Utila On HGTV

Utila On International TV The Home and Garden Television Channel (HGTV) has made the official announcement: The new program: “Half Price Paradise”, will be premiering HGTV on January 1st 2015 at 1pm Local Time! Tune-in to see some of your favourite Utila scenes, establishments and people and watch as new residents go through the decision making process of leaving their lives behind in the USA and purchasing a home in and relocating to beautiful Utila! This episode was filmed in Utila in August 2014. The half-an-hour Episode all about Utila, will be shown on New Year’s Day at various venues around the island such as the Mango Inn Bar and Grill –ask around and reserve your seat!

Annual Utila International Billfish Rodeo

Utila’s Annual Billfish Tournament is Underway. The influx is fancy fishing boats moored along the docks in the bay are due to the kick-off of the Annual  2014 Utila International Billfish Tournament, hosted by Laguna Beach. The lucky winner will walk away with an $8,000 purse when they provide proof of the largest Billfish  catch caught on video. This is a catch and release sport fishing tournament where the process of the catch needs to be caught on  video from the time the fish is caught on the line until after it is pulled onto the boat for a visual  inspection and verification of size and weight. It must then be released. Billfish are a species of pelagic fish that travel long distances migrating with the major ocean currents  path for spawning and feeding grounds. Called ‘Billfish’, for the distinguishable spear like protrusion or  ‘bill’, this extension of their bodies is used to slash at or stun prey. Billfish have often been considered trophy fish and commonly sought after in tournaments due to their strength, size and power. In the past these fish were legendary in their elusiveness and it took considerable skill (and luck), to find, hook and land Read More

Miss Honduras Universe Fights Like A Girl

 Between August 18th and August 23rd 2014, the eighth annual Miss Honduras Universe contest will  be   hosted in Utila at the New Convention Centre across from the football stadium. This is the first time in History that a contest of this type and scale has been hosted in the Bay Islands. Utilas event representative Dra. Ana Muñoz explained that the island was chosen for the venue for  the  Miss Honduras Universe contest first and foremost because “the organizers of the pageant were really  impressed by the Utila Organization ‘Fight Like A Girl’, and wanted to support it. They also visited Utila and immediately fell in love with the beauty of the island, the bohemian style and feel of the island and of course they liked the fact that it is safe”. There are 18 contestants in the pageant, one woman who is the representative for each of the 18 departments of Honduras. The actual pageant will be held just one evening on August 23rd, however, the contestants will be on the island for the week prior to the big night, lodging at the Laguna Beach Resort and participating in many of the different activities that Utila has to offer Read More

Utila SunJam 2014

Sunjam 2014 is upon us and the warm up parties have been in full swing around the island of Utila with another party set to begin later today and going until tomorrow morning at Bando Beach. Sunjam is an annual techno music beach party held at Water Cay off of the South western tip of the main island of Utila. This year the 18th edition of Sunjam will held from dusk until well past dawn on August 2. Reserving the first weekend in August since 1996 Sunjam has become one of the most popular techno venues in Central America.  Warm up parties are held at various locations around the main island of Utila and begin one week before the all-night party is scheduled to commence on Water Cay. Sunjam Beach Party Water Cay is an uninhabited and serene, privately owned 3 acre island, accessible by boat only. Complete with waving coconut and palm trees, whispering pine trees and home to many thousands of hermit crabs and a large sand bar. During the day, snorkeling, swimming and sunbathing are wonderful and relaxing activities to partake in at Water Cay. However, for one 24 hour period a year, this tranquil piece of Read More

Bringing a Pet from North America to Utila, Honduras

Bringing a Pet from North America to Utila, Honduras “How to Ship Your Dog or Cat from Home to Utila” If you are moving to Honduras and want to bring your pet with you, the following is recently updated information (July, 2014) on bringing a pet to Utila from North America. The whole operation may seem a little daunting but if you are well prepared and have the required paperwork those who have done it say that it is actually fairly easy once you are on your way. Each airline has its own rules so be sure to double check with the airline you are flying with. The following information comes from the UNITED AIRLINES PET SAFE PROGRAM and from our friends Adam and Christine who recently moved to Utila from Edmonton Alberta Canada in April 2014 with their two dogs, Gertie and Jasmine. First of All:  Make sure your pet is in good health and will be able to tolerate the stress of travelling. COSTS: Be prepared to pay as the total cost for our friends was about $600 for one dog travelling as cargo (from Edmonton Alberta, Canada to Utila). It is slightly less expensive to travel with your pet in Read More

Utila’s Conservation Organizations Come Together With A Brand New Initiative

  By Jennifer Orrange of Utila Guide In an effort to create positive information aimed at tourists arriving in Utila, a collaboration of Conservation organizations resulted in the creation of informative posters that were distributed to places of business throughout the island during the first week of June. The project, funded by the UCF (The Utila Conservation Fund) ,which is a partnership between the Utila Municipality, Coral Reef Alliance, BICA (Bay Islands Conservation Association), the Iguana Station and the WSORC (Whale Shark Oceanic and Research Center), was to design and distribute a method for providing positive advice on responsible tourism practices. The Utila project was inspired by the banners which greet visitors to the island of Roatan which inform people that they are entering a unique and special place and that they need to be aware of and responsible for their actions and their impact on the surrounding environment. The collaborative group (UCF), hopes that the Utila poster campaign will also generate a perception of ownership and create a sense of empowerment within the local community- by encouraging locals and residents to identify themselves as belonging to and coming from a protected area and instilling a passion to protect what Read More

Honduras Airport Exit Tax Increase to $60 – What You Can Do

The Honduras Airport Exit Tax is expected to increase to $60 usd per person as of January 1. An editorial from Honduras Weekly with details on this increase is here: https://www.hondurasweekly.com/hiking-the-airport-exit-fee-is-lunacy–201112164580/ There are many concerns with this increase, primarily with how it will affect volunteer and medical groups coming to Honduras. Below is a post from Marco, Editor of Honduras Weekly and major advocate of volunteer and medical teams and their work in Honduras with his group, Project Honduras., asking for input and comments regarding this increase so he can try and advocate against it.

Activities on Utila – What to do on Utila Besides Diving?

Utila, in the Bay Islands of Honduras is becoming well known for its fantastic diving and snorkeling at very affordable rates. But is there anything else to do on the island besides diving? You bet! Utila has a host of other activities, including kayaking, stand up paddleboarding (SUP), hiking, fishing, finding whale sharks, swimming, horse-back riding, cave exploring, enjoying the beach, floating in a float tank, volunteering for turtle patrols and lion fish control, visiting with the locals, go to the Cays, and much more!

Driftwood Music Festival, Utila

Driftwood Bar and Grill is planning a music festival January 13-15, 2012. The Driftwood Music Festival will bring Country, Blues, & Bluegrass music to the island of Utila. Planned groups include: Outlaw Jim and The Whiskey Benders, The Konza Swamp Band, The Blue Cat Creole Band

Utila Lionfish Derby and Cookoff 2011~

Utila celebrated its first lionfish derby and cookoff!    Organized by Bay Islands Conservation Association (BICA) and Utila Center for Marine Ecology (UCME), with the involvement of multiple dive shops and other community members, this was a great first-time event.   Date of the catching derby was Friday, April 29th.  Teams were organized through the  dive shops, with  22 teams of four people participating. This resulted in 429 lionfish killed in just one day!  Lionfish are a highly invasive species in the Caribbean. Their presence and detrimental effects throughout the Caribbean, including Belize, and Bay Islands, have been well documented.  An “invasive species” means not only that the species was introduced to the area (in this case, “area” meaning the Caribbean at large;  the introduction likely being accidental  through aquariums in Florida and Bahamas), but ALSO that the introduced species has harmful impacts on the native species.   In the case of lionfish, they are native to Indian and Pacific oceans, but here, they have no substantial active predators, and they aggressively destroy the local fish populations. (Some preliminary research is being done on shark and grouper predation on lionfish, however the predation seems to be on an individual case by case basis and not at the levels needed to actively control lionfish populations- though that may change in the future.)    Read More

Honduras Independence Day on Utila

Utila had a great day celebrating Honduras Independence Day 2010, on September 15!   A morning parade through town, and fun activities like greased pole climbing and more marching bands later.  The students have been practicing for months with their marching bands or other routines, and did a great job! For more photos of Independence Day on Utila, see our facebook page at  https://www.facebook.com/shluk#!/album.php?aid=41733&id=131127360233973&ref=mf

Snorkeling in Utila!

Though well known as a SCUBA dive destination, Utila also has fantastic snorkeling right from shore or via boat! Utila is consistently rated high as a snorkel destination- calm waters, great reefs, easy access.  A recent article by Away.com rated Utila as one of the top 10 snorkel destinations in the world! (But we already knew that!~) __________________________________________________________________________________ For Boat Snorkeling in Utila: Most dive shops will welcome you on their dive boat, but best to arrange in advance to set up for a more shallow site suitable for snorkeling.  _________________________________________________________________________________ For Shore Snorkeling in Utila: One of the great things about Utila is that you can experience great snorkeling right from shore.  Lots of great spots exist-  for starters, grab your mask, fins, and snorkel, and head down to our favorites: Blue Bayou:  in front of Coral View Resort. They have a great double story dock, and will charge a minimal ($2usd) dock fee to use their dock for the excellent snorkeling less than 30 yards from their ladder.  If you buy food or drinks, the incredibly sweet Ms. Tania will normally waive the dock fee. Coral View is in Blue Bayou, which is about 1/2 mile past the Read More

Whale Sharks in Utila

Whale Sharks?   Yeah, we got ’em! (Tiburones Ballena? Sí, las tenemos!). Utila is now known as being the “Whale Shark Capital of the Caribbean”, and is famous for divers and snorkelers encountering the Whale Shark. The whale shark can  grow to over 40 feet (12 meters) and is commonly seen around Utila at sizes between 5m and 10m (18ft and 32ft), weighing around 15 – 20 tons.  Despite its large size, because the whale shark is a plankton eater /filter feeder, it poses absolutely no threat to humans. One of the reasons that Whale Sharks are such an draw on Utila is that its one of the few places in the world where a Whale Shark will frequently pass close to shore and can be seen year round.  To learn more about these magnificent creatures, click on on Whale Shark Viewing Page

Election Obervers

Election Observers Needed for upcoming presidential elections in Honduras!  These are paid positions for nationals, and expats/visitors are asked to help volunteer. For more information, click on image: