Roatan's history is both rich and colorful. Pirates such as Henry Morgan and John Coxen spent time on the island to rest their crews and to restock and repair their ships. It is rumored that in the early 17th century there were thousands of pirates sheltered in Roatan.

Another fascinating element of Roatan relates to the arrival of the Garifuna people. In 1797, the English forcibly removed some 5,000 "Black Caribs" (a mixture of Africans and Carib and Arawak Indians) from the windward island of St. Vincent and relocated them to Roatan. Over the following years, many Garifuna relocated to the mainland of Honduras and even migrated as far away as Nicaragua, Belize and Guatemala. The village of Punta Gorda in Roatan was the first Garifuna village and remains today a bastion of the unique cultural heritage and traditions cultivated by the Garifuna people.

Roatan's history also reflects the colonial competition of the 19th century. In 1821, the Central American Federation declared independence from Spain and claimed the Bay Islands, including Roatan, as part of its territory. In 1827, however, English settlers began to re-establish their presence on the island. By 1852, the English population in Roatan was about 600 people, prompting Queen Victoria to declare the Bay Islands an English colony. The United States, however, opposed England's colonization and London relented. In 1859, the Republic of Honduras took final possession of the Bay Islands.

Your tour will help bring Roatan’s unique history alive. You will visit the Garifuna town of Punta Gorda, then stop at the settlement of Oak Ridge, where the majority of the inhabitants are of English descent. Your excursion concludes with a boat tour of the mangrove channels of Oak Ridge.

More Information:
 
Minimum Capacity of Tour: 4 guests
Maximum Capacity of Tour: 10 guests
For groups with more than 10 guests, please contact us.

Length of Tour: 4 hours
The length of the tour includes transportation time to and from the cruiseship terminal.

Location of Tour Departure:
Your tour guide will meet you across the street from the main security gate of the Roatan Cruiseship Dock. The meeting location serves as the parking area for excursion tour buses transporting cruise ship passengers. Your tour guide will be stationed beside a wooden booth holding a sign displaying the name of our lead guide, Theris. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

All our tours are scheduled to fit within the port time of the cruise ships arriving in Roatan. We plan all our tour itineraries to give you plenty of time to enjoy your tour and return back to your ship for departure.
 
What to Bring:
* You should bring the following personal items:
* Comfortable clothing and sturdy footwear.
* Hat, sunglasses and sunscreen.
* Insect repellant.
* Cash for small purchases.
 
Level of Physical Exertion:
Participants should be relatively fit and active. Some walking is required.