Just Landed in Honduras? Your First 7 Days

Two carriers dominate: Tigo has the widest coverage nationally including rural areas and the Bay Islands, while Claro is a strong competitor in the cities. SIMs are sold over the counter at carrier shops, airport kiosks, supermarkets and pulperias, and must be registered to your passport under Honduran law. Urban 4G is generally reliable, but coverage thins out in the mountains and remote departments. Home internet in the cities is delivered by Tigo and Claro on fibre or cable, with typical residential plans running roughly 700-1,200 HNL a month.

Typical cost: Around 200-350 HNL for a prepaid SIM with an initial data bundle; monthly prepaid data packages run roughly 300-500 HNL for several GB with social apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook bundled in. Fixed home broadband is typically 700-1,200 HNL a month depending on speed.

The Lempira floats against the US dollar and cash rules daily life, though US dollars are genuinely useful on the Bay Islands and for larger transactions. Cards (Visa and Mastercard) work in supermarkets, malls, chain restaurants, pharmacies and hotels in the cities, but market stalls, pulperias, buses, colectivo taxis and small businesses are cash-only. Keep a working stock of small notes at all times, and expect a servicio charge already added to restaurant bills.

Opening an account: Banco Atlantida, Ficohsa, BAC Credomatic and Banco de Occidente are the main retail banks. Opening an account as a foreigner is difficult without residency; you typically need a residency card (carne de residencia), passport, proof of address, a personal reference and proof of income, so many newcomers rely on a foreign card and cash at first. BAC Credomatic is often cited as the more foreigner-friendly and digitally capable option.

Cash: Honduras is strongly cash-based. Carry Lempiras in small denominations, expect to pay cash for taxis, buses, markets, pulperias and neighbourhood services, and withdraw money inside secure locations such as bank branches, malls and supermarkets rather than at exposed street ATMs. Tigo Money, a mobile wallet, is widely used for top-ups, bill payments and small transfers.

Tipping: Restaurants usually add a 10% service charge (servicio) to the bill; an extra 5-10% for good service is appreciated but optional. Round up for taxis, tip hotel porters a few Lempiras per bag, and tip tour guides and dive instructors on the Bay Islands, where a tipping culture is more established.

Honduras has no local address-registration requirement for arrivals; there is no equivalent of a European residents' register or an address-reporting step on arrival. Your legal status as a newcomer is governed entirely by the passport entry stamp and the CA-4 90-day allowance shared with Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Staying beyond that window means either an extension (prorroga) or applying for residency through the Instituto Nacional de Migracion, both of which are separate legal processes rather than address registration. Because Honduran bureaucracy moves slowly and requirements can shift, most newcomers who intend to stay engage a local immigration lawyer early rather than attempting the paperwork alone.

Where: Instituto Nacional de Migracion offices in Tegucigalpa, San Pedro Sula, La Ceiba, Roatan and other departmental capitals.

Uber withdrew from Honduras, so InDrive is the main ride-hailing app in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula, where you set your own fare and pick a driver. Otherwise transport means radio taxis called by your hotel, colectivo taxis on fixed shared routes, and city buses (which many newcomers avoid on safety grounds). For long trips between cities, comfortable and safer intercity coaches such as Hedman Alas and Pullmantur run air-conditioned services with reserved seating between the main cities, the coast and the airports. Reaching the Bay Islands is by the Galaxy Wave or Utila Dream ferries from La Ceiba, or by short domestic flights.

From the airport: Most international flights for Tegucigalpa now land at Palmerola International (XPL) near Comayagua, about 80km and 60-90 minutes from the capital by shuttle or arranged transfer (roughly 700-1,200 HNL for a private car; scheduled shuttles are cheaper). The old Toncontin airport (TGU) still handles some regional flights. For San Pedro Sula, Ramon Villeda Morales (SAP) sits about 15km east of the city, 20-30 minutes by a pre-arranged or authorised airport taxi. Roatan is served by Juan Manuel Galvez (RTB), a short taxi from West End.

Long-term rentals are found through Facebook Marketplace and local Facebook groups, Encuentra24, and word of mouth far more than big international portals; a trusted local contact or a realtor helps enormously and reduces the risk of scams. In the cities, expats favour gated communities and secure buildings in areas such as Lomas del Guijarro or Colonia Palmira in Tegucigalpa, which cost more but add meaningful security. On the Bay Islands, rentals are commonly advertised and priced in US dollars and turn over with the tourist season.

Typical rent: A modest local one-bedroom runs 6,000-12,000 HNL a month; a secure furnished apartment in a good Tegucigalpa or San Pedro Sula neighbourhood commonly runs 15,000-30,000 HNL, with Bay Islands rentals often priced from several hundred US dollars upward depending on proximity to the water.

Deposit norm: Usually one to two months' rent as deposit plus the first month upfront; landlords frequently prefer cash and may ask a foreigner for a local guarantor (fiador) or additional months in advance. Insist on a written contract, and never pay a deposit before viewing the property in person or through a fully trusted intermediary.

Public hospitals (run by the Secretaria de Salud) are free but under-resourced and overcrowded, so most expats and middle-class Hondurans use private hospitals. Good private facilities exist in Tegucigalpa (Hospital Honduras Medical Center, Hospital del Valle) and San Pedro Sula (Hospital CEMESA), while the Bay Islands have the private Cemesa-affiliated and Woods Medical clinics plus a hyperbaric chamber on Roatan for divers. Complex or specialist cases are sometimes referred to the mainland or abroad.

How to access it: For routine issues, walk into a private clinic or a pharmacy, where many medicines are sold without a prescription, and pay cash or card at the point of care. For anything serious, go directly to a private hospital's emergency department; public emergency care exists but is slow and stretched. Dial 911 for coordinated police, fire and ambulance response, though private ambulance response times are more reliable in the cities.

Insurance: There is no automatic public cover for newcomers. Carry an international or local private health insurance policy, and ensure it includes emergency medical evacuation, as specialist care outside the main cities and on the islands is very limited and evacuation can be costly.

• Greet with a handshake or, among acquaintances, a cheek kiss, and use 'buenos dias' or 'buenas tardes' before getting to business; skipping the greeting reads as rude.
• Speak at least basic Spanish and be patient and warm; Hondurans are friendly and indirect, and bluntness or public criticism can offend.
• Dress neatly in towns and offices; scruffy clothes or beachwear away from the coast read as disrespectful in professional and family settings.
• Accept that things run on a relaxed schedule, so build slack into appointments, buses and paperwork rather than expecting strict punctuality.
• Use titles and courtesy freely: 'don' and 'dona' with older people's first names, and 'usted' rather than the informal 'vos' or 'tu' until invited otherwise.
• Family, faith and local pride matter deeply; showing genuine interest in someone's family and speaking well of Honduras earns real goodwill.
• Reciprocate hospitality and invitations, and bring a small gift when visiting a home, as personal relationships underpin how much gets done.

• Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula have high violent-crime rates; learn which colonias to avoid, do not walk after dark, and take a trusted driver at night.
• Do not display phones, jewellery, laptops or cash in public, on buses or at ATMs; opportunistic robbery is the main day-to-day risk.
• Avoid gang-controlled neighbourhoods entirely, and never resist an armed robbery; hand over belongings, as possessions are replaceable.
• Check current travel and security advisories, since conditions differ sharply between the mainland cities and the far calmer Bay Islands.
• Avoid political demonstrations and roadblocks, which can flare up quickly and turn disruptive or dangerous.