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DISCOVER ROATAN

Roatan is located 70 km from the coast of Honduras and is about 60 km long and 8 km wide. It is the largest island of the 8 Bay Islands.

Discover Roatan Underwater and by Land

Scuba Nomad takes you off the beaten path to explore those beautiful views few visit, both under the wonderful Caribbean sea that surrounds the island of Roatan, as well as the diverse island landscapes.

Underwater

Discover the amazing underwater marine life and fantastic seascapes.

Get more information about the different diving areas on the Island and the best dive sites.

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by Land

Roatan offers beautiful hidden spots and an exuberant window into nature.

Explore Roatan on land beyond what the common tourist does. Scuba Nomad takes you to discover those hidden treasures that few know.

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Underwater

Roatan belongs to a system of islands and cays 70 km/45 miles north of the Honduran mainland. The reef of the Bay Islands is part of the Mesoamerican system, which is the second largest coral barrier reef in the world. The water temperature ranges between 27℃/80℉ and 29℃/84℉ and the waters are crystal clear, with visibility up to 40 m/132 ft. Its coasts are home to a wide variety of mangroves and seaweed, corals and sponges, and fish of all colors. In order to become familiar with the different marine life and topographies we recommend at least a week of diving and exploration. It is our pleasure to introduce you to the different areas and the best dive sites so you can admire the diverse underwater world that surrounds Roatan.

ROATAN WEST

The West End and West Bay areas are the most popular areas and have the highest concentration of dive centers. You can access more than 50 dive sites within a 10 minute boat ride!! In some areas of the west side the main reef is as far as 1 mile away from the coastline, so this vast area has a lot to offer to divers; Drift dives, sunken ships, walls, canyons and swim-throughs. Something that is rare in much of Roatan, but very common in the west, are the smooth patches of sand at shallow depths. These are highly appreciated among macro photography enthusiasts as they give you the possibility to photograph vast fields of Garden Eels rearing their heads above the sand, as well as other tiny rarities such as a Lined Sole or a Sailfin Blenny. There are some coral farms on these sandbanks, where you will see how different coral species are being grown and monitored. Additionally, the western area of ​​Roatan is the most suitable for those divers who like to see large marine animals: we have the most friendly turtles in the world! Also many eagle rays, snappers, groupers or barracudas.

WEST END WALL
This beautiful wall offers a drift dive with spectacular views into the depths. The crest of the wall is full of marine life, so you can do a wonderful shallow dive in the edge of the drop off, and visit the plateau called Texas at the end of the dive. Lately, encounters with schools of up to 10 Eagle Rays are very common!! Also sightings of a multitude of snappers, barracudas, horse eye jacks, etc. Occasionally, larger pelagics such as hammerhead sharks and manta rays are also spotted.
HOLE IN THE WALL
Begin this dive descending through a sand channel that at 18 meters/60 feet becomes a tunnel and crosses the coral wall, falling into the blue…and into the void at 30 meters/100 feet. Make sure you have good buoyancy, because the drop continues dramatically downwards. Sometimes you will see schools of jacks swimming in a circle, or a turtle coming up from the darkness of the abyss. If you turn around and look up, the profile of the wall rising to the surface will cause you an amazing feeling of immensity, even more than looking into the abysmal depths. To compensate for the deep profile, you can then complete this dive by visiting the 'Swiss Cheese', a conglomeration of caves, passageways and canyons at a depth of less than 10 meters / 33 feet.

SANDY BAY

Moving away from the West End we find much quieter areas, where there are fewer dive boats. The topography becomes more interesting in Sandy Bay. You will find walls covered with soft coral and riddled with huge cracks and channels, so we ask you not to forget your adventurous spirit or your diving light. Be sure to visit the appealing landscapes at the Spooky Channel or the Morat Channel, or dive into Bears Den, a beautiful cavern with a spectacular display of lights and shadows.

For those who are passionate about wreck diving, Sandy Bay offers the two largest shipwrecks off the coast of Roatan. These are el Aguila (The Eagle) and The Odyssey. Both were intentionally sunk in large sandy areas at approximately 30 m/110 ft and offer an excellent exploratory playground for advanced divers.

ZACK'S PATCH
At 10 m/30 ft you will find yourself at the foot of an ancient waterfall that rises almost to the surface and dates back to when the sea did not cover this area. As you enter, you can thoroughly investigate one side of the waterfall and exit discovering the other - see if you find any spotted drum, multicolored nudibranch, or perhaps a cleaning station occupied by a grouper with its huge open mouth. As you exit the waterfall, keeping your right shoulder to the reef, the wall rises towards the surface while the ground drops below your feet to depths beyond recreational diving. Even so, the visibility often allows you to spot a roughtail stingray on the sandy ground. Within 10 minutes of being able to observe all the marine life on that impressive wall, the reef opens up again allowing you to enter the inner part, where you may be lucky enough to see some shy toadfish, hiding back into its hole as soon as you spot it.
THE ODYSSEY WRECK
The Odyssey sank in 2002 in a sand patch at 33 m/110 ft, with the intention that sponges and coral would colonize it, and thus expand the reef. The wreck is 90 m/300 ft long, so it is recommended to visit it with Nitrox to be able to take a look at both the stern, where you start the dive, and the bow. The two parts are tilted to the right, so when you enter the different floors of the stern, it can give you a feeling of disorientation or dizziness. Enter only with proper training and with a guide. If not, swim from stern to bow enjoying its extraordinary silhouette, and then gradually ascend the wall to finish the dive on the top of the reef, where you will find extensive fields of soft coral and an occasional grouper hidden behind them.

THE NORTH

The areas described above are also on the north side of Roatan, but are not as exposed to the North due to the curvature of the island. This area is called ​​Palmetto Bay and Pristine Bay, where the topography is very attractive, even for divers with many hours underwater. The top of the reef is at 5 m/15 ft while the bottom of the wall is at about 30 m/100 ft, Between these depths you will find many swim-throughs, gaps in the wall, caverns and caves, pinnacles, walls rising from very deep to just above the surface...breathtaking!

This area is very large and since there are not many dive operations, it is a good place to find and hunt lionfish. The lionfish is the only fish that you can spearfish in the Roatan Marine Park. In the few years of this animal's time in Caribbean waters, the lionfish has developed an uncanny ability to read the intentions of divers - often the first diver to arrive is the only one who sees the lionfish before it quickly hides in its lair.

LAND OF GIANTS
This dive site is considered one of the best in all of Roatan and we are sure it will take your breath away. In the sand patches at 30 m/100 ft you will see voluminous mountains of coral, ideal habitat for all the marine species that live there. If you dive with Nitrox you will be able to visit more than one of those mountains and swim over the sandbanks to search for bottom dwellers. From there you will also enjoy the astounding view of the wall, which rises from 25 m/82 ft to the surface. Returning to it to start shallowing up, you will find huge cracks in the wall that you can explore. Another bonus of the Land of Giants is that it is highly likely that you will enjoy the dive alone, since there are usually no dive boats in this area.
KEY HOLE
Being able to enjoy Key Hole with good visibility gives you the opportunity to discover in detail this system of cracks and grooves that pierce the wall of the reef, creating an impressive channel with a length of about 100 m/330 ft. But normally the water in this channel turns green and cloudy, as it is a mixture of ocean water with lagoon water, and this gives diving a spooky touch. The dive can be done by entering the channel at 10 m/30 ft and after passing all the galleries and swim-throughs -look for Banded Coral Shrimp, Lettuce Sea Slugs and Green Moray Eel. Then, as you go deeper on the outer wall, you will fall into a dizzying sandy drop! It is also highly recommended to do it the other way around. Either way, do not lose sight of the surface when you navigate inside the channel, as at some point you will recognize the shape of the 'key hole' that gives this dive site its name.

THE SOUTH

On a clear day you will be able to clearly see the high mountains of the Honduran mainland, so you will enjoy wonderful scenery at the beginning and end of your dive. The South is much more exposed to the trade winds from the east, so many days of the year the breeze does not allow navigation with dive boats. This is why you won't find many dive operations here, but the ones that are available will cover a much larger area than the ones on the north side.

The southern walls are much closer to the coastline, they fall from 6 m/20 ft dramatically into the darkness. Many times you can find ravines where the sand collapses in the form of an avalanche, a landscape that is somewhat shocking. But as you gradually return to the surface, you will enjoy different types of coral and multicolored sponges that are in an exceptional state of health! Lettuce coral fields, hundreds of years old barrel sponges, mountains of Orbicella faveolata (mountainous star coral), great pillar corals, black coral, fire coral, soft coral etc. It is spectacular! On calm days we can take you out to Cordelia Banks to view the untouched fields of staghorn coral that are preserved there.

You will find some of the most famous dive sites in Roatan here in the south side, such as the wrecks of Prince Albert, Mr. Bud, and the renowned Mary's Place.

MARY'S PLACE
Without a doubt, this is the most famous dive site in all of Roatan and it was named after the wife of one of the discoverers of the place. Mary's Place has two imposing cracks that cut vertically through the crest of the reef to a depth of almost 40 m/132 ft, where the sand bottom continues its descent towards the abyss. The crevices, which are about 3m/10ft wide, are lined with mind-blowing outcrops of soft coral. You will swim inside the cracks and find Black Coral, Sea Rods and Whips of all colors. Once outside, you can see huge barrels of coral that create busy cleaning stations. Fish abound on the wall, such as Creole Wrasse in long train formations or schools of Horse Eye Jacks swimming in circles. Mary´s Place is a more advanced level dive. It is also a good place to snorkel while watching the scenery from the surface.
CALVIN'S CRACK
Located in front of Jonesville, in the municipality of Santos Guardiola, it is the most remote dive site that we are presenting to you. Volcanic activity has cracked the reef in a similar way as at Mary's Place. The tour starts at 10m/30ft, and gradually slopes until it reaches the outside of the wall at 27m/90ft. The schools of Silver Sides and the coral lining the walls enhance the landscape in the grooves. Once outside, you can take advantage of the current that will carry you around the wall to visit a shorter crevice. You may end up exploring the reef plateau at the end of the dive.
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Explore Roatan by Land

Visit the communities of West Bay, West End and Sandy Bay in the west of Roatan, which are the best known and most touristic places. When you enter the easternmost municipality of Santos Guardiola, you will find places more virgin to the impact of tourists. Do not stop venturing beyond what the common tourist dares, the islanders will receive you with a smile.

Hiking and Cultural Tours

Enrich your experience discovering Roatan by land. We have different options for you: We will take you to some of the most beautiful communities showing you the genuine island culture! If you like hiking, we will take you to the highest or to the easternmost point of the island, where you will enjoy the beautiful sceneries. Or if you are looking for a way to learn about the beautiful marine ecosystems in the Caribbean with a bit of history thrown in, then book the mangrove tour with us!

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Local Gastronomy

We would love to organize a special meal after a day of diving or touring! Some of the most amazing dishes of Roatan do not appear on the menus of some of the most frequented restaurants. Some dishes can take time to source and prepare, we can organize a special event in which you have the chance to experience the taste of the most traditional island cuisine!

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Roatan Local Market

This project started during the COVID lockdown as an effort to boost local economies. We organize local markets periodically and around the whole island. The Roatan Local Market is a space for the local artisans to sell their products and it will be accompanied by a multicultural program. You will spend the perfect family day with us! Check the next appointment in roatanlocalmarket.com

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