Basic Utila packing question...

[Doc]

I recall my first experience with green apple azistan, I was thrilled my wife had brought home some green apple juice concentrate.

Ahh, yes, the Apple. Piquant with a lingering afterburn. It's a rough ride, but it mixes well with Flor de Caña Rum (then again, what doesn't?)

 

[RTBDiver]

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I wanted to talk to my wife frequently so I traveled with a laptop and headphones so I could use Skype for phone calls. Cell phones and land lines are very expensive to use for calls to the US because of the way Honduras regulates or owns the companies. Your dive shop should provide you with Internet access.

Unless Utila phone service is totally different than Roatans you will find that calls are actually quite cheap
Its probably too late now but if you have or can get an unlocked cell phone then you can get a sim card here with a local number and calls are cheap. I am not sure about Utila but figure it is similar to Roatan where my landline to the US is only about 2 lemps per minute and the cell phone is even less

 

[ncchuck]

Wow, things have changed. Honduras was known for having some of the hghest long distance rates in this part of the world. I guess the Hondatel monopoly has been broken. Glad to hear rates are now more reasonable. Sim card telephones are widely available so if those rates are competitive with land line rates that's the way to go. When I was on Utila, there were only a couple of places to make calls and they were extremely expensive. Maybe someone that lives there can chime in.

 

[RTBDiver]

I know on Roatan that between the three cell carriers, Alo/claro Tigo, and digicel that almost any unlocked phone will work. Some phones come unlocked and will work with other carriers some need to be unlocked or they only work with who you got it from ie:ATT. I know RTB also has new basic phones for about $25 US. Sim cards run around 100 Lemps.

 

[ncchuck]

I'm not sure how often the ABOUTUTILA.COM web site is updated but it still indicates that communications to the US is best done on the Internet. I found other sources that haven't been updated in a while that indicated long distance rates of as much as $.40 a minute. That particular site was making comparisons to other Central America countries where rates were as a low as $.02. In 2006, calls to the US from a land line at a little telephone service on Utila directly accross the street from the Hondatel office cost about $.60 a minute. I used it once and then switched all my calling to Skype. In fact, BICD had headsets they loaned to students so they could make free calls. I guess all that may have changed and I'm still hoping someone from Utila will comment.

I haven't used cell service in at least two years but last time I used one in Roatan, my 100 lemp sim card only lasted about 4 minutes when I called the US.
Since RTB lives on Roatan, his information is a lot more current than mine. Thanks for sharing that information with us.