BEWARE of ATV tours in Roatan

[Anasanchz]

Freak accident on an ATV tour in Roatan. We disembarked from our cruise and booked one of the local vendors right off of the pier where several tour agencies line up to sell tours. We were traveling with 2 young children. We agreed to do 1hr ATV ride, animal encounter, and end up in the beach. We arrive at the ATV location and the place is sketchy. No helmets were provided for the kids but we insisted so they found some that didn’t even fit properly. The tour guides were like 16-17 years old. We begin driving. About 10 minutes into the tour we begin climbing steep hills with cliffs and no railings. The trail was dangerous and not for beginners nor a family group with young children. The ATVs were clearly not equipped for those steep climbs. My ATV gives out midway through the second climb and turns off. I immediately lose control over the ATV. I can’t accelerate or stop. I have no control as the ATV begins gaining speed on its way down. I crash into a wall and the ATV flips over with my 6 year old son and I. My husband also loses control and flips over on his ATV as well with our younger son. We all got injured and ended up in the ship’s emergency room. My husband got a dislocated shoulder. My kids were fine thankfully other than a few scrapes and bruises. The tour guides lied about the terrain and safety of the trip. It was not appropriate for kids and not appropriate for the type of excursion that we booked. They also tried to blame me by insinuating that my ATV gave out because I wasn’t accelerating enough which makes no sense because my entire ATV shut off despite maximum acceleration. The whole experience was horrific and poorly handled by the guides. Never again. Please don’t book these tours off the ships, especially those involving equipment that barely get proper maintenance nor safety checks. Hoping this prevents another accident. Stay safe! 

[crewsweeper]

Thanks for letting us know.  Speedy recovery for both of you.  Sad experience.😧  One reason why it pays to do some research prior to cruise.  If you could recall the vendor name, that will help others not to unintentionally experience what you did.

[zqvol]

It would be nice to know the vendor involved.

[Anasanchz]

I don’t know the exact vendor name because it was directly off the port (the name of the tour guide was Josue Cristobal) but I recall seeing the name “Victor” on the brochure. Maybe related to Victor Bodden Tours which is very popular on the island but I’m not 100% sure. That’s why I didn’t include the name originally. 

[Roatanlifestyle]

I’m really sorry to hear your experience, and I hope you and your family are doing better now. 

 

I am a representative for Victor Bodden Tours, we are an experienced and reliable tour operator for over 2 decades, and I can guarantee you, given your description of the events that you did not book a tour with Victor or visited any of the privately owned touristic attractions. 

 

We have qualified staff, ATV’s adequate and in good conditions and all the appropriate gear for our tours. And we thankfully have not had any sort of accidents on our location. Josue Cristobal does not work with or for Bodden Tours. 

 

We would appreciate if you remove Victor Bodden from your post. 

 

Again, I empathize with you and your family! 

[Host Carolyn]

My son lives in Roatan part time and checked with his property manager. Bodden Tours has a booth at entrance from port area but most of his tours are prebooked. Victor Bodden wasn't involved in this unfortunate incident but there is another company who has a guide named Victor. We have booked with Bodden since 2010 and safety is of utmost importance. 

 

I hope you continue to recover and I am so sorry this happened to you