After my superb vacations in many countries of the Central America last year, I was very excited to visit this amazing place again.
Not sure of which country to visit this time, I asked my girlfriend to decide. After reading some traveler reviews on the internet, she suggested Honduras.
I didn’t know much about Honduras, but the way she was all excited about Honduras, I agreed with her.
Honduras is a republic nation in Central America. This country was once conquered and ruled over by Spain.
It is an independent country now, but from language to customs, the Spanish influence can be widely found in the region.
Our Honduras vacations
We landed in Tegucigalpa, the capital city of Honduras. We reached around noon, and there was still much time left to start our expedition.
And so, after checking-in at our hotel, we left to roam around in Tegucigalpa. ‘Parque Nacional La Tigra’ was the first place we visited.
There are many hiking trails in this park. You can spot many exotic species like quetzals, toucans, trogons, and many more.
You are surrounded by a tropical forest and nature. A perfect place to spend your holidays! There are several trails, with several levels of difficulty which lead to a waterfall.
As I and my guide kept climbing the hill top, clouds began to assemble around us. It was awesome to walk with the clouds, a feeling simply out of this world.
I would recommend keeping a jacket handy, as the climate change here is sudden.
It might get cold as your fridge’s freezer, a little after being hot as hell.
El Picacho
‘El Picacho’, an exquisite landmark in the hills of Tegucigalpa was our next destination.
My girlfriend was very excited to visit El Picacho, as she had already read many great reviews about this place. This is a nicely built park, with even nicer maintenance.
The park has nice green areas and trails.
And right at the center of this awe-inspiring park is a status of Christ. Wow! A true masterpiece! The Christ statue adds great charm to the already charismatic gardens. The most incredible thing is the view.
You get to see a full panoramic view of the Tegucigalpa city from El Picacho. You can see a lot of families gathered for picnic. After spending a good 3 – 4 hours here, we left for our next destination.
Centro Interactivo de Ensenanza – CHIMINKE
Centro Interactivo de Ensenanza, ‘CHIMINKE’ was our next halt.
This is the first and the largest Children Museum in Central America. Built with the objective of inspiring a curiosity among its visitors, CHIMINKE motivates the learning process via interactive exhibits.
Honduras and its People, Our city, The Environment, Toddler’s Room, The Maternity Room, The Environment, The Energy, and The Human Body are the seven exhibit rooms of this museum.
If you are visiting Honduras with your kids, consider CHIMINKE at the top of your list. Your kids would love this.
The well – versed guides seem attentive to guests of all age groups.
Honduras family vacations
If you travel with your family check out where we went next, it can give you a few ideas.
Parque Central
Next, we visited ‘Parque Central’. This is the downtown area of Tegucigalpa. The area is dominantly influenced by Spanish Culture.
A statue of the founder of Tegucigalpa city can be found in the park, right next to the main church in the locality.
The pedestrian – friendly plaza is a nice place to visit and spend your time, roaming around one of the most happening areas of the city, cracking some really great deals with the shopkeepers, or tasting some of the most delicious food options available in the area.
There’s also a small mall on one side; not one of the biggest, brilliant ones, but definitely worth visiting.
We spent some good, lively time at the Parque Central.
We then visited the ‘Honduras National Gallery of Art’. Though a bit outdated, the National Art Gallery is definitely worth visiting if you have come to Tegucigalpa.
The outdatedness of this art gallery can be justified as it’s a 350 year old building. A garden courtyard in the front adds to its exquisiteness.
The nine galleries spread on two floors exhibit history of Honduran art, ranging from Mayan works, to the pre – Columbian works, through the religious arts of 17thand 18th Centuries. The unclean religious paintings, with a dark finish are very gripping.
There’s an admirable collection of contemporary Honduran works and silver works from Churches from around the world.
You just can’t skip this Art Gallery if you are an art lover. Even if you‘re not, this place is still a bliss. We both loved this place a lot.
Honduras vacation spots
We then moved to Roatan.
The Roatan city is one of the most sought out tourist attractions in Honduras. The first thing I did in Roatan was to visit ‘Barefoot Divers’.
This company offers spick and span equipment and boats, immaculate facilities, and the perfect relaxing diving experience.
One day scuba courses and snorkel courses are organized for newbie’s. From the moment we turned up here, Irma and her team took very good care of us.
They set up our diving gear, making sure we are safe, comfortable and happy. We really enjoyed being the customers of Barefoot Divers. Thanks again team Barefoot for a lovely experience.
Honduras landmarks
Bay Islands Underwater Museum
Next, we visited ‘Bay Islands Underwater Museum’ in Sandy Bay. This underwater museum provides splendid snorkeling adventure at the depth of a swimming pool.
They’ve put wrecked ship parts, small temples, Mayan pottery items, and many other interesting things underwater.
You could discover the most beautiful reefs found in the Caribbean, Spanish Galleon shipwreck, Mayan artifacts, a Treasure Chest and much more! The guided snorkel tours of the Bay Islands Underwater Museum provide a lifetime experience.
As I swam through the history of Roatan and Honduras, I spotted lots of unmatched aquatic life, while plunging in this coral filled classroom of nature.
What made my day was seeing a beautiful butterfly fish. I decided to stay at this place for some time, and after the sunset, I even did night snorkeling.
Again, this dive was no less mesmerizing than the first dive. This time, I speckled a beautiful, huge octopus.
Being in Bay Islands Underwater Museum made my day in Roatan, and so shall it do to you, if you’re coming to Honduras.
A must visit for all!!
‘Roatan Pirates Bay’ was our next halt. If you have seen the Pirates of the Caribbean series, you just cannot afford to miss Roatan Pirates Bay.
I’m a huge fan of the series, and so this place was a delight for me. As the name suggests, they have designed the Bay as a pirates’ area.
There’s a huge ship off the coast, one like the Black Pearl ship from the movie. Even the restaurants by the side portray pirates – like ambience.
Food is served in dishes from old Mayan and Pirates culture. We spent a great time here, clicking pictures on the ship, wearing the captain’s hat.
I was feeling like Captain Jack Sparrow from the epic tale.
My girlfriend was also enjoying being here. This pirate’s setup was something new for her, and she was showing great interest in everything.
She even asked me to watch the movie series… We were happy to visit Roatan Pirates Bay. It was definitely one of the most enjoyable moments we’ve spent together.
With this, came an end to our Honduras travel.
My girlfriend was happy that her suggested place had lived up to the expectations of both of us. We were pleased to have visited Honduras.
Where to vacation in Honduras?
With so much left to explore in this beautiful country, we have already started making plans of our next visit. We are very excited to have another trip to Honduras.
I hope my reviews help people like you to know and understand the magnificence of Honduras.