Roatan

The island of Roatan, the largest of the Bay Islands is located 30 miles off the mainland coast of Honduras. The coral reefs off shore are a continuation of the barrier reef off Belize, the second largest barrier reef in the world making them attractive for diving and snorkeling. Which is the reason we paid them a visit.

The island is 50 km long and just 2 to 4 km wide; 50 km north of the coastal city of La Ceiba, Honduras: 1000km from Miami and1200 km from New Orleans. The island people are very friendly but sometimes shy. The rest of the world discovered Roatan when Columbus paid a visit in 1502 where he found the population composed chiefly of Mayan Indians. The Spanish settlements on the island did not flourish and Madrid showed little interest in Roatan until British, French and Dutch pirates began to use its many fine harbours as bases for attacking the treasure-laden galleons of Spain.

In 1859, the young Queen Victoria relinquished British claims to Roatan by ceding the Bay Islands to the very youthful Central American republic of Honduras. Enough of the history of the area and onto welcome to Romeo's Resort known today as Casa Romeo.

The resort is located along the southern shore of the island of Roatan, nestled in a cozy setting of a quiet bay called Brick Bay and just a short ride from the airport. Our hosts for our stay were Connie and Romeo Silvertri. Connie, a native of Roatan, comes from a seafaring family involved in the export of shrimp and lobster. Romeo was born in the city of La Cieba on the mainland and his father was a legendary restaurateur. Our hosts ran the resort with enthusiasm and charm and gave the warmest of island welcomes to each and every guest.

Relax, enjoy, eat, sleep, explore and dive, that was our holiday. This small intimate resort (33 rooms) had a gift shop; an open-air restaurant and bar located on the main level of the resort and of course the dive shop next to the fresh water pool. The only down side were the mosquitoes and sand flies which are voracious, especially during the rainy season (June to October). Be sure to bring plenty of repellent. Our diving included night dives, wreck diving as well as coral walls and caves. If you are really lucky and in Roatan from May to September; you may view the whale sharks.

There was good snorkelling just offshore at the West End; about 4 km south of West End village is the most beautiful beach on Roatan.

You can hike across the island from West End to Flowers Bay, about a 3 km walk and when you reach the ridge, you can look out over both sides of the island. There are some other trails to some Maya ruins on this end of the island, remember when out on the trails to take plenty of water. About 4 km east from West End on the north shore is Sandy Bay, another lovely little town. The beach is not as good as that at West End or West Bay but was set up as a nature reserve, so it's an excellent place to snorkel, with lots of marine life. In Sandy Bay we found the Institute for Marine Sciences, a research and educational facility working with dolphins and many other species.

The national currency is the lempire, which you can obtain in Honduras or use the US dollar which is worth about 18 lempire.

The easiest way to get about the island is by taxi, both land and water variety. Since the settlements on Roatan all hug the seashore, and the islanders are very much a sea-oriented people, someone will have a boat. You can easily hire someone to take you in a motorboat almost anywhere you could want to go.

Roatan with its clear turquoise water colourful tropical fish, powdery white sand and coconut palms invites you to visit her.