Things to do in  Honduras

With a coconut palm-lined stretch of white sand and a colorful coral reef just offshore, West Bay is one of the most popular beaches on Roatan and among the prettiest in all of Honduras. The area around the beach offers a wide range of accommodations as well as restaurants, cocktail bars, and shops.

Cross the rope bridges to Gumbalimba Park on the jungle island of Roatan, Honduras, and step into a botanical garden and animal preserve, home to more than 200 rare species of plants and orchids. Cool off in the freshwater swimming pool, wading pool, cave, and sandy beach where you can rent kayaks and snorkeling gear, among other attractions.

Roatan’s Cruise Ports are located off the Caribbean coast of Honduras and offer access to the Bay Islands’ fabulous beaches, beautiful coral reefs, and upland forest. There are two cruise ports in Roatan—Mahogany Bay and Coxen Hole—and each serves different cruise lines.

At its peak in the ninth century, the ancient Maya city of Copán was a densely populated agricultural settlement of 20,000 inhabitants across 250 acres (100 hectares). Explore the well-preserved site to see Maya art and architecture, including several temples and pyramids, detailed hieroglyphs, and stone-carved stelae.

The Roatán Butterfly Garden provides an oasis for tropical plants, parrots, and, of course, beautiful butterflies. The 2,992-square-foot (278-square-meter) walk-through enclosure features some 30 types of rare butterflies, as well as colorful birds and plants native to Honduras.

Named for its distinctive promontory rising over the sea, Montevideo's Punta Gorda neighborhood is known for its beaches, the winding Darwin’s Ladder staircase—named for the famed scientist, who spent time studying the soil here—and its waterfront park. Visit to enjoy views of the ocean, or bring a swimsuit and go for a dip at Playa Verde.

Hardwood trees and native plants provide a lush habitat for birds in this garden-like nature reserve. Hundreds of resident tropical bird rescues are the most colorful attraction, from yellow-naped Amazons to scarlet macaws. The center’s mission to restore Honduran bird populations place it among the country’s top conservation centers.

One of the cleanest and best-maintained beaches on the island of Roatan, Sandy Bay Beach is quieter than the West End, with enough restaurants, shops, and resorts for a comfortable stay. A reef just offshore offers excellent snorkeling right from the beach.

The proud history of the Honduran people is on display at Tegucigalpa's finest museum. Housed in a 19th-century building that was once the Palace of Ministries, the Museum for National Identity (Museo Para La Identidad Nacional) is worth a stop for its architecture alone. Exhibits spanning archeology, art, and culture make it a top city site.

With views across Tegucigalpa and surrounding peaks, El Picacho is part of the adjacent Naciones Unidas El Picacho Park. Its most famous landmark is the 65-foot (20-meter) Christ the Redeemer statue—among Tegucigalpa’s most recognizable places—but there are also gardens and trails worth exploring. Bonus: The verdant park enjoys relatively cool weather when the capital city is steamy.

Migratory birds and nature lovers alike flock to this 4,154-acre (1,681-hectare) botanical garden outside of Tela, the largest such garden in Honduras. More than 2,800 plants are conserved on the property, where walking trails lead through experimental plantations and arboretums. A small interpretive center showcases exhibits on tropical plants, and you can cool off in the property’s clear-running river.

Carambola Botanical Gardens and Trails comprises more than 40 acres (16 hectares) of floral gardens and lush jungle trails along the hillside of Carambola Mountain. Parrots and iguanas roam the gardens, where rare orchids, medicinal plants, spice plants, and fruit trees flourish.

Honduras’ first national park, La Tigra National Park is a protected mountainous area of cloud forest northeast of the country’s capital city, Tegucigalpa. It was made a national park in 1980 to protect it from deforestation and is home to a myriad of ferns, moss, fungi, and birds, including the colorful quetzal.

Off the coast of northern Honduras, the Cochinos Cays are a protected marine sanctuary made up of two main islands, which are populated by the Indigenous Garífuna community, and 13 smaller sandbanks. Though governmentally part of the Bay Islands, the ecology is more representative of mainland flora and fauna.

This beautiful little neighborhood of boat houses on stilts lies on the southern end of the island, just east of French Harbour. A small restaurant, beautiful bay, and a lot of peace and quiet mark the area, where the main pastime is sit back, relax, and enjoy the leisurely pace of island life.