This morning we finally leave the Hotel Liberteño (what a horrible but cheap place to stay) and head toward the Texaco gasoline pump in just outside the city centre of Comayagua. Although so far everybody has told us that there are no buses going down south without having to change in Tegucigalpa, we see the light when an old waiter about to open a small restaurant tell us that there are indeed a couple of buses that do that journey. At the improvised “Texaco” bus terminal, some locals tell us so too and agree at least two companies (Costeño & Langueño buses) have several daily buses heading south whereas a couple more (Norteño & Rey) might only have just one easy in the morning. Great news! After the political issues early this week, not having to switch terminal in Tegucigalpa sounds like a dream! Soon enough at around 9am (1h of waiting) we manage to catch a Costeño with a couple of free seats: time for a long ride.
After riding all the way to & hopping down at Jicaro Galan, taking another bus to Coyolito and then a small “lancha” (boat) we are finally setting foot on the famous Tiger Island. Check our quick guide on How to Get to Tiger Island!
At a first glance, arriving at our Hotel Los Veleros located in Playa del Burro, felt like entering into completely different world. No cars, no noises, no big masses of people, there’s no rush to do anything, everybody seems very relaxed, just a small laid-back beach which still seems to be living back in the past. The hotel features just a couple of rooms with great views over the mainland Honduras, shared kitchen in case you wanna do your own thing and nice restaurant where to have a drink or enjoy a tasty fresh “pescado”. If you’re lucky enough to know the family like we did, you might as well end up teaching them some new recipes, cook altogether (we cooked Lasagna) and then at the end of the day, have a super fun night eating, laughing and playing UNO altogether! What a blast!
The island is divided into small communities which usually take the name of the beach they’re close to and from what we’ve learned during our time there the four major ones are (1) Amapala City, (2) Playa Larga, (3) Playa Negra and (4) Playa del Burro. Check this Map!
The city of Amapala (as the locals call it) is just a bigger-than-usual village located on the northern part of the island; here there is a very nice pier with great views on the day, a pretty church, some comedores and some tiendas where to buy some less-basic groceries than anywhere else on the island.
In Playa Larga, legends say that is where Pirate Drake has buried part of his treasure and although there was a decade of unsuccessful digging, locals still believe that’s the spot! Playa Negra is known around the island because (as the names says) the sand of this beach is made of volcanic remains and hence is black. Lastly, Playa del Burro doesn’t really have any legends or special adds-on but its a tranquil nice beach (be sure to take a dip away from the boat pier) where to chill in the great atmosphere of Los Veleros and go for a walk up to a rocky wall/pier which offers amazing view of the island itself.
The activities on the island are not many apart from relaxing & chilling, both of which seems to be highly rated, but there’s still a couple of things should you wish to venture around the bush. The top highlight obviously go to hiking the Cerro; the walk takes two-three hours and apparently there are two paths, one starting in Playa Larga and another in Playa del Burro. In both paths there are not signals on how to reach the top so make sure to bring enough water in case you take a wrong turn. People say that the views from above are breathtaking but due to high temperatures during our stay (35° all the day-long) we were suggested by locals to give a miss and so we did. Hint: the path from Playa Larga seems to be easier to walk on. Another option is to rent a kayak for the day and go around the island. The kayaks can be rented either in Amapala (just ask around) or also in a couple more big hotels scattered all around the island for a price varying from 3-10$/kayak. But have we talked about the unforgettable sunsets?
In the end, the island is a bit of a secluded but great stop to break a long journey, whether you’re planning to enter Nicaragua, El Salvador or head up to Tegucigalpa. Thankfully, the place is still off the beaten track (although is just 1h away from the Pan-American Highway) and in being so still has that feeling of being a truly unique place where to discover real Honduran lifestyles.
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