Forwarded:
Tropical Pathways Newsletter
Do the hotels and airlines know something you don't?
Not if you're one of the select group who will travel to Roatan and
Utila on June 19th.
Recently, well known magazines -- Conde Nast Traveler, Caribbean
Travel & Life, Rodale's Scuba Diving, and Sources -- have featured
the Bay Islands in the Western Caribbean just off the coast of
Honduras. Roatan and Utila, the two most popular islands in the
group, are often written about and photographed because they're world
class scuba destinations. But lately, the buzz has been about new
hotels and major airlines ... rumors are even circulating about a
golf course (watch this space for developing news).
Conde Nast Traveler was the first to write about the prestigous
Rosewood group's plans for a five star resort and development at
Caribbean Point Bight on Roatan. Rosewood, in partnership with a
Canadian consortium, is now in talks with the number one island real
estate company for exclusive representation.
Kempinski's Turtle Bay Resort on Guanaja, a largely undeveloped
member of the Bay Islands, seems to be heating up ... and Park Hyatt
has signed a young award winning Miami architect for their projected,
ecologically sensitive, Roatan resort. Even Wyndham (according to
local word of mouth) is considering building one of their popular
Viva Resort Condo projects here.
What lends credibility to the above? Continental Airlines begins once
per week non-stop roundtrip service from Houston to Roatan on June
12th. And US Air recently announced they're considering once per week
non-stop roundtrip service from Charlotte beginning this fall.
Continental and US Air will join TACA and Sol Air providing direct
flights from the United States to this 39 square mile island. Major
airlines do not make this kind of commitment unless they believe
there's a passenger base to fill their planes ... and sufficient
hotel beds to house them. The airlines clearly find Rosewood,
Kempinski, Hyatt, and Wyndham credible, and to their liking. They
also appreciate the resorts, small hotels, private rental homes and
villas already here, or they wouldn't come.
Before I go any further, let me answer two questions I'm sure you
probably have. Will the Bay Islands remain unique and untouched when
major resorts are built? Yes ... and no.
When you visit Roatan (where most of the resort/development activity
is planned), you'll see what I mean. The island is long and narrow
with a jungled low-lying mountain range down its center. Only one
paved road runs three-quarters of its length -- many fishing villages
are reachable only by water, path or dirt road. In other words, you
can be as isolated, or population centered, as you wish - there could
be ten such resorts on the island and you wouldn't know it unless you
choose to live in one of their tasteful, upscale developments.
But will it remain completely untouched? Absolutely not. You'll have
state of the arts communications and connections to the outside
world. Currently, there are two Internet servers on Roatan with one
telephone company, and one cell phone provider. Both of the Internet
companies are improving their bandwidth and service reliability --
they're in competition for the planned resort business. A second
telephone business recently began running lines, and another cell
phone outfit is setting up shop -- competition is healthy and only
helps us, the consumers.
My guess is your second question might be can you still buy land
with, or without, a home reasonably? The answer to that is a
resounding YES!
You won't find Caymans, Bahamas, St. Martin or Virgin Islands prices
here. On Roatan, you can still buy ocean view property from $25,000.
Land, within a few minutes walk to nearly deserted white sand beaches
costs $35,000. Want something larger, say a few acres up to 20 or
more? You can find properties priced for as little as $10,000 per
acre. Remember, everything is "asking" -- negotiation is expected.
You have your choice of native wood built homes on stilts (enjoying
the constant Caribbean tradewids), to grand stucco mansions complete
with pools and private docks -- your selection will cost roughly
anywhere from $100,000 to $1,000,000. In the Caymans, Bahamas, St.
Martin and Virgin Islands? Minimum $200,000 (if you can find anything
in a decent area) to $10,000,000, and more, for the exact same homes,
but without the ambianceof the Bay Islands.
And here's a question you didn't ask ... is Bay Islands life for me?
I can't answer this one ... but I can tell you that no, it's not for
everyone. And that's the good news.
You won't find people here who want to "one-up" the Joneses ... who
need Neiman-Marcus, Tiffany's, and Armani down the block ... or who
expect a Mercedes to navigate the fishing villages (Nissan and Toyota
are the vehicles of choice). What you will find are incredibly warm
and accepting islanders, a melting pot of cultures, amazing natural
beauty, and a relaxed way of life.
If this works for you, I hope you'll allow us to show you one of my
favorite places in the world. I'd like you to meet my friends and
business associates, to show you why I lived here for over five
years, and proudly called it home.
I'll hope to meet you on our trip to Roatan and Utila June 19 to 26.
Please call me at (830) 980-5936, or e-mail us at
info.....com for your reservation and further
information. We're here to answer your questions, and help however we
can.
Warm regards,
Lyle Burke, President
Tropical Pathways
Web site: www.tropicalpathways.com
P.S. I'm very happy to announce our upcoming Bay Islands tour will
include a day and overnight in Utila (an extra bonus). It's a special
place that almost defies description. Think tiny cays
(pronounced "keys") with sparkling white sand beaches ... and no foot
prints, except yours ... Utila town (on the main island) is like
something out of a movie with no cars, Caribbean colored gingerbread
houses ... almost forgot the grizzled guy with the macaw on his
shoulder (I'm not making this up). See you soon!
To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/travel-to-honduras/
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