3 Best Hotels in French Harbour, Roatan and the Bay Islands

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.

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.