Roatan, Honduras is an island that is located 40 miles off the north coast of mainland Honduras
and it is the largest of the Honduras Bay Islands.
Cruise ships visiting Roatan dock near the town of Coxen Hole, on the southwest side
of the island.
In this video, we’ll provide an overview of our December 2019 visit to Roatan, when
our ship -- the Norweigan Escape -- docked at the Port of Roatan, which is located at
the town center of Coxen Hole.
Please note there are multiple cruise docks in Roatan.
Generally, ships that are owned by Carnival Corporation dock at Mahogany Bay, which is
located about a 15-minute drive from the town of Coxen Hole.
Other cruise lines -- such as Royal Carribean, Norweigan, and Celebrity -- typically dock
at the Port Of Roatan.
We checked online port schedules prior to our visit to determine which dock location
our ship was scheduled to visit and we’ve linked to those websites in the description below.
During our visit to Roatan, we booked an excursion through an independent tour operator, Real
Deal Roatan Tours.
The excursion included visits to a children’s home, an animal park sanctuary, a chocolate
factory, a rum factory, and more.
After the excursion, we also spent a bit of time exploring the Port of Roatan terminal
area, which was undergoing an expansion when we visited.
After disembarking from the ship, we walked to the Port of Roatan terminal area and followed
the signs toward the exit.
After we exited, we waited just outside the terminal area to meet our guide from Real
Deal Roatan Tours.
Once our tour guide arrived, we hopped in the van with two other cruisers who had booked
the same tour and we drove off to our first destination, the Greenfield Children’s Home.
The children’s home provides shelter, education, and meals for abandoned, abused, and at-risk
children from the island of Roatan.
The home is operated by Sandy Bay Lighthouse Ministries, which is a Christian non-profit organization.
The organization also operates a bilingual school at the same location as the children’s home.
The school provides education for residents of the children’s home, as well as students
from the surrounding community.
The overall experience of visiting the Greenfield Children’s Home was deeply moving for everyone
in our tour group.
If you plan to visit Roatan and would like to bring supplies to the children’s home,
the ministry’s website includes a list of current needs and we have provided a link
in the description below.
The second stop on our tour of Roatan was an animal park sanctuary that featured Sloths,
Capuchin Monkeys, Macaws, Parrots, and other exotic animals.
When we arrived at the sanctuary, our tour guide connected us with a sanctuary guide
who walked us through the various habitats.
Information about each of the animals in the habitats was provided by the sanctuary guide
as well as signage posted throughout the sanctuary.
The highlight of our visit to the animal park sanctuary was having the opportunity to hold
a sloth!
It was an experience that none of us will forget, especially our JellyBean, who is a
huge fan of sloths.
After we completed the sanctuary tour, we were able to visit the sanctuary’s gift
shop, which featured souvenirs and local arts and crafts.
A snack bar and restrooms were also available on-site.
The third stop on our tour of Roatan was the Roatan Chocolate Factory & Cafe, which is
a small-scale chocolate factory that makes 12 different flavor varieties of white, milk
and dark chocolate using cacao seeds grown in Honduras.
During our visit to the factory and cafe, we learned all about the chocolate-making
process and had an opportunity to taste some cacao nibs and some samples of the factory’s
chocolates.
We were also able to feel some of the factory’s cocoa butter, which is a byproduct of the
chocolate-making process.
In addition to the factory’s chocolates, other locally-made products were also available
for purchase in the store.
The small cafe located on-site had a limited number of food and drink items available for
purchase.
The fourth stop on our tour of Roatan was the lighthouse at West Bay.
Visitors are able to climb to the top of the lighthouse for a nominal fee, but we opted
to not climb it since it wasn’t very tall.
Instead, we simply enjoyed the scenic view of the forest and sea behind the lighthouse
from ground level.
After visiting the lighthouse, we walked across the street to the Roatan Rum Company, where
we were invited to try free samples of their rum and handmade Carribean rum cakes.
Bottles of rum and varieties of the rum cakes were available for purchase in the store.
A deck located behind the store provided another scenic view of the forest and sea on the opposite
side of the island from the lighthouse.
The final stop on our tour of Roatan was a scenic overlook that featured a large, colorful
Roatan sign for a fun photo op.
After our tour was complete, our knowledgeable, friendly, and all-around fantastic tour guide
dropped us off at the Port of Roatan and we explored the terminal area for a while.
The area features duty-free shopping, eateries, souvenir shops, a taxi stand, and restrooms.
Just a note that when our ship arrived at Roatan, we docked at the newly constructed
second pier, which still had a bit of construction work remaining.
Prior to the addition of the second pier, only one ship could dock at the terminal and
other ships had to tender offshore.
If you’re interested in the port’s master plan for expansion -- which includes animal
encounters and a lazy river -- the port has a video available that we’ve linked to in
the description below.