Barefoot Cay

We took out boat to the marina there. Barefoot Cay, Roatan, Honduras: How do I love thee, let me count the ways! First and foremost, you have enough water! My dear “Vacatio,” with her eight foot draft is unwelcome in SO MANY marinas. But you had deep water all the way to the dock. Second, your easy approach: in through Brick Bay, a sharp right turn next to a scary reef breakwater, and then a left into your channel or your superyacht dock. Third, your spotlessly clean and well-maintained facilities: Your beautiful SHADED pool. Your spotless, deadbolt-secured bathrooms. The delicious food in the “Azure” restaurant. And probably most important, your incredibly friendly, service-focused staff, from whom I never heard the word “no,” only, at worst, “I’ll have to find out about that.” I gotta confess, I found the per-item prices for the laundry service to be somewhat extreme, and the metered power and water felt a little . . . nickle-and-dime-y. But everything was top notch and I can’t really complain about the prices. Especially the dockage. But back to the approach and dockage. The approach is northwest-ish into Brick Bay. I read quite a few warnings: “do not attempt this at night” and “this entrance can be tricky sometimes” and even “charts around here can be off as much as 200 yards.” Well, we had no problems. Our Garmin/Navionics charts seemed to be 100% accurate, and I even had a track uploaded by an anonymous Active Captain member that took me almost all the way to the dock. We did it in daylight and with a 25 knot easterly blowing. That brings me to the protection we had at the dock. Barefoot Cay is (mostly) on a tiny island off of the south coast of Roatan. The channel is maybe 25’ wide. So the Marina is protected from the north by Roatan. From the east and south, most of Barefoot Cay is between you and the Caribbean. Your only exposure is from the west. If you get a westerly, which we did not the entire time we were there, there is only a half-mile fetch into the mega-yacht dock. If you are in one of the smaller berths, there is no exposure at all. We very rarely noticed some mild rocking during the two weeks we were there in June. In short, this is one comfortable dock. Water and power are both metered, and they MEAN it. They read the meter and gave me a picture. They they read it after we departed and sent me ANOTHER picture, and I was billed accordingly. It wasn’t too painful. We just used our watermaker, so I can’t comment on the price of water. In particular we would like to call out Kizzie in the main office, and Leo in the restaurant for excellent, friendly service. If it weren’t for the occasional hurricane, we would have spent storm season with them. They claim a fuel dock, and that’s a bit of an exaggeration. The fuel dock is actually a BiP station nearby, and it is not manned full-time. You have to make an appointment. Kizzie handled all of that for us, and it’s a good thing, because the gentleman manning the dock, friendly and as helpful as they could be, didn’t have much English. But I spoke “dinero” and they spoke “diesel,” so we got along fine. If you have an 8’ draft, the trip to the fuel dock can be a bit fraught. I got stuck twice. Both times because my attention wandered and I drifted outside of the Active Captain track I was following.

I just returned from an incredible stay at Barefoot Cay in Roatán, and I can confidently say it deserves a full 5 stars across the board. Every part of the experience—from the accommodations to the diving—was exceptional and far exceeded my expectations. The resort itself is stunning. Extremely quiet, beautifully maintained, clean, and designed for true relaxation. It strikes that rare balance of feeling intimate and private while still offering every comfort you could want. It is located close to the airport. The staff made the experience even better: warm, attentive, and consistently going above and beyond without ever feeling intrusive. The diving was the highlight of my trip. The operation is smooth, professional, and clearly run by people who love what they do. Boats were well‑organized, the crew was fantastic, and every dive felt effortless. The sites around Roatán are vibrant, healthy, and full of life—exactly what you hope for in a Caribbean dive trip. Food, service, and amenities were all excellent. Meals were fresh and flavorful, the atmosphere was relaxed, and everything ran with a level of care that made the entire stay feel seamless. After many dive trips over the years, Barefoot Cay stands out as one of the best experiences I’ve had. I thoroughly enjoyed everything about my stay and would return in a heartbeat. Five stars without hesitation.

We loved this hotel. The setting is so beautiful. The rooms are spacious and well set, even with a personal pool. We spent time with friends bathing in the ocean, kayaking and scuba diving. We even had a yoga class and massage in the perfect setting on a kiosk over the ocean. The restaurant has wonderful food. The home made ice cream is so good I had it every night! I surely recommend staying at Barefoot Cay if you art looking for a relaxed vacation in a beautiful place!

The place is just the right one to relax, eat well and rest, but also the right one to practice many hobbies and activities. You can pretty much not leave the hotel in four days and still have pending things to do.

We have enjoyed staying on this property many times a year for many years. Every time, the service and hospitality are beyond excellent. They are truly our Honduran family and we look forward to seeing them again soon.