ATV or Zipline in Roatan Honduras: Which Adventure Day?
The short answer. Choose the zipline if you have children or want the beach too: the youngest age is five, you can ride tandem, and the days end on West Bay. Choose the ATV if the drivers in your group are adults who like mud and a bumpy track, and check the licence rule first. If you want both, one day does both. Compare the Roatan Honduras guided tours with the age and weight lines in hand.
ATV or zipline: side by side
| ATV days | Zipline days | |
|---|---|---|
| Fares | $119 to $163 | $69 to $163 |
| Length | 4 to 5.5 hours | 4 to 7 hours |
| Youngest age | Priced from 4 or 5 as passengers; 16 with a licence to drive on the buggy day | 5 on Bodden's course; tandem for young guests |
| Weight limit | None printed | 295 lb (134 kg) on Bodden's course |
| What else is in the day | A sanctuary on every one; tastings or a beach club on some | A sanctuary and a beach on every one |
| You will get | Muddy, and often wet | Hot, and high above the trees |
| Health lines | Not in pregnancy; no heart or back problems on most | Not in pregnancy; no heart or back problems |
The case for the ATV
An ATV day is a drive, not a ride along. You steer a quad or a buggy along dirt tracks, through villages and up into the hills, with a guide in front. John A. came back soaked and muddy and laughing the whole time. Stacey J.'s family of six, with children of five and nine, rode through a village and loved the views. Josiris S.'s mother, 58 and new to ATVs, was given the confidence to try.
The rule to check is who can drive. The buggy day from Adventure Tours sets the minimum age to ride the ATV and the dune buggy at 16, with a full driving licence. The other two ATV days price children from four or five and print no driving age, so ask the crew who drives before you book. All of them rule out pregnancy, and most rule out back or heart trouble.
- Wildlife park and ATV day: a guided ride, then Mayan Eden, $119.
- Private ATV, sanctuary and tastings day: an hour on the ATV, chocolate, rum and the animals, $130.
- Zipline, ATV buggy and beach club day: both, plus a beach club, $163.
The case for the zipline
A zipline day is easier on the body and kinder to families. Bodden's Mayan Jungle Canopy course has 11 lines and two suspension bridges, with runs up to 1,020 feet long and 300 feet high. The minimum age is five, young guests can ride tandem with a parent or a guide, and the weight limit is 295 pounds. Under five, you book the skip-the-zip option and join for the rest. The family on tobinnorthway's trip left with children asking to go back.
The other course, on the zipline, sanctuary and beach club day, is longer still: 16 lines, 24 platforms and three suspended bridges, then a family-run sanctuary and a West Bay beach club, for $69. It is not suitable for wheelchair users, and snorkel gear at the beach is extra.
Doing both in one day
The buggy day combines them: a 12-line canopy zipline and an ATV buggy ride, with about 45 minutes at Mayan Eden and two hours at a private beach club. It takes 14 guests at most and picks up 90 minutes after your ship docks, so it suits a long port call. John A. and Kevin M. both did it; a storm took Kevin M.'s beach time, but the guide made up for it. You can also add an ATV ride or a zipline to the three-stop snorkel when you book, for a reef morning with an adventure after.
What each day costs, and what it leaves out
The fares look far apart, and part of the gap is what they cover. The wildlife park and ATV day, at $119, sells lunch and drinks on the day and makes the beach break optional. The private ATV day, at $130, has every fee and tax in the fare, and only your group rides. The buggy day, at $163, includes one beer or soda at the ATV park but not the food there or at the beach club. On the zipline side, Bodden's day at $75 includes a resort day pass on West Bay but not towels, sunscreen, food or tips, and the four-hour course with the family-run sanctuary, at $69, charges for lunch, drinks and snorkel gear. Budget for tips on all of them.
The sanctuary on both kinds of day
Every one of these days stops for sloths and monkeys, so you do not have to choose between adrenaline and the animals. The ATV day by Henry Tours and the buggy day both use Mayan Eden, towards the East End. The private ATV day spends an hour at a hangout in French Harbour. Bodden's zipline has its own animals beside the course, and the four-hour zipline day visits a small family-run sanctuary. Which is which, and what each is like, is in our guide to the sloth and monkey stops.
Where the crews meet you
Bodden's crew check you in at kiosk 1 in the independent tours area of the Port of Roatan, or at Mahogany Bay, an hour after your ship arrives. For the four-hour zipline day you go over the hill past the big green gate at Mahogany Bay, with a US$2 taxi if you use a wheelchair or a scooter, or across the street from gate 3 at the Port of Roatan. Darja's guide waited from 7:30 and advises going uphill past the taxi area. The Henry Tours crew meet outside the main gate at the Port of Roatan, or up the hill past the green gate at Mahogany Bay. Hotel pickup is offered on all of them.
Verdict by visitor type
- Families with young children: the zipline. Tandem riding and the beach after.
- Teenagers and adults who drive: the ATV, with the licence line checked.
- Couples who want everything: the buggy day, zipline and ATV together.
- Anyone pregnant or with a bad back: neither. Pick a sanctuary and beach day instead.
- Short port call: the four-hour zipline and sanctuary day.
Weather matters more to the ATV than the zipline: heavy rain turns the tracks to mud, and thunder can stop the lines. The rainy months are set out on the weather page and the best months on the best time to visit page. Where each course and track lies is on the Roatan map, and the other stops you can pair with them are on the things to do page. Every ATV day side by side is on ATV tours in Roatan Honduras.
Adventure days for every age in the group
Roatan Wildlife plus ATV Adventure
A guided ATV ride through villages and hills, then a wildlife park with monkeys, sloths, birds and butterflies. A beach break is optional.
From $119 per person
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Roatan Zipline, ATV Buggy Ride + Sloths & Exclusive Beach Access
The long adrenaline day: a canopy zipline, an ATV buggy ride, a wildlife sanctuary and about two hours at a private beach club. Up to 14 guests.
From $163 per person
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Roatán: Super Man Zip Line, Monkey Sanctuary and Beach
A zipline course of 16 lines and three suspended bridges, a small family-run animal sanctuary, then time at a beach club on West Bay.
From $69 per person
Check AvailabilityNext: Wind down after the mud with our guide to beach day passes on West Bay. Every fare sits side by side on Roatan Honduras Tours.