I've been hung up on writing this blog for awhile, because I want to do it justice. But now, at this point, three months later- I just need to write something, anything! You know how I have my favorite days ever? Like that time in Alaska when we drove from Anchorage to Fairbanks? The Easter Egg Roll Day? The Sandy Toes Day? Well, my day in Roatan Honduras can be added to that list.
We have gotten a little more adventurous with our time off ships recently. There was a time in which I never deviated from ports if I didn't have a cruise line sanctioned excursion. The cruise lines all tell you it's best to go through them, and they kind of scare you into it with things about how if you miss the ship, it's on you... but the reality is you can get a lot more bang for your buck going out with other tour groups, or even going it alone via taxis.
In Roatan, there was a lot I wanted to experience, and I stumbled across the place called 'Rony's Tours' in which you hire your own driver and select the things on the island you want to do, and they make it happen. There are many tours to choose from, depending on what part of the island you are going to, but I eventually selected a tour that included snorkeling and visiting Daniel Johnson's Monkey and Sloth Hangout. By the time I added all my add ones, it wasn't inexpensive per say, but it was way cheaper than what the cruise ship was offering, and it was a whole day worth of activities. Plus, a private driver!
We arrived in port and were one of the first people off the ship. Now with this tour, you decide your start time- but the earlier you get off the ship, the more you can cram into your day before you have to get back. We made our way outside the port, where all the non-cruise ship sanctioned people are allowed to hang out and we found our guide wearing his blue 'Rony's Tour' shirt waiting for us.
Andy introduced himself, and then we headed off the car that was waiting for us. He confirmed the items we were hoping to do and insisted he was going to stay ahead of the cruise ship crowds (boy did he ever deliver on that front). Since many of our picks weren't open yet, he took us shopping first. We went to little shop on the top of this narrow hill and arrived just before opening, getting to spend some time with the owners adorable pug mix pup before they were ready for us. Then he took us to the highest point on the island for an awesome lookout and great shot of our cruise ship, where there were women with makeshift shacks selling their goods. Asa got a cool set of wooden coffee mugs, and Andy took our picture and we headed off to the Sloth rescue.
We arrived and Andy quickly dropped us off, speaking Spanish to the girl collecting the admission fees and getting us in just before the cruise ship buses arrived. We waited among some stray cats on wooden benches, while Andy squared things away for us, and we were handed off to a guide for the Daniel Johnson's rescue, who would stay with us throughout our tour. (I wish I remember his name, he was great!)
The rescue was formed by someone from America. One of the best parts about having Andy was all the things he pointed out and showed us about the island, and how much he told us about life there. They actually very much appreciate Americans who come and do things like opening the rescue, because he says Americans have 'the money' and 'the ideas'.
The first stop in the rescue was to hold the sloths. You have to stand still (they tell you to be a tree, not a nanny) and you cross your fingers with palms up and they just kind of put the Sloth on you. I was in heaven. Our particular sloth was Patricia and she was the sweetest thing in the whole world. They're so light and dainty, but their little eyes are so captivating. I adored her. When she was done being held, she gets to go hang out with the other sloths just up in the trees. I guess the rescue sloths don't go very far, or aren't in danger there- because that's where they hang out- the trees, no cage or anything.
After we'd all held Patricia, we moved into the monkey cage, and our guide gave seeds and nuts to put on our heads to entice the monkeys to come hang out with us. They were a little wild, jumping around a lot- but so fun. Still, the Sloth was more my speed. At one point, I took a picture of one of the sloths way up in the trees, and a monkey, in the cage right behind me just yanked on my pony tail. Another ripped a bandaid right off a teenage girls forehead. So, they are quite mischievous.
Our tour finished up with some birds. Of course, Asa enjoyed that part. He's always looking for a good bird house, and these birds were particularly into hanging out with us.
As we finished up our tour, we came out to find the once empty waiting area was full of a queue of people, and there were cruise ship buses lined up one after another after another. Andy was there waiting for us, ready to take us to our next destination just a few minutes away: the Iguana Farm.
The Iguana Farm was one of the add ones I chose, for something like $8 extra a person, you could pick it as a stop. Andy pulled up just before another bus, and quickly handed us off to our tour guide for the iguanas before the bus could unload. Our tour guide here was Guillermo. His English wasn't great, but he knew the spiel in English, and was very friendly. He showed us the mound where the iguanas lay their eggs, and a giant cage where they keep the babies.
After a stop to see an aguti and a some birds, we rounded the corner and I spotted a couple giant iguanas on the ground- out in the open! I didn't realized once the babies are big enough to survive they just let them go from the cages, and they tend to stay around the farm. There's nothing keeping there (aside from, of course, a steady supply of food) but they must hang around.
I was impressed with the couple of giant ones on the sidewalk area, and then I looked behind that- there were WAY more than a few iguanas. They were in fact everywhere! And they were huge. Guillermo gave us some greens to feed them, and told us we were free to pet them as well. I cannot tell you how many there were- they were EVERYWHERE. But apparently, there can be WAY more. Guillermo told us one a warmer, sunnier day we would have seen thousands.
Guillermo then took us down the hill to the dock, and showed us giant tarpon and even a barracuda, and he handed us tiny little fish to feed the big fish. We'd throw them in the water and there would be a giant uproar from the big fish trying to eat.
When we walked back up the hill, the area was much more crowded, and Andy was waiting for us to continue on our way. So, some context before our next stop: Roatan is not a rich place, by American standards. There is a lot of poverty. Many modern amenities are not available to them, houses didn't have windows, but instead make shift curtains made out of sheets. Goats and dogs roamed the streets. Andy doesn't even have a car- he loves his job because 'Mr. Rony' as he calls him, is kind enough to let him use the car he drives for tours on his days off to get places.
But, despite this, Roatan in Honduras's cash cow. It's an island, set off from the mainland of Honduras, and brings in most of the money from the country thanks to cruise ships. They really suffered when COVID hit, Andy told us that at least the cruise ships would bring in food for them, and they'd line up to get it- and were able to eat really well because of it. Anyway, because of that, the government wants to keep Roatan safe. They want and need the ships to come in, so they protect the island. Part of that is keeping crime down. There were even checkpoints around the island, where we would be stopped by authorities, and Andy would have to show them his paperwork that he could operate a tour.
And, they don't just want to keep the tourists safe on land- but on water too. If the seas are too rough, the government will say no tour boats can go out (for things like snorkeling). They don't want anything to happen to give tourists pause about visiting. They don't want bad press. Unfortunately, on our day, the seas were very rough, so there was no snorkeling for us.
That was supposed to be the next part of our trip, a snorkeling boat ride. But, Rony's Tour always has a backup plan. Andy took us out to this unassuming dock with a wood hut nearby, spoke some Spanish, got our admission all squared away, and took us over to this 'boat'. So, I use this term lightly- it was more like a floating tiny barge with wooden benches nailed to it- and a couple of workers with a bunch of food. They were going across the way to open the restaurant at Brady's Cay, and Andy had secured our spot on the tiny vessel. It was a very short ride across a little channel, but there was no tying up the boat or anything, just some guys in barefeet jumping off the boat and holding it steady while we got off.
Andy explained to us that this was one of the best beach snorkeling sites nearby. While we couldn't take a snorkeling boat out, we would be able to Snorkel off the beach at Brady's Cay, and we could use all their facilities (though lunch and drinks would be extra). We were literally the first ones, and only ones on the beach. We changed into swimsuits, Andy got us some Snorkel gear and life jackets, and we ordered some food from our lovely waitress for the day.
After filling our tummies, we got in the water and headed out. There were plenty of areas with rocks and reef areas for the fish to hang out in. The water was choppy, but the lifejackets really helped keep us from having to fight the current too much. We happily snorkeled for nearly an hour when someone from Brady's Cay came out on a kayak informing us we needed to go back in because it was getting too choppy to be out any longer. I was sad, but totally understood. He was right, it was getting pretty rough. And, I was so grateful I got to do any snorkeling at all.
We spent a bit more time on land, played on the swings in the water, and hung out in hammocks before Andy told us if we still wanted to stop by a grocery store and get some coffee (a request we had made that afternoon because we had such success at the grocery store in Belize) we should probably be moving on. He made sure we got on the boat ok and took us back over to his car, where he promptly turned on the air for us to cool down after being in the sun (albeit cloud covered sun) for a couple hours.
Andy then told us we could combine trips, because he could take us to a grocery store with a coffee shop in it. Sounded good to us! Andy didn't just drop us off at the store though, he came in with us, helped us order our coffee in Spanish (Andy speaks a BUNCH of different languages), and then proceeded to push our grocery cart and ask what we were looking for. He'd talk to the workers in Spanish for us to find items, and told us what the locals drink and eat when we were kind of lost on what to get. He even explained the conversion rate to us. We got a couple of things, and checked out.
Andy informed us we had a little extra time, and asked if we wanted to see the 'real' Roatan. Obviously, we did, so he drove us through his area. It was eye opening. Everyone has so little, but they make do, and they seem happy. Americans have so much, and seem to want more. We could learn a thing or two from Andy. Everyone loved Andy too. You'd pull up to a stop sign and someone would yell out 'Hey Andy! good to see you!'. Andy talked a lot about having a stern, unfeeling father too, and how he was trying to break that cycle. Just all kinds of insight into a totally different life than living in an HOA subdivsion in America. I appreciated the perspective.
After a trip through a very narrow mostly dirt street with homes and business crammed together, Andy then drove us back to the port. One of the options for something to do on the tours is to go to a school to drop off some donations (think school supplies/clothing/books), and I had emailed beforehand to say even though it wasn't on our itinerary to go- could I bring some supplies? Of course they were more than happy to take them for us, but in true me fashion, I had brought them all the way and then forgot them on the ship. We told Andy this, and he said he would wait while we went to grab them. I told him it'd be a good 25-30 minutes to get all the way to the ship, on board, up to our room, and back, but he waited (and Asa was the one who took them back anyway, while I got my frozen Sangria and french fries- what a guy).
The whole day was pretty amazing. If you ever go to Roatan, I cannot recommend Rony's Tours enough. You'll pay about the same you'd pay for a cruise ship tour, but you'll get SO.MUCH.MORE. Andy was our driver, our tour guide, our teacher, and our translator. We tipped him as well as we could with the cash we had left. He deserved every penny.
We finished up that day with O'Sheehans, drinks, and pool time. All in all, a pretty amazing day I won't soon forget.
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