Best of the Bay Islands

Diving Roatán’s Reef [1]: Diving around all three Bay Islands is spectacular, and there are 100 dive sites surrounding Roatán alone, including walls and channels, sunken shipwrecks, and caverns. Hawksbill turtles, moray eels, spotted eagle rays, and yellowtail damselfish are just a few of the species easily spotted among the colorful coral gardens.

Fishing [2]: The waters off Roatán, with shallow, sandy waters on the south side and a 3,000-meter-deep channel on the north, are perfectly situated for fishing excursions in pursuit of marlin, wahoo, tarpon, barracuda, kingfish, and more.

West Bay [3]: Roatán’s West Bay is a vision of Caribbean bliss, a powdery ribbon of white sand in front of sparkling clear turquoise water with coral reef just steps offshore.

Utila’s Nightlife [4]: Those after the international traveler party life will not want to miss a few days frequenting the many bars making up the nightlife on Utila.

Utila Cays [5]: With their crystal waters and powdery, isolated beaches, the tiny cays off the island of Utila make for getaways that are fantasies come true. What might seem like the realm of millionaires — the rental of an entire island — is available on Sandy Cay or Little Cay for just US$100–115 a night, while budget travelers can pop over to islets like Water Cay for a secluded picnic or campout.

Guanaja’s North-Side Beaches [6]: These rarely visited beaches, like Dina Beach and West End, are home to nothing but kilometers of sand and palm trees, where you can camp or stay in one of the low-key and reasonably priced hotels.

Chachahuate [7]: Long popular as a day trip from either Roatán or the mainland’s north coast, newly developed cabin rentals and even a small hotel now make the Garífuna village of Chachahuate in the Cayos Cochinos a fantastic place to spend a few days snorkeling and sunning, at a fraction of the cost of the other Bay Islands.