12 Best Hotels in Roatan and the Bay Islands, Honduras

Guests at this boutique resort arrive to the private cay by boat, and stay in secluded one-bedroom bungalows and two-bedroom villas feature spacious and luxurious living areas with sophisticated furniture in tropical tones. Louvered wooden doors pull back to reveal the turquoise waters, sandy beach, and salty breeze outside. The restaurant is only open to hotel guests, and serves a rotating menu of haute cuisine. The resort's Barefoot Divers is a PADI five-star dive center with a dive shop, retail store, and courses for all levels. The resort also offers packages with meals, lodging, and diving included.

Built across a 7-acre cay, this resort is one of the most charming places in the Bay Islands. Delightful pastel accents turn up everywhere—on tree trunks, picnic tables, spacious cottages, and even the birdcages. Coral-lined paths cut across the well-manicured campus, and a walkway ringing the cay leads out to a private lean-to with hammocks. The island's best bar and grill offers an appetizing menu of fresh seafood and fried chicken. For the ultimate in decadence, sip an afternoon cocktail from the swim-up tables facing the hazy-blue mountains on the mainland. The yacht club has a few boats for deep-sea fishing, plus kayak, dive, and snorkel equipment at the ready.

Chic bungalows are spread across a shaded garden of coral-lined paths and mango trees here at Utopia Dive Village. Luxurious rooms have four-poster beds and handcrafted furniture, and the Balinese silk tapestries and bamboo shutters give off a Far Eastern flair. The friendly hosts can help you arrange trips around the Bay Islands, and the gourmet chef prepares three outstanding meals a day for guests.

Behind the property's dock (from which you can embark on different types of aquatic adventures), charming two-story cabins with Spanish tile showers and woven seagrass furniture are spread along the shoreline against a backdrop of green forest. The savory smokehouse lunch and dinner menu offers a nice selection of southern American classics. Settle into a seat on the waterfront gazebo and sample the Memphis-style pulled pork or test your limits on all-you-can-eat Lionfish Fridays. The central pool is on the small side, but it's a great place for a refreshing dip.

This hugely popular dive resort is famous for having more repeat business than any other dive hotel in the Caribbean. That's understandable, as the friendly staff ensures that everyone from newcomers to old pros have dives that are fun and challenging. A quintet of boats carries up to 30 people each to a variety of sites. A few dozen wooden cabins are set out over the ocean, so the sound of the waves will lull you to sleep. CoCo View mostly arranges seven-night dive and nondive packages, which include all meals, airport transfers, and two daily dive trips. Accessible only by boat, the resort is about 5 km (3 miles) east of French Harbour.

One of the oldest and largest resorts on Roatán, this sprawling hotel offers accommodations similar to those of American hotels. At the efficiently run dive shop you can hop aboard any of the six large wooden boats that take you out to the reef. The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner.

This breathtaking resort has its own nook at the end of West Bay. Three-story complexes painted peach and mango bookend the infinity pool and tropical garden landscaping. The upscale apartments have spacious interiors and kitchens, plus balconies overlooking the sparkling ocean. The resort can also arrange scuba, snorkeling, fishing and sailing trips, and the on-site spa offers the ultimate indulgence.

Set among gardens filled with scarlet hibiscus, these Spanish-style condominiums are along the shore at West Bay. A beautiful swimming pool with waterfalls is the centerpiece of the resort while the palm-sheltered beach is just outside the hotel door. If you want to snorkel, the reef is a few yards offshore. This resort is a favorite location for weddings and honeymoons and might just be the most popular spot on Roatán for all-inclusive travelers with young families.

This intimate all-inclusive resort is in its own world on the northeast side of the island. Clusters of whitewashed cabins dot the grassy hill overlooking the—you guessed it—turquoise bay. Palapa umbrellas shade rows of lounge chairs along the 500-foot stretch of private beach where the dock houses kayaks, paddleboats, and Jet Skis for rent. The resort is popular among couples who wish to indulge in utter peace and quiet, although weekend discounts and charter airline partnerships aim to draw in younger families as well. There's an award-winning dive center on the grounds, and the restaurant has a decent à la carte menu.

This all-inclusive dive resort has been in the Cayos Cochinos for decades (formerly as Plantation Beach Resort), and has large lodges with vaulted ceilings and wide balconies that are spread across the hillside facing the secluded Ensenada Cove. Wooden docks and walkways wrap around the lush tropical garden, and a wide gravel patio has deck chairs and loungers for sunning. Dive packages include three dives, equipment rental, and three daily meals of fish and international cuisine. The resort is also a pleasant option for nondivers looking to escape the booming tourism of some of the other Bay Islands.