3 Best Hotels in Copan Ruinas, Western Honduras

You are several blocks from the center of town here. That can be an advantage—peace and quiet—or a disadvantage, depending on your needs, but we lead toward the former. Rooms occupy several buildings behind the owners' house. The original ones are smaller; the newer ones span a portion of the hillside and are larger with exposed-beam ceilings. All have one full or two single beds and white walls. Take breakfast out on the patio, with terrific views of the valley—you can see as far away as neighboring Guatemala—and luxuriate there in the all-day supply of coffee. Not that anything too stressful ever goes on in Copán Ruinas, but an on-site massage pavilion is here to knead your cares away. The owners rent a few houses on the same street, too.

In a century-old hacienda, this country inn is one of the most charming lodgings in the area. Flavia Cueva's tender care shows in all the details, from the carefully crafted wooden furniture in the simple but elegant rooms to the hammocks swinging from the porch outside. The restaurant, near the delightful old stove, serves steaming tamales, tasty adobo sauce, and aromatic coffee. Take a walk to Los Sapos, a Mayan archaeological site where huge stones were carved into the shape of frogs, or go horseback riding through the cool Copán Valley. A nonguest day pass to use the facilities is L40.

You'd walk right by this place if you didn't know it was a hotel. The entry to this colonial-style building is arranged like a cobblestone street lined with a café and three upscale souvenir shops. The second floor housed a scant four rooms arranged around a second-floor patio. The comfy rooms contain tiled floors, dark-wood furniture, and wrought-iron accents. Two of the rooms face a busy street, but all windows here are soundproofed, so there's no street noise.