… Travel Smart … Stay Informed …
… Travel Smart … Stay Informed …
West End, Roatan Island – Honduras – Where To Stay
OVERVIEW:
In June 2021, I returned to West End, Roatan Island, Honduras for the 3rd time. This time, I planned to stay for several months.
… GRANDPAckers may be interested in what ‘long term furnished rentals’ you can find …
ABOUT ROATAN:
Roatan Island (Isla de Roatan) is the largest of the Honduras’ major Bay Islands in a region that marks the south end of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System (the second-largest in the world).
It is about 65 kms (40 miles) north of the Honduran coast.
It is approximately 77 kms (48 miles) long, and less than 8 kms (5.0 miles) across at its widest point.
Christopher Colombus discovered the island in 1502-1504 AD. Europeans brought disease. No indigenous people survived the consequent epidemics.
The Bay Islands were administered by Great Britain before being handed over to Honduras in the 1860s. English is still widely spoken on the island.
The most populous town on the island is Coxen Hole located in the southwest. To the West of Coxen Hole are the settlements of Gravel Bay, Flowers Bay and Pensacola (on the south coast) … and Sandy Bay, West End and West Bay (on the north coast).
Roatan has now been ‘taken over’ by (mainly) expats and retirees from the USA and Canada. Roatan is now a ‘Tourist Island’.
ABOUT WEST END:
Many expats have retired here full time. Many expats have purchased property here. Many expats have started businesses here. Many expats live here part time year-after-year. In addition, there is a strong tourist trade and several Cruise Ships arrive each week during peak season.
This has affected costs. Prices in expat villages (like West End) can be DOUBLE what you pay for the same items in the local villages. This includes the price of land and accommodation.
WHERE TO STAY:
You can pretty much stay anywhere … it depends on how far you are prepared to walk. This video shows you what the village looks like:
So, this is where I recommend you look:
Simply put, you should try and get within 100 metres of the waterfront.
ACCOMMODATION OPTIONS:
This is what a GRANDPAcking Couple can expect to find around West End at short notice in late 2021 on the ‘typical’ accommodation search sites:
PLEASE NOTE: HOTELS usually display prices INCLUSIVE of TAXES. But many search sites (like HOTELS) don’t provide a ‘private bathroom’ filter, so be careful with some of the cheap hotels and make sure that you read the room details.
PLEASE NOTE: Other sites (such as Homeaway, FlipKey and VRBO) are also worth a look. HOWEVER, be careful … the prices displayed are NOT the final prices: ‘service fees’ and ‘cleaning fees’ can significantly increase the final price. ALSO, read the reviews carefully … in most cases the exact location of the property is hard to identify (which is intentional on AirBnB’s part) … looking at the pictures and reviews sometimes helps you identify the name (and, therefore, the exact location) of the property. If you can do the latter, you can check the reviews on the internet more carefully. LASTLY, you pay in advance … so, if you book 1 month and get it wrong, you are stuck there.
GRANDPAcking Couples will be lucky to get anything under US$50 / night if they use the ‘typical’ online search sites. GRANDPAcking Couples cannot afford these prices.
GRANDPAckers can try and use online Rental Property sites but, these too are (usually) listing properties at high ‘expat’ targeted prices.
FACEBOOK:
GRANDPAckers can book a couple of nights at these high rates so that they can look around … but, in my experience, you are best to book in advance using Facebook.
Well in advance of your arrival (I suggest at least 1 month) apply to join the Roatan Short And Long Term Rentals Group.
Once you have been accepted into the Group, message out your requirements (and budget) and wait for the replies.
It is possible to find GRANDPAcking Standard accommodation at the, following, prices:
If you want Aircon you will be asked to pay for the electric (referred to here as RECO). With ‘average / sensible’ use of the Aircon, expect your RECO bill to be about US$100 / month.
If you are staying for several months (and you get lucky) you can knock US$100 off of these ‘target’ prices.
MY ACCOMMODATION:
I used Facebook and, because COVID-19 was negatively impacting on tourist numbers, I got lucky.
I requested accommodation for 3 months. I accepted a 1 Bedroom Apartment without Aircon for US$500 / month. Here is a video of my accommodation:
Electric was included but I had to buy my own drinking water and cooking gas. Both were supplied on site by the landlord. A 5 Gallon bottle of drinking water was HNL35 (about US$1.50). A bottle of cooker gas was HNL350 (about US$15). A bottle of gas lasted me 2-3 months.
By avoiding the ‘typical’ accommodation search sites and using Facebook instead, I halved my accommodation costs.
ACCOMMODATION SEARCH:
Have a look yourself:
GENERAL COSTS:
Most shops, when they see a ‘Gringo’, will over-charge you.
Roa Supermarket (on the main street) has ‘OK’ prices and they charge accurately. Woodies Supermarket (past Sundowners on the way to Land’s End) has better prices for day-to-day items and puts the price on each product (so you know what you are paying).
Your main problem will be for fruit and vegetables; These stores almost always over-charge Gringos.
CONCLUSION:
West End is an Expat village at Expat prices.
Many GRANDPAckers will enjoy this place … and many expats already do.
RETIREMENT:
Could you afford to retire here on a GRANDPAcking budget? YES. Would you want to? YES.
TTFN
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