Page 44 - Central America
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HOW TO GET TO ROATAN American, Delta and Continental offer flights to San Pedro Sula’s’s
Roatan is becoming more and more popular as a tourist attraction, Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport (Aeropuerto Inter-
especially among divers who have heard about the beauty of the vast nacional Ramón Villeda Morales) (IATA:SAP, ICAO:MHLM), also
coral reef at Roatan. The Island of Roatan has a nice little international known as La Mesa International Airport situated on the mainland,
airport, which at times is a busy place. It’s not set-up for too many from which you can then get connecting services to Roatan.
large flights at a time, but generally things work quite well. Roatan can Avianca, a group of five regional airlines, offers service from Miami,
be accessed by direct flights from the United States, through Houston, Orlando, Chicago, Dallas, Toronto, Houston, New York, Los Ange-
Atlanta, or Miami via Delta, United, TACA, and American Airlines. les, San Francisco and Washington DC with connecting service to
You can also connect through San Salvador (El Salvador) or with do- Roatan, including mid-week flights, plus flights from elsewhere in
mestic connections, through the Honduran mainland cities of Tegu- Central America.
cigalpa and San Pedro Sula. You can also access Roatan by taking a There are also local airlines such as SOSA, CM Airlines, air viva and
high speed ferry from the port city of La Ceiba. Although the main Isleña (part of Avianca’s regional service) connecting the island with
currency used is the Honduran Lempira, most business will accept La Ceiba, San Pedro Sula, and Tegucigalpa. Prices are all over the map
US dollars. However, if you use dollars, expect to get lempiras back in due to fuel costs and inflation, but usually average in at about US$200
change. Try to keep all of your bills as USD 20 bills or smaller, as many for a flight from Tegucigalpa-Toncontin to Roatan
local business may not be able to accept bills as large as USD 100. It’s The island is visited by a number of cruise lines, such as Carnival,
also necessary to make sure the bills are in good condition; otherwise Princess, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Lines. There are
they will not be accepted. two cruise ship ports, Port of Roatan in Coxen Hole, and Mahogany
Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport (Aeropuerto Internacional Bay outside of French Harbor. Mahogany Bay has an onsite beach,
Juan Manuel Gálvez) (IATA: RTB, ICAO: MHRO) is on the island of shops, and activities such as zipline, so cruise visitors don’t have to
Roatán. Several US airlines offer non-stop flights to Roatan on week- experience the rest of the island. The beach is nice and the setting
ends. amazingly surreal, with 2 rusting shipwrecks within view. Cruises also
American Airlines, flies non-stop from Miami (Wednesdays and Sat- port in Coxen Hole.
urdays only).
United Airlines, offers direct flights from Houston (Daily during high
season, less often other times), and from Newark (weekend).
Delta Airlines, flies non-stop from Atlanta (Saturdays only).
