The general travel route that many travelers visiting Central America take brings them down the coast of Belize to Livingston in Guatemala, and then continues on to Puerto Barrios with the intentional of getting to the Bay Islands of Honduras. Some take a few days to visit and explore the Rio Dulce area before continuing towards the Bay Islands, others just go straight from Puerto Barrios. Whichever the case, if the goal is to get to the Bay Islands, they must first find the way to get from Rio Dulce to La Ceiba, since transportation from the Honduras mainland to the Bay Islands operates from the port city of La Ceiba.
The easiest, fastest way to get from Rio Dulce to La Ceiba is to take the Tornabe Tours shuttle. www.tornabe.com . They have a shuttle that departs from Puerto Barrios and Rio Dulce every Tuesday morning. The cost of the shuttle is only $50 USA dollars, and their service will take you directly the ferry terminal at La Ceiba port facility, where you can purchase your ticket in time to continue your route towards the Bay Islands of Utila or Roatan. Afternoon ferry departures are at 4:00 p.m. to Utila and 4:30 p.m. to Roatan. The shuttle usually departs from the Municipal dock in Puerto Barrios and then stops at the Rio Dulce area at the Sundog Café, where it picks up the guests that are looking to travel to La Ceiba and the Bay Islands of Honduras.
One word of advice: do not let the rush to get to or from the Bay Islands make you miss out on the lovely Cangrejal River Valley. The Cangrejal River Valley is easily one of the highlights and crown jewels in all of Central America, and there are way too many travelers that miss out on this magnificent mini destination. You MUST plan for some time in this magnificent area with some of the best and most accessible tropical rain forest scenarios in all of Central America when you make your arrangements to get from Rio Dulce to La Ceiba. It does not matter if you plan on it before you go to the Islands or when you come from the islands, but do yourself a favor and and plan on spending at least a couple of days in the Cangrejal River Valley! So when in Puerto Barrios and the Rio Dulce, and are looking for a way to travel from Rio Dulce to La Ceiba, stop by at the Sundog Café and arrange for your shuttle transportation to La Ceiba!
A couple of expert travel bloggers recently came by our neck of the woods and this is what they had to say about the Cangrejal River Valley and surrounding facilities: http://onestep4ward.com/la-ceiba-and-pico-bonito-national-park-honduras and http://dontstopliving.net/relax-in-nature-staying-at-la-villa-de-soledad-in-rio-cangrejal-honduras