An Unexpected Visit to Danli

I have long been planning a trip to Danli. It is a great destination and there is not much information about this city. Two weeks ago, I ended up there for a few days in an unexpected visit to Danli. As it turns out, I was on a homeward bound journey from Mexico City to La Ceiba. Since Honduras had closed the airports, and the only border I could reach was through Nicaragua, I flew to Managua and then traveled to the Las Manos Border. From there, the closest large city is Danli.

Although Danli is not the capital city of El Paraiso, it is undisputedly the most important. The capital city of El Paraiso is Yuscaran, one of my favorite towns in Honduras. El Paraiso is an important agricultural hub in Honduras. Its mountainous terrain is ideal for coffee growing. But in addition to coffee, tobacco is also a very important crop in the area. In this sense, Danli has similarities with Santa Rosa de Copan. You can say that if Santa Rosa de Copan is the Coffee Capital in Honduras, Danli is the Tobacco Capital in Honduras. There are many tobacco plantations and cigar factories in Danli and surroundings. Unfortunately, during my recent unexpected visit to Danli, I was not able to visit any of them, because they were all closed. This due to the total shutdown that is currently in place in Honduras.[themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”1″ border_width=”1″]

I was pretty much in isolation during by four nights in Danli. However, I needed to get some cash for my trip back home. I was lucky that on Thursdays senior citizens could to go to the bank. Taking advantage of my benefits as a senior citizen, I took off for my bank. Because of the lockdown, there were no taxis available in town. So, I asked for directions and went on a stroll to the bank. There was a nearby shopping center where I could find an ATM machines, so off went, only to find out that it was out of order. I had no choice than to walk into town. I was staying at the Hotel Granada in Danli, which is on the outskirts of town. Danli is relatively small, and it was an easy hike to the bank, despite the fact that it being uphill.[themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”1″ border_width=”1″]

I took advantage to walk to the central park. I find that parks in old colonial cities are always interesting. The park was very quiet, as only senior citizens where out that day. The park is well kept with a nice church on one side.  and an old colonial building that acts as a museum on the opposite end of the park. The hike also took me past some cigar facilities along the way, including one that was just next to the Hotel Granada. My short, unexpected visit to Danli only made me want to go back to this town and explore the new boutique hotels and the cigar shops in town.[themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”1″ border_width=”1″]

Locals refer to Danli as the “City of the Hills”, in Spanish, La Ciudad de Las Colinas. They hold an important event every year knows as the “Corn Festival”. I believe I will plan on a trip to Danli during that time and explore it at my own pace. In the meantime, I do want to thank all the people in Danli for their hospitality during my recent trip there, I promise I will be back and explore it to share with our readers at Hondurastravel.com!