My review of Roatan with Rony's...Amazing day!

[coontech]

I did a  lot of research before booking with Rony's and they didn't disappoint!  First of all, our driver was Arnold.  He was fabulous.  He was friendly and interesting.  We had no trouble locating him at the meeting place.  His van was cooled down and ready to go. 

 

He drove us to a high lookout where we could see the water and ship in the background.  It was a great view.  There were a few local vendors there including Arnold's aunt who gave us the "family and friends" discount.  All of the booths sold their items for much cheaper than at the port.  We drove downtown and learned about Roatan.

 

From there we went to Manawakie Park to play with sloths and monkeys.  Our guide at Manawakie was Danny.  He was great.  We really enjoyed our time there.  It was the highlight of my vacation.  The monkeys were hilarious.  You don't really hold the monkeys, you play with them.  Or rather let them play with you.  They jumped from person to person.  They were so cute.  Then we held the sloth.  She was SO sweet.  I loved cuddling and holding her!   Manawakie is very small but it is a wonderful park.

 

Our adult daughter did not want to go to the beach next, so she asked if he could be dropped off back at the cruise ship, Arnold was great and took her back before heading the opposite direction to the West Bay Beach.  He took us to the beach in front of Bananarama.  There were plenty of chairs for us.  There were also a lot of vendors selling their stuff, but once you told each one that you didn't want anything, they moved on.  They were not pushy.  Arnold showed us where the best snorkeling spot is.  He also showed us where he would be waiting for us when we were ready to head back to the ship.  He was right about the snorkeling, It was so beautiful.  And I got a massage on the beach...so relaxing!  We found Arnold right where he said he'd be. We changed into dry clothes while he cooled off the van for us.

 

On the way back to the ship, he made a special stop in front of a sign for a community with the same name as our hometown.  Then another stop at the Roatan sign.  

 

We were back to the ship in plenty of time to do a little shopping in port before we boarded.  We enjoyed our day with Arnold immensely.  We felt safe and secure the whole time.  Arnold was so pleasant and professional.  Now we know who to request if we ever go back!  I HIGHLY recommend Rony's Tours.  And especially Arnold.

[christybell]

Thanks for sharing your day, I have booked with Ronys for October and have planned a very similar itinerary to yours so its great to hear you enjoyed it!

 

Can I ask, at West Bay did you pay to use the facilities at Bananarama? Our plan is just to snorkel and maybe grab a drink/food on the beach when we are finished so we don't really need to "set up camp". Wondering if you can do this at Bananarama

[coontech]

Christybell, all of our entry fees were paid for through Rony's.  It was included in the price except my massage and the food.   There were waiters that brought us food on the beach.  Arnold gave us day passes at Bananarama so the chairs on the beach were a part of that.  And we had use of the resort, but I'm not sure what that offered because we stayed on the beach the whole time!  We brought our own snorkel masks.  My son paid I think $10 to ride a paddle board thing.   There were a lot of vendors not associated with the resort that you could buy excursions from on the beach if you wanted, banana boat rides, jet skins, paddle boards, that sort of thing...

[christybell]

Thanks for the info. Really looking forward to visiting

[Guest 2000]

10 hours ago, christybell said:

Can I ask, at West Bay did you pay to use the facilities at Bananarama? Our plan is just to snorkel and maybe grab a drink/food on the beach when we are finished so we don't really need to "set up camp". Wondering if you can do this at Bananarama

 

Bananarama is one of the many reorts on West Bay Beach offering day passes. 

 

If you don't need a day pass ask your driver to drop you off on the road leading from West Bay Mall to the beach. It is located between Bananarama and Paradise Beach Club.  Once on the beach walk to your left just past Infinity's L-shaped pier and enter the water there. When done snorkeling choose any restaurant on the beach for food and beverage. No need to pay a day pass. 

Edited August 11, 2019 by Guest 2000

[christybell]

Perfect- thank you !

[bandjwayne]

Would you mind sharing what you paid?  Sounds just like the kind of trip I'd like to take.  Also, what ship were you on?  I'm doing Royal Caribbean next Feb. and was wondering how difficult the tendering is.

[c-leg5]

12 hours ago, bandjwayne said:

Would you mind sharing what you paid?  Sounds just like the kind of trip I'd like to take.  Also, what ship were you on?  I'm doing Royal Caribbean next Feb. and was wondering how difficult the tendering is.

 

Royal Caribbean generally docks at Coxen Hole.

[#1TravelMom]

Rony is fabulous!  We've toured with him for many years.  He offers a "freestyle" tour.  This is perfect for us.  We have a private driver and spend the entire day at our pace.  

[christybell]

2 hours ago, #1TravelMom said:

Rony is fabulous!  We've toured with him for many years.  He offers a "freestyle" tour.  This is perfect for us.  We have a private driver and spend the entire day at our pace.  

 

Hi, We are touring with Rony for the first time in October.  What would you recommend doing/seeing? So far we have the Sloths/Monkeys, snorkelling and snorkelling at West Bay- thanks!

[coontech]

Bandjwayne. We paid $50 pp.  That included all of our entrance fees 

[c-leg5]

On 8/16/2019 at 3:14 AM, bandjwayne said:

Would you mind sharing what you paid?  Sounds just like the kind of trip I'd like to take.  Also, what ship were you on?  I'm doing Royal Caribbean next Feb. and was wondering how difficult the tendering is.

 

Price depends on the number of people in your group and is fairly standard between the operators on Roatan. 

 

There is some variation sometimes between the entrance fees quoted from one operator to another.

[sazzifrazz]

@coontech this sounds exactly like the day we have planned.  We booked the pricate/freestyle tour with Rony's and told them we want to visit maniwaki and bananarama.  Do they (rony's) book those activities for us?  Do they even need to be booked in advance?  How crowded were the two places you visited?  Was the beach gorgeous?

[dmac]

Coontech:

How much did you pay for the massage on the beach?  Are they set up right by bananarama?

Ill be there next month. Thanks.

[2cruise5]

This is why Iove Cruise Critic. I'm looking at the freestyle tour, it looks perfect. We have two boys, 8 and 10 so will look more at what we can do to fulfil all our needs.