Costa Rica… Coffee… Cloud Forests… yes this interview has it all.  We were lucky enough to grab a chat with Erica Kuschel of the super blog Over Yonderlust.  We’ve been big fans for a while now and are stoked to have them on our site.  Today they tell us about their 7 weeks in the land of the coffee bean.

Could you briefly introduce yourself, your site and your experience travelling in Costa Rica?

My name is Erica Kuschel and I’m half of the team at Over Yonderlust. We are tattooed, childhood sweethearts that have been traveling the world for the past 2 years. While I like to look at the world through my lens, my hubby likes to bring his skateboard on his travels and looks for adventure.

During September and October of 2011 we got to spend about 7 weeks in and around Costa Rica. We got to experience everything from an apartment rental in a small fishing village to a hostel in the cloud forests while taking organic coffee co-op tours. I couldn’t have asked for more variety!

Travel Costa Rica: Costa Rica Cloud Forest

What made you choose this country and what were your first impressions?

This is going to sound a bit silly but it all started with my friends in high school. The marine biology class took a class trip to Costa Rica and I decided that a having a car was more important to me. For the next 15 years their stories mainly consisted of, “When we were in Costa Rica…”

It was nothing like I thought it would be to be honest. With the internet and globalization I’m sure it was much more “Costa Rica-y” when they went but I was surprised with how many big chains there were. And WOW was it pricey for Central America.

How much money can someone travel around Costa Rica for? What are the greatest expenses? What things are relatively cheap?

I think that it is possible to stay within the backpacker budget of $1000/per person relatively easy. For us, traveling as a duo really had its advantages. We got an apartment in off season for $450/month (everything included). The most expensive thing had to be the groceries. Water was exorbitantly expensive at times. With all the hike, bike, and nature around it is really easy to find cheap or free activities to do if you don’t mind doing a bit of exploring.

What is the local cuisine like? Did you find yourself trying new things or pining for the familiars of home?

While I know that many people love Costa Rican food I found it to be rather similar to the rest of Central America – beans, meat, rice. For breakfast you can have gallo pinto which is rice and beans mixed together. I did happen to have some of the best ceviche of my trip from a little stall on the beach though. Wooooo! It makes me miss it!

Oh, and the coffee. YUM! The interesting thing is that a good majority of the delicious coffee isn’t even kept within the country so you are hard pressed to find the good stuff unless you head to the source and pay top dollar.

What cultural activities and events would you suggest everyone seeing or taking part in while travelling in Costa Rica and why?

There is so much to see and do! One of our favorite experiences was heading up into the mountains and into the cloud forests – land of the Arabica coffee beans. We got to head out to a plantation, and meet Victor, a local farmer. Not only could we see the love for his land and his work but we were also invited into his house for a cup of “farmers blend” that his wife fresh brewed and served to us. It really made me consider where I buy my coffee from in the States. I tend to be more socially aware now.

Travel Costa Rica: Coffee Cloud Forest

What is your favourite thing about travelling this country? What is your least favourite thing?

The whole place is just stunning! When you look out your window you can see so many different types of landscapes. It really is magical.

Our least favorite thing is that the public transportation system is horrible. There are some simple routes that should be A->B but end up taking you A->T->B adding upwards to 12 hours. They just don’t have the paved roads and infrastructure for some of the routes.

What things do you focus on most when you blog about this country? Why do you choose these things?

I like to really focus on experiential pieces. While some people do like technical writing about places, I like to talk about our experiences and the people we meet. I think you can learn so much about a culture from things like that. Details add to a more complete picture.

Travel Costa Rica: Caribbean Side

What’s one thing you can’t travel around Costa Rica without?

Make sure to pack rain gear. Costa Rica is in some sort of rainy season about 7 ½ months of the year so you are likely to catch a time when it is raining cats and dogs. It also will keep your clothes from getting wet in a climate that will take days to dry.  Also, Costa Rica has microclimates. The weather can change rapidly when traveling around.

What kind of response have you had to your blogs about Costa Rica? What post had the most interest?

The response has been mainly a positive one. Our most popular post by far has to be when we went to see how chocolate was made in Puerto Viejo. Most people don’t realize that chocolate starts out as a very strange looking fruit.

If you could think of one thing you wished someone told you before you started travelling in Costa Rica what would it be?

Plan on getting stuck. There is so much to see and do that you will need much more time than you think to make your way through Costa Rica. We thought we would only need a month and left almost 2 months in!

Thanks Erica and Shaun.

Wing your way over to Over Yonderlust to see what they’re up to now and why not check them out on Twitter too.

Have a country you want to rave about? Contact us for an interview.

Watch this space peeps!  David Hutt of the craftily named blog DavidHuttsTravels is about to embark on a huge travel adventure to Latin America. Here he tells us about where his bug began and what Guatemala means to him.

1.     Could you briefly introduce yourself, your site and your experience travelling in Guatemala?

Hello, bonjour, etc, etc… my name is David Hutt. I am a freelance journalist and travel writer. Originally from London, I have lived for the last three years in the seaside city of Brighton where I studied history at the University of Sussex. As graduation approached and the real world loomed overhead, I had no real idea of what I wanted to do. One evening I sat down with my girlfriend and we said ‘fuck it’, let’s move abroad. I had spent a year in Latin America when I was eighteen and annoyed just about every single person I know telling them about it. So it was decided, let’s go to Latin America. So next month I will be moving to Nicaragua to live and to work, as a writer and as a tour guide for a trekking organisation.

My website, www.davidhuttstravels.com, will feature a regular blog of my travels across Nicaragua and Central America. In order to make the adventure fun for me and then have something interesting to write about for you, I intend to travel widely and throw myself into experiences and opportunities whenever they arise.

Travel Guatemala: David getting his drink on

Looking at a list of things I plan to do that I have jotted down on a decrepit notepad, here’s a few: learning to dive and getting my open-water PADI certificate; learning to surf; trying to win some dollars on a cock-fight; partying on the Caribbean coast; surfing down a volcano; swimming in a bull shark-infested lake.

The blog will serve as my drinking companion and I will recount my anecdotes and tales to you as I sip on a nice cold beer, with the hope that you will be doing the same. I am also a correspondent for Vagabundo Magazine and will publish an article every ten days in my column, On the Gringo Trail.

Jesus, that personal introduction was not brief …let’s get down to some stories of Guatemala. I first visited Guatemala at the age of eighteen. I had just finished my A-Levels at secondary school and needed something to do for the summer. Whilst most of my friends were going to places like Ibiza to get pissed, I travelled half-way around the world to do the same.

Certainly, many beer bottles were emptied, but during the day I worked as a builder for an organisation that built homes for the local poor populations. We worked five days a week, and the average day went like this: up at seven for breakfast with my host family, which was usually black beans and scrambled egg (incidentally, I cannot stand the sight or smell of scrambled egg now),  then to the office for eight, to the building site by nine; then work until five, back home for a shower and a little something to eat, and finally eight until very late/very early in the numerous bars. It was a very good life, hard work and hard play.

The mixture of other workers were good. Mostly Americans but a few English. Plus, the rapport with the Guatemalan builders was great. They became good friends, a proper laugh on site and even better in the bars, The work was extremely worthwhile. After seven days we had built a new breezeblock house for people who were living in cornstalk shacks, most of the time with up to six/seven people in one room. It was a great feeling to see yourself helping.

On weekends I would travel outside of the city of Antigua, where I was staying, and visit ruins, waterfalls, lakes, etc. I kayaked across lake Atitlan, dived off a waterfall at Semuc Champey and roasted marshmellows on the flowing lava of Volcan Pacaya.

I returned to the UK after two months to collect my A-Level results. I got what I needed to go to university, but I didn’t feel ready to go. My parents understood. I sat on the Brighton beach with a hangover and a LonelyPlanet book of South America and decided that I needed to go there. I booked a one-way ticket to Buenos Aires and started a four month traipse from Argentina up to Ecuador. After I flew north back to Guatemala and took up my old job building houses. The base allowed me to settle back down into a normality of friends, partying, local bars, regular work and skirt-chasing.

2.     How does Guatemala compare to the rest of Latin America in terms of things to see and do, its food and its culture? Is it very similar to other countries or very different?

Compared to the rest of Latin America, Guatemala is still very rural, traditional and indigenous. It is also very low-key. The vast majority of people wouldn’t be able to mention one thing that is specific to Guatemala; yet most people know Machu-Picchu in Peru, or Lake Titicaca in Bolivia, or the food of Mexico and the wildlife of Costa Rica.

But Guatemala certainly does have much to offer the traveller. To the north of the country you can find some of the best Mayan ruins, including the well-known Tikal. There are plenty of active volcanoes, lakes, treks, waterfalls to find. There are many excursions ran from Antigua with guides and private shuttle buses.

It also offers a rich culture. Museums are plentiful in most big cities, and if you are interested in looking around churches then you can’t move for one of these. However, the expanse of US culture has had its roots in Guatemala for a long time. It is an interesting juxtaposition to see the indigenous eating in McDonald’s in traditional clothes.

It’s food is basic but good, featuring mostly corn, chilis and beans. It has hundreds of varieties of tamales and stews. The cuisine is quite similar to Mexican in that chicken, rice and potatoes are the staples of most dishes. If you have a sweet tooth then Guatemala can be very attractive. In Antigua there is the ChocoMuseo that teaches you how the Mayans made chocolate and at the end of the tour you can make some of your own. My personal favourite is a street desert that you will see most kids in the small towns eating; it’s a simple concoction of a banana on a stick dipped in chocolate and then frozen.

3.     How much money can someone travel around Guatemala for? What are the greatest expenses? What things are relatively cheap?

Guatemala is cheap compared to South America, although it is slightly more expensive than places like Nicaragua. However, expense in Latin America is generally dependent on your lifestyle. If you want a Burger King or McDonalds (which they have in Antigua) then it will dent your wallet; along with drinking Coca-Cola and snacking from corner shops.

But perhaps the biggest expense are the excursions. The more daring travellers choose to sit on the chicken-buses (reconditioned US school buses that have their name sake because they often feel like being inside a chicken coop and locals often bring the caged animals onto the buses with them), and navigate your way around rural Guatemala, which is extremely difficult. But most travellers rely on the private shuttles to get them around. A weekend excursion can really tot up and take upwards of $200 from your pocket. The prices are often justified by the sellers since travel in Guatemala can be dangerous. On one trip, me and a friend got talking to a couple of cowboy-looking Guatemalans at a petrol station as our shuttle refilled. In conversation they decided to show us their loaded pistols, whilst firing one of at a can; luckily, they weren’t half-mad bastards and instead offered us a bottle of beer. But anecdotes I heard showed that others weren’t so fortunate.

On a more optimistic note, if you shop like a local then most things are relatively cheap. I survived on a diet of rice, pasta and packets of noodles, all of which cost me about $1 a day to eat. Even better is the price of having a good time. The local brand of beer, Gallo, costs around one dollar, whilst a shot of tequila is about double. These prices are in the bars, and supermarket prices are much less. Entrance in nightclubs is generally free, but minimal when money is asked for. My tip…look out for the ‘all you can drink’ nights. With some friends we heard about a Miss Guatemala event with an open bar. It was about $10 entrance and we arrived way too early. Another word of advice…too much of a good thing is bad. Two friends were thrown out by the bouncers for ruining a sofa, who then turned on me for payment, but I was able to escape before they could get me, and needless to say, we didn’t last long enough to see the women.

4.     What are your favourite destinations in Guatemala and why?

Antigua. Clear answer. This city is fantastically beautiful and like a second hometown for me. The buildings are wonderful as they are painted colourfully, which gives a sunset walk a real edge. You simply can’t go anywhere in this city and not bump into a restored church or a breath-taking view of the looming volcanoes. For travellers it is safe, whilst not too suffocating. The city is packed with hostels and bars, whilst you can take cheap Spanish classes in many of the schools. It also retains its Guatemalan culture.  The city is always peaceful and the climate is perfect.

5.     What cultural activities and events would you suggest everyone seeing or taking part in while travelling in Guatemala and why?

If you get the chance, then visit Guatemala, and Antigua in particular, during Easter for Semana Santa. Across all of the Catholic world this is a big week, but in Antigua the whole city is dominated by it. Sawdust and flower carpets are made in the streets as huge processions of cloaked locals parade around. It’s a blast that goes on for a week. Unfortunately I don’t have any photos of it, but have a look online and see how colourful it is.

6.     What is your favourite thing about travelling this country? What is your least favourite thing?

The vast majority of Guatemalans are the most friendly and welcoming people I have ever met. This is not just some middle-class, white-man tosh of happy but poor; I have received more hospitality from Guatemalans than I have ever received in Europe.

Then my least favourite thing is to constantly see these kind and good people, and how they have to live in such poverty. I am not one of those people who sees poverty as a kind of oxymoronic gift; that they don’t have materialism, or consumerism, etc…that they are back-to-basics and happy. Guatemala is still a very unstable country and the thirty-year long civil war only ended in 1996. The indigenous are still ostracized from society and the wealth gap is growing. The basics like good schooling and good health care is still out of reach for a lot of them. What makes it worse is that I studied Latin American history for three years, in particular Guatemala’s history, and it is very sad to see how different things could have been.

7.     What’s one thing you can’t travel around Guatemala without?

A rain coat. When the rain comes down, it really comes down.

8.     If you could have lived anywhere else in the country where would it be and why?

Definitely not Guatemala City. Avoid this place at all costs.

Perhaps I would have liked to live in Quetzaltenango/Xela, Guatemala’s second city, I never got a chance to go there but I had a lot of friends who said it was a lovely city.

9.     If you could think of one thing you wished someone had told you before you started travelling in Guatemala what would it be?

Learn more Spanish. My Spanish was mediocre at best and when I first arrived I naively, and perhaps a little ignorantly, thought that most people would speak English. The problem I found is that a lot of people do and you become incredibly embarrassed that you can’t talk your language. When an eight year old shoe-shine boy can hold down a conversation in English but you can’t string five words of Spanish together, it’s time to book into a language-school. Plus, you get so much more out of travelling when you can speak properly with locals.

Good luck David. We’ll be following your Gringo trail for sure…

Follow his story over on davidhuttstravels and check him out on Twitter why not?

If you’d like to be interviewed, contact us

Today TraveLinkSites makes it’s way to Guatemala and the fabulous couple that make up Traveled Earth. Ashley & Mike are currently gallivanting around Europe but we thought we’d go back and ask them about their time in this gorgeous Central American country.

Over to you guys…

1. Could you briefly introduce yourself, your site and your experience travelling in Guatemala?

We’re Mike and Ashley Lenzen, a couple from small-town Saskatchewan, Canada. Saskatchewan is a praire land, flat as the ocean and with bitterly cold winters. In July 2011, we quit our jobs, sold our house, and left home on a one-way ticket to Cancun, Mexico. We have been travelling without an itinerary ever since. Our blog, Traveled Earth, chronicles our journey and adventures, offering travel advice and tips along the way. While we have grand ambitions of traveling around the world, we got a little “stuck” in Central America for the first nine months of our trip, spending 3 months in Guatemala.

2. What made you choose this country and what were your first impressions?

We chose Guatemala as a starting point for our travels because it has lots of cheap Spanish language schools. Some of our travel friends recommended a school on Lake Atitlan, so we spent six weeks living there and taking classes. We loved Guatemala from the beginning. The landscapes are beautiful and while the country is poor economically, it is rich in culture.

Indian Nose - Lake Atitlan

3. How much money can someone travel around Guatemala for? What are the greatest expenses? What things are relatively cheap?

We spent about $13 a person per day traveling through Guatemala ($20/person if you factor in the cost of six weeks of Spanish lessons). Our greatest expenses were the Spanish lessons, accommodation during Semana Santa and eating out in cities like Antigua. Outside of Semana Santa, accommodation is quite cheap… we paid anything from $4 a night for a private room with private bath in Lake Atitlan to $12 a night for dorm beds in Antigua. Street food and market food is also cheap and delicious.

4. What is the local cuisine like? Did you find yourself trying new things or pining for the familiars of home?

The local cuisine of Guatemala is handmade corn tortillas (the best in Central America!), beans, and fried chicken. You could also find tortas (sandwiches), tacos, and empanadas on the streets. Our favourite local drinks were ponche de leche (spiced hot milk) and etole de maiz (a thick corn drink, kind of like drinking corn muffin batter). We never found ourselves pining for the familiars of home and were happy to try new and unusual things (like raw eggs in orange juice).

5. What cultural activities and events would you suggest everyone seeing or taking part in while travelling in Guatemala and why?

If you can time your trip just right, we would suggest that everyone tries to take in Semana Santa (Holy Week) in Guatemala. Antigua is the most well known city to do this in, but you can find celebrations going on just about anywhere. Semana Santa events take place in the week leading up to Easter, and include several religious processions and intricately designed carpets made of wood shavings, flowers, and fruits carefully laid out in the streets. It is definitely something to see.

Independence Day (September 15) is another cultural event worth seeing. We were in Quetzaltenango (Xela) for Independence Day, where they have a large festival and fair each year. Beware of pickpockets at any cultural event or in any crowd of people.

Finally, if you are lucky enough to visit Guatemala during an election, you can take in a lot of local culture. We were at Lake Atitlan for the six weeks prior to the national elections, and witnessed nightly political rallies, fireworks, parades, and marching bands.

6. What is your favourite thing about travelling this country? What is your least favourite thing?

If we have to choose just one favourite thing about travelling in Guatemala (besides the incredibly reasonable cost), it was probably watching women wearing traditional Mayan dresses hand making corn tortillas in front of a backdrop of lakes and volcanoes. There was just so much to take in!

Our least favourite thing was the danger of pickpockets and thieves… we were pickpocketed twice at festivals and were wary of the chicken buses near Guatemala City.

Semana Santa Preparations

7. What things do you focus on most when you blog about this country? Why do you choose these things?

When we blog about Guatemala, we focus on describing the experiences we’ve had (both positive and negative) and we try to include useful information about methods of transportation, costs, and sights to see. This is because our blog is written for two audiences – first, it’s for our family and friends so they can see what we’re up to. Second, it’s for other travellers, so we try to include enough detailed information to make it useful to them.  We also share the statistics we keep about our travels (how much we’ve spent, how many different beds slept in, etc.) – this is the result of the nerdy math side of Ashley shining through.

8. What’s one thing you can’t travel around Guatemala without?

You can’t travel around Guatemala without a camera. There are so many cultural moments to capture. But that’s kind of a boring answer, isn’t it? You could say that about anywhere. So let’s try again… you can’t travel around Guatemala without a raincoat and a warm sweater. We were there in rainy season, which meant rain every afternoon. And if you want to spend any time in the highlands of Xela or Lake Atitlan, warm clothes are a must!

9. What kind of response have you had to your blogs about Guatemala? What post had the most interest?

We had a great response to our blogs about Guatemala. This was the first country that we really explored in depth, and the blogs told the story of that. Our Tikal post probably had the most interest (mostly through Facebook, Twitter, and other media) because of the picture of Ashley with a tarantula in her mouth.

10. If you could think of one thing you wished someone told you before you started travelling in Guatemala what would it be?

We wished that someone had warned us about pickpockets at festivals. We were expecting them to be there, but we weren’t expecting them to be that good… we lost a camera from a zippered front pocket. That took us by surprise.

Thanks guys!

I’m not sure I will ever recover from the site of a tarantula in your gob Ashley but we’ll keep reading your Traveled Earth blog anyway…

Make sure you all check them out on Facebook & Twitter

You want to be interviewed by us don’t you? Got a blog you want to chat about? Contact us.

TraveLinkSites has an interview for you today with Marina of Travel Experta.  Her blog follows her and family on their travels around Latin America. Looks like Belize has really won her over…

1. Could you briefly introduce yourself, your site and your experience travelling in Belize?

I’m Marina K. Villatoro. I’ve been living with my family (Guatemalan husband and two sons – 8 years old and 2 years old) for almost 10 years in Central America and we love traveling all over this neck of the woods.

My website TravelExperta.com is all about traveling to these countries and Cuba. Plus, I have family travel guides for these countries to inspire and help families who want to visit and have a totally family-friendly and kid-friendly adventure.

2. What made you choose to travel to Belize and what were your first impressions?

I’ve heard sooo much about Belize for years. But you only really hear little snippets and until you actually visit the country you really don’t know what you’re about to see.

I have to say, Belize is definitely one of our absolute favorite countries in Central America. There are so many reasons behind this:

1. It’s soooo gorgeous with so much to see, yet small enough to see it all – you have the beaches, rain forest, Mayan ruins, caves and so much more within 2-3 hours of driving in each direction.

2. The people are amazing, fun, kind, super laid back and open.

3. There is very little crime. We felt super safe in the whole country.

4. We have never seen such beaches, crystal clear waters and sunsets as we did in Belize.

5. There is one traffic light in the whole country of 300,000 people. That alone is a great sign of tranquility, lack of commercialism and feeling you’ve stepped back in time since there is little progression.

White sand beach, Belize

3. How much money can someone travel around Belize for? What are the greatest expenses? What things are relatively cheap?

I have to say Belize is NOT at all cheap. Traveling with kids, we don’t stay in hostels anymore, and try to find more comfortable lodging. And it’s expensive for a decent hotel room you’re looking at anywhere from $150 and up.

However, it’s the eating out that really adds up. We compared going out to eat with eating out in the US. You can easily spend over $20 per person on lunch with a drink and that will be normal.

But you can eat cheap if you eat at very local like eateries, street food and if you have a kitchen in the hotel, it helps save money.

Also, tours on a whole are costly, so the more you can do on your own the better off you’ll be without breaking the bank.

 4. What is the local cuisine like? Did you find yourself trying new things or pining for the familiars of home?

I love Belizean food. It’s soul food with plenty of grease and fried goodness to go around. Their main food is chicken and seafood and lots of fried dough versions called Fried Jacks.

What’s great about Belize, being so small there are no fast food chains at all. Even if you’re in the mood for crap food, you are forced to eat at tasty restaurants realizing how great their food can really be.

 5. What cultural activities and events would you suggest everyone seeing or taking part in while travelling in Belize and why?

When staying at the beach you have to snorkel! The water is sooo clear it’s hard not to want to be in it all the time. Plus, Belize is surrounded by the second largest barrier reef in the world so the marine life is amazing!

If you’re traveling more inland, in the rain forest, you need to check out the Maya ruins. Also caves are a huge hit here.

But mainly Belize is a beach country and just enjoying the Caribbean sea is without a doubt one of the best things to do. Here you’ll hear drumming of all sorts from the Creole music to Garifuna traditional drumming sessions.

Snorkelling in Belize

6. What is your favourite thing about travelling this country? What is your least favourite thing?

My favorite by far was the lack of commercialism and lack of crowds. The laid back beach culture is contagious and you fully de-stress and never want to leave. We are literally contemplating moving to Caye Caulker, the cutest Caye in Belize.

My least favorite thing? How expensive it was. For a Central American country the prices for most things didn’t make any sense at all.

Caye Calker Restaurant

7. What things do you focus on most when you blog about this country? Why do you choose these things?

Belize is so easy to blog about. It’s got an interesting culture, the country is so small with so much to do and see that there is no shortage of fun ideas.

The most focused on topics when it comes to Belize are: snorkeling, scuba diving, Caribbean Sea and lack of stress this country offers.

8. What’s one thing you can’t travel around Belize without?

Beside my laptop:) I personally needed bug spray or cream. The sand flies and mosquitoes truly loved me! Also sunscreen is essential, the sun is way too strong without it.

9. What kind of response have you had to your blogs about Belize? What post had the most interest?

Belize is a popular country to visit, but a lot of people simply don’t know what to do when they are there. Especially family travelers who have younger kids. I wrote an article: 7 Activities To Do in Belize which is definitely the more popular post for this country.

10. If you could think of one thing you wished someone told you before you started travelling in Belize what would it be?

To spend way more time on Caye Caulker. We didn’t know how amazing this place was going to be and didn’t stay as long as it deserved.

Garifuna Drumming Boys

Thanks Marina! Life by the Caribbean Sea doesn’t sound too shabby does it?

If you want to know more about Belize and travelling with a family, check out her blog Travel Experta and follow her travels on Twitter.

Fancy being interviewed by us?  Click here

Wondering whether travelling with a child is possible? Well Mr Talon Windwalker (coolest name ever or what?) shows us how it’s done. This fella is seriously inspiring to us TraveLinkSites editors and we’re chuffed to have him answer our questions.

1. Hi Talon! Could you briefly introduce yourself, your site and your experience travelling in Honduras?

I’m a single dad slowly traveling the world with my 10-year-old son.  I quit my normal job in the States, we got rid of all of our stuff, and we began our lives as full-time nomads.  We are currently in South America.  Our blog is at 1dad1kid.com, and I also write a lot for TravelGeneration.com.

We’ve been on the road for almost a year so far (since 4 May 2011), and 8 months of that was spent in Honduras where we lived on a small Caribbean island called Utila.  While there we had the chance to get to know some other parts of Honduras as well, but the island is definitely my . . . specialty.

we’re not surprised you wanted to stay here…

We originally came to Utila so that my son could get his open water certification as a scuba diver and so that I could get my divemaster and become a scuba instructor.  We ended up staying for quite a bit more time after I became an instructor and worked my way through higher levels of instructor and gained specialties.  Meanwhile my son racked up about 31 dives and a specialty.

My first impression of Honduras was actually not that good.  We had a very rough day of traveling to get there, and by the time we reached the island and hit some more snafus, I had pretty much had it.  But over the ensuing months the country really grew on me, especially as we got off the island and had more leisurely travels throughout other parts of Honduras.

er…there’s a shark behind you mate

3. How much money can someone travel around Honduras for? What are the greatest expenses? What things are relatively cheap?

Honduras is a fairly cheap country.  Roatan is one of the Bay Islands and is a major tourist destination.  Your money won’t go quite as far there, but if you’re interested in island living, Utila is definitely affordable.  It’s easy to find a place to rent for only $300 USD a month, and usually you only have to pay for electricity.  Food and restaurants are reasonable.  The mainland is even cheaper.

Honduras is a great budget destination overall.  We probably spent the most on transportation just because of the ferries back and forth to the island we lived on.  We also chose to use the more fancy Hedman Alas buses when traveling around Honduras, but as far as I’m concerned it’s worth the extra price.  One of the most comfortable buses I’ve been on in over 14 countries.  Food, groceries, and lodging tend to be fairly cheap.  Adventure activities will cost you more, although Utila is one of the cheapest places in the world to learn diving or for fun diving.

Honduran food is not very exciting.  There are a LOT of fried foods, especially chicken, and French fries.  Restaurants serving international fare are quite common throughout the country.  However, it is also easy to find typical American comfort food (i.e., Kraft macaroni & cheese for my son) in the grocery stores, and it’s actually quite reasonably priced.  We did miss really good chocolate and ice cream.

5. What cultural activities and events would you suggest everyone seeing or taking part in while travelling in Honduras and why?

Honduras is a great country for outdoor activities, especially if you’re interested in more adrenaline-producing activities such as zip lining, white water rafting, scuba diving, etc.  They have a good safety record as well.  Definitely I would say you should go snorkeling and/or scuba diving while in Honduras.  It’s quite phenomenal.

If you’re there in March or April, you may also get a chance to snorkel with whale sharks.  I had the thrill of swimming with pods of wild dolphins more than a few times as well.  As far as cultural activities go Semana Santa (the week leading up to Easter) and the independence day celebrations (Sept 15^th throughout Central America) are some of the more interesting celebrations.

er… I think that’s JAWS?

I love the friendliness of the people and the beauty of the surroundings.  I also love the sense of pride they have in their nation and its history.  They’re a special people.  Especially on the Bay Islands.

My least favorite thing would be some of the bus rides (unless you’re on Hedman Alas) and the lack of varied food.

Because most of our time was spent on an island scuba diving, that tends to be what I blog mostly about.  However, I find the Bay Islands to be a great place for families to visit as well, so I have tried to focus on its safety (one of the safest places in the world), and how Utila really is how the Caribbean used to be:  laid back, unapologetic about its lack of tourism infrastructure, and a place where you can quickly get to know almost everyone on the island.  They will watch out for you without interfering in your life.  I love that.  Unfortunately, the country has received a lot of bad press about safety, and having been there for so long and getting to know the people whose lives are adversely affected by this, I want people to know they shouldn’t take Honduras off their list just yet.

8. What’s one thing you can’t travel around Honduras without?

A sense of humor.  Seriously.  You’ll often need it.

9. What kind of response have you had to your blogs about Honduras? What post had the most interest?

I’ve had a lot of positive response, especially my series I ran on Utila.  Probably the most popular post was about visiting there where I give restaurant & travel recommendations.  The rest of the series covered diving there, visiting, if you’ve decided to stay longer (like how to get a SIM card which isn’t straight forward) and so on.

10. If you could think of one thing you wished someone told you before you started travelling inHonduras what would it be?

Don’t believe the companies when they tell you a bus has A/C or a functioning bathroom.

I absolutely love it.  It’s the best thing I’ve ever done.  It’s wonderful to get to see things through his eyes.  He also forces me to slow down and enjoy an area more when my normal style is go, go, go, explore EVERYTHING!  He’s taught me a lot without realizing it.  He loves it as well and considers “planet Earth” as his home rather than some stick-built edifice.  I think that by itself is worth every second of it.

pretty lucky kid this Tigger eh?

Thanks Talon! 

You’ve got to go check his travel blog 1Dad1Kid out.  He’s on Twitter too.

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