Cash
- Thread starter bashaw77
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KatieMac
Contributor
I can't speak for Guanaja and Utila, but in Roatan West End/West Bay, most take credit card. And they also take american cash ... but it has to be in good condition. They will not take bills with tears or bits missing
PChopMeyer
Registered
We only stayed at Roatan West End couple of times. We only bring US dollars and have not had a place that didn’t take US currency. I think most places prefer cash rather than credit card, probably due to the tax system. We paid for our dives with cash and the dive shop gave us a substantial discount, I want to say 14% but I don’t remember. KatieMac is right, lots places will not accept US cash with tears. Also expect a combination of US and Honduran bills when you get change back from your bills.
wdeutsch
Registered
Utila shops will take american money, and last time I was there cards were accepted, buts sometimes had a premium (If I recall correctly). ATM access was pretty easy and safe too.
Gdog
Contributor
Just be careful with the ATMs. In West End, I would suggest a walk up to the ATM that is just before you get to the roundabout at Half Moon Bay. Its inside the Petrosun gas station convenience store. Much safer than the one by Roa grocery store in West End. Just my 2 psi...
We take cash, and typically get Lempira back for change which is fine. Some places take credit cards. Also several places take paypal, venmo, zelle. We end up using all the above.
And as stated above, the dive shops usually offer a discount for cash payment.
We take cash, and typically get Lempira back for change which is fine. Some places take credit cards. Also several places take paypal, venmo, zelle. We end up using all the above.
And as stated above, the dive shops usually offer a discount for cash payment.
Gdog
Contributor
Also want to second the comment about any us currency with any tears in it. Most of the time they will hold it up, see the tiny tear, and slide it back to you and say no. Its crazy, some of the limp they give you looks like they dragged it down the street. But a tiny tear in your dollar will be denied. We never take anything larger than a $20, and take plenty of 10, 5, 1 dollar bills. The girls at the bank have been great about sitting down and carefully going thru all the bills to ensure no tears or defacements.
Short answer is you don't strictly need Honduran money, your US cash is fully accepted (and really welcomed) in the Bay Islands.
I'm sure you don't need more evidence but I will confirm the comments above about US cash needing to be in essentially "new" condition to be accepted - and add that it isn't just the Bay Islands; that is a nation-wide standard in Honduras. My understanding is that it's primarily due to a local belief that detecting counterfeit bills is easier/more reliable when the bills are in like-new condition. Maybe that's even true (I'm no expert on this topic)... Counterfeiting US$ is (or at least was) very common here.
A couple other notes about relying exclusively (or even heavily) on credit cards is that some merchants will add the merchant fee charged to them by the card issuer (around 3% I think) to your bill if you use a credit card. Also, if there is no power (happens far more often in the Bay Islands than you are probably used to at home, although the electrical grid at least on Roatan is gradually becoming more stable) then there is no Internet. Or sometimes the Internet is just inexplicably "out" - there are a bazillion different reasons why that can happen, including someone crashing into a telephone pole and taking out a whole convoluted mess of telecommunication infrastructure. Underground cabling is almost unheard of here. Anyway, when the Internet is out, most merchants cannot process a credit card transaction.
I'm sure you don't need more evidence but I will confirm the comments above about US cash needing to be in essentially "new" condition to be accepted - and add that it isn't just the Bay Islands; that is a nation-wide standard in Honduras. My understanding is that it's primarily due to a local belief that detecting counterfeit bills is easier/more reliable when the bills are in like-new condition. Maybe that's even true (I'm no expert on this topic)... Counterfeiting US$ is (or at least was) very common here.
A couple other notes about relying exclusively (or even heavily) on credit cards is that some merchants will add the merchant fee charged to them by the card issuer (around 3% I think) to your bill if you use a credit card. Also, if there is no power (happens far more often in the Bay Islands than you are probably used to at home, although the electrical grid at least on Roatan is gradually becoming more stable) then there is no Internet. Or sometimes the Internet is just inexplicably "out" - there are a bazillion different reasons why that can happen, including someone crashing into a telephone pole and taking out a whole convoluted mess of telecommunication infrastructure. Underground cabling is almost unheard of here. Anyway, when the Internet is out, most merchants cannot process a credit card transaction.
No rips, tears or writing/stamps/marks on US dollars, shops will refuse them because the Honduran banks won't except them for deposit.
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