Tour Operators

A couple of doors off Tela [1]’s town square, Garífuna Tours (tel. 504/448-2904, www.garifunatours.com [2]) offers popular day trips to Punta Sal [3] for US$29 per person, including a bilingual guide and boat transport, plus an extra US$3 for the park entrance fee. Sign up the day before the trip, and be prepared to get wet while riding in the boat, although the boats do have a screen for shade.

Tours to Laguna de los Micos [4] and the Garífuna village of Miami [5] (US$29) and kayak trips to Punta Izopo [6] with a stop at the village of Triunfo de la Cruz [7] for a meal (US$24) are also available. The latest addition to the tour list is a night crocodile watch (3:30–9 p.m., US$34). The company also has an office in La Ceiba [8] (tel. 504/440-3252), with river-rafting and trips to Pico Bonito [9], Cayos Cochinos [10], and Cuero y Salado [11] reserve.

It must be noted that while some readers have reported good trips with this tour company, others have said that it fell short of their expectations. (For example, will there be a Garífuna dance presentation at Miami, or will you simply have free time for walking around, and so a tour guide is irrelevant? Readers have reported both.)

An alternative is Honduras Caribbean Tours (tel. 504/448-2623, English and Spanish spoken, or tel. 504/3374-9383, German spoken as well, www.honduras-caribbean.com [12]), which offers essentially the same tours, for a few dollars more. Tours to Lancetilla [13] (which include bird-watching, for US$29) or sport-fishing (US$289) can be arranged as well.