History
The Bay Islands is a collection of three large islands and over 60
islets and keys starting some 30 miles off the coast of Honduras. A
tropical paradise, the Honduras Bay Islands has long attracted an eclectic
mix of settlers whose descendents make up the spicy cultural soup that
flavors the Bay Island experience.
The
islands were well populated by a robust indigenous culture when Columbus
first set foot on Guanaja in 1502. European pirates like Henry Morgan,
Coxen, Morris and Van Horn used the island as a base for raiding Spanish
ships beginning in the 1600s. They took refuge in the many hidden ports on
Roatan, spending time hunting and fishing and lazing about in the tropical
sun.
After
the Spanish eventually depopulated the islands, the Bay Islands were
re-settled first by the Garifuna, who settled in Punta Gorda on Roatan,
and later by British-descended settlers from the Cayman Islands, who set
up colonies in Utila, Roatan and Guanaja.
Today, Islanders speak predominantly English with a strong island accent, and part of the attraction of the Bay Islands is their authentic island culture that still manifests itself in its people, their language and the architecture of their towns.
In
the 1960s the Bay Islands began to earn fame as a sport diving
destination, since they possess the greatest variety of corals and sponges
in the Caribbean. Today the islands are one of the Caribbean's most
popular dive destinations. Dedicated dive resorts on the islands are
abundant. Most are designed to blend in with the island environment, and
none are built higher than the tallest palm tree. And although the Bay
Islands are well known for first class diving, only recently have many
other activities been made available on the islands, converting them into
an ideal destination for anyone in search of a true Caribbean experience.
Roatan
Roatan is the largest, most developed and most frequented of the Bay
Islands. Essentially a long, forested ridge rising from the Caribbean, it
retains much of the original landscape that the Buccaneers knew in the
17th and 18th Century.
The dive industry has grown tremendously on Roatan based on the quality of its coral reefs. Both the northern reef and southern fringing reef boast around 40 dive sites each, characterized by plummeting walls, crevices and caverns, and excellent shore diving.
In decades past, Roatan was exclusively a diving destination, offering few organized activities for those whose interests lie elsewhere. But in recent years, Roatan's menu of activities has expanded exponentially.
