Money in Roatan: Currency, Cards and Cash

The currency is the lempira, and the dollar goes further than usual.

Honduras's monetary unit is the lempira, written L. On most Caribbean port calls that would be the beginning of a conversation about changing money. Here it is less of one, because the FCDO records that US dollars are widely accepted for exchange and payment in Honduras.

For an American traveler on a few hours ashore that is genuinely useful. It does not mean you will get a good rate everywhere, and it does not mean you should carry a thick wallet. It means the practical problem shifts from finding a bureau to knowing what things ought to cost.

The same advice notes that it is difficult to exchange British pounds in Honduras, which is a useful check on the idea that any major currency will do.

This page publishes no exchange rate.

No source in this cluster's register gives one, and a rate is the single most perishable number a travel page can carry. One printed here would be wrong within weeks and would still be sitting on the page a year later looking authoritative. Check a rate on the day, from your bank or a rate service, and treat any travel site quoting a precise figure without a date as out of date.

The cash machine advice names this island.

Country-level advice is usually general. This is not: the FCDO says that ATMs are available in the major towns and that you should check with your hotel which ATMs to use, especially in Roatán. When a national advisory singles out one island by name, that is worth reading as written.

The rest of the guidance around it is ordinary and sensible. Withdraw inside shopping centers rather than on the street, change money in hotels or banks, check machines for signs of tampering, do not take out a large amount at once, and avoid withdrawing at night. On a port call the simplest answer is to bring the cash you expect to need and skip the machine altogether.

What to carry ashore.

Small denominations, a card you can afford to have declined, and not much else. The FCDO's broader advice for Honduras is to avoid displaying valuables, including jewelry, cameras, tablets, laptops and phones, and to keep what you are not using locked away. That is written about the country as a whole and it reads as ordinary sense in a cruise port.

The travel safety guide sets out the fuller picture, including the sentence about the Bay Islands that is usually quoted only halfway. If you would like a day ashore arranged so that money is somebody else's problem, tell us what you want from it.

Sources

• TravelHealthPro, National Travel Health Network and Centre: the Honduras country page: that the monetary unit is the lempira; and that there is a low risk of malaria below 1,000m and in Roatan and the other Bay Islands, for which awareness of risk and bite avoidance are the recommended response, with antimalarials considered in low risk areas only in exceptional circumstances. Accessed 21 September 2026.
• UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: the Honduras safety and security page: that petty theft is a problem in cities and tourist areas including the Bay Islands of Roatan, Utila and Guanaja; that travelers should take particular care at bus stations, airports, isolated beaches, tourist sites and on public transport, avoid displaying valuables, and keep them locked away; that ATMs are available in the major towns and travelers should check with their hotel which ATMs to use, especially in Roatan, withdrawing inside shopping centers, changing money in hotels or banks, checking machines for tampering, avoiding large or night-time withdrawals; that US dollars are widely accepted for exchange and payment while British pounds are difficult to exchange; that there is a hyperbaric recompression chamber on Roatan and recompression facilities on Utila, but that emergency medical facilities on the Bay Islands are extremely limited; and that there is a more conservative attitude outside the capital with public displays of affection not recommended. Accessed 21 September 2026.
• UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: the Honduras travel advice landing page: that no travel can be guaranteed safe, and that anyone who chooses to travel should research their destination and get appropriate travel insurance. Accessed 21 September 2026.