid!

Finally, the best guest house in La Ceiba should definitely have great, hi speed, free wifi. After all, you are traveling, but you do need to keep up on your things, with your family, and most important, be able to continue planning your trip! At La Villa de Soledad, we work hard to be the best guest house in La Ceiba! Come and relax in nature, have the vacation of your lifetime and feel like an honored guest at La Villa de Soledad B&B.

September 16, 2014

Best of La Ceiba, National Parks 0

Pico Bonito National Park is located on the #Caribbean Coast of #Honduras, quite close to the city of La Ceiba, the eco tourism capital in Honduras. Although access to the deepest parts of the National Park is virtually impossible, there are several different options for Pico Bonito Lodging.

#PicoBonitoNationalPark offers two distinct areas that are easily accessible and promoted for their eco tourism potential. The oldest, but not necessarily the most popular is the Rio Zacate area, located west of the city of La Ceiba, in the vicinity of the community of El Pino. It is here were the most established lodge in the Pico Bonito National Park is located: The Lodge at Pico Bonito www.picobonito.com one of the small luxury hotels of the World that has gotten raving reviews for several years now!

The other area where you can find some Pico Bonito Lodging options is the Cangrejal River Valley. This area is actually on the Eastern boundary of the Park, just a few kilometers from the main road, which means that you are close to the ferry terminal to the Bay Islands, the International Airport in La Ceiba and the bus terminals in town. It is also fairly close to Sambo Creek, which means that access to sites such as Cayos Cochinos, the Cacao Lagoon and the hot springs at Sambo Creek are al quite accessible. This area actually has over 10 different inns, hostels and eco jungle lodges to choose from, making it the best area for Pico Bonito lodging!

Activities actually include way more that hiking in the trails and bird watching, you can do horseback riding, mountain biking, and some of the best white water rafting in Central America! The short and very scenic 25 minute drive up the Cangrejal River road will surely be extremely enjoyable. Amongst the Pico Bonito lodging options available in this area you will find some community owned cabins at Las Mangas, as well as family run boutique bed and breakfasts, private villas and jungle lodges.

For a complete list of Pico Bonito lodging options in the Cangrejal River Valley, visit www.cangrejalriver.com

September 13, 2014

Best of La Ceiba, Best of the Bay Islands Bay Islands, Honduras, Roatan, White water rafting 0

Roatan, the largest and most developed of the Bay Islands of Honduras has become the most visited destination in Honduras. Not only is it an important and fastest growing cruise ship port of call in the Caribbean, it also has regularly scheduled nonstop flights serviced by Delta, American, United and Avianca from important gateways in North and Central America. Although most visited because of the extensive diving in the reefs that surround the island; the reefs in the Bay Islands are actually part of the Meso American Barrier Reef system, which is the second largest and most bio-diverse barrier reef in the World, there are certainly many, many different activities that can be enjoyed in Roatan. One of these is white water rafting in Roatan!

Granted, if you have visited the island before, or researched about it, you will argue that there are no rivers for rafting in Roatan, and of course, you are right, however on a clear day, if you are looking towards the south, which is where mainland Honduras is, you can see the Nombre de Dios Mountains. These massive mountains reach an altitude of over 8000 feet, and here you can find the mighty Cangrejal River, famous for its white water rafting! You might rightly argue that the river is in the mainland, and that you are on the island! This is not White water rafting in Roatan! Well of course you are right, but so am I! You can easily do a full day tour from Roatan to La Ceiba and enjoy this World Class white water rafting. If you take the morning ferry, which departs at 7:00 am from Roatan, you will be in La Ceiba before 9:00 am, and a short 30 minute If ride will have you in the Cangrejal River Valley before 9:30 am! If you have pre arranged your tour, the tour operator will be waiting for you to start your adventure promptly!. Omega Tours www.omegatours.info and La Moskitia Ecoaventuras www.lamoskitia.hn both offer half day tours that you will thoroughly enjoy and will easily be one of the highlights of your trip to Roatan.

So, now you know, independently of whether you are visiting Roatan for the diving or if its just that you are a beach lover, there is white water rafting in Roatan that you can enjoy!

September 11, 2014

Best of La Ceiba Honduras, La Ceiba, pet friendly hotels 0

Incredibly, as more and more travelers refuse to leave their beloved pets at home when they travel, the industry has not expanded to accommodate them! Airlines are making it easier to travel with pets, especially if they are small, but it is still hard to find hotels that will accept clients traveling with their furry companions. So the question is, if you are traveling with your pet, which are your options for pet friendly hotels in La Ceiba?

Nestled in the Cangrejal River Valley, La Villa de Soledad B&B is certainly not only one of the few pet friendly hotels in La Ceiba, it is also probably the one with the friendliest pet environment in the area! Extensive gardens, rooms with doors opening directly out to the grounds that allow your dog to exit directly to the gardens and lots of space to run in and do his daily exercise. If your dog is a swimmer, he will certainly enjoy the direct access to the Cangrejal River, where he will have the double benefit of exercising and having fun.

La Villa de Soledad will even help you out by helping you arrange for transfers from town to La Villa de Soledad and viceversa, making your transfer from the airport, bus station of ferry terminal in La Ceiba an easy, and hassle less transfer.

So if you are traveling with your dog, and looking for a spot to overnight in La Ceiba, look no more for pet friendly hotels in La Ceiba, you now know which your best option is! Nothing like enjoying your vacation in the company of your furry companion instead of worrying about how he is doing back home missing you!

September 4, 2014

Best of La Ceiba 0

La Ceiba is considered the eco tourism capital of Honduras, and many Hondurans actually consider it the Ecotourism Capital of Central America. There is no doubt that La Ceiba has the potential to become it! So if La Ceiba is the eco tourism capital of Honduras, then you should be able to find an eco jungle lodge in La Ceiba! There are actually several unique eco jungle lodges in La Ceiba, and most of them are within the Cangrejal River Valley, a lovely, densely forested area that acts as a border between two national parks: Nombre de Dios and Pico Bonito National Parks, both part or the Honduran National Park System and home to some of the most lush tropical rain forests in Central America.

There is no higher density of eco jungle lodges in all of Honduras than what you will find here! You can settle for a hostel like accommodation with dorm or private room settings all the way up to a luxury eco jungle lodge. A complete list of accommodations at the Cangrejal River Valley can be found through www.cangrejalriver.com. Best of all is the fact that there are several outfitters and tour operators that provide unique jungle tours, both within the Cangrejal River Valley as well as to the neighboring National Parks and protected areas that have made La Ceiba a preferred destination for nature lovers. La Moskitia Ecoaventuras www.lamoskitia.hn offers unique expeditions to the Rio Platano Biosphere reserve, which is easily accessible from La Ceiba. They work with a network of eco jungle lodges in the Moskito Coast area.

Probably the most unique eco jungle lodge in La Ceiba is La Villa de Soledad. Here you will find the perfect combination of an eco lodge that blends into the natural surroundings with the comfort of home and the hospitality of an English speaking family that will work hard to make you feel at home, providing a unique experience. Whether you are looking for a place to relax in nature, or the perfect spot for an adventure filled vacation in nature, La Villa de Soledad is the best eco jungle lodge in La Ceiba!