Roatan Banking Alternatives

Do You Need to Figure Out What Your Roatan Banking Alternatives Are?

There are many Roatan Banking Alternatives! I remember when I first visited the island many years ago (23 to be exact) and there were only two banks on the island. For one, this meant huge lines for whatever you needed to do in the bank! It was a frustrating experience! The sustained economic growth of Roatan has attracted all the different banks in Honduras. Yes, this means that there will be bank close to you. Well almost! But the lines will not be as bad as they used to be!

Roatan is a bilingual community and many bank tellers understand and even speak English. This makes Roatan Banking alternatives much easier than on the rest of Honduras. Especially if you do not speak Spanish! There are plenty of ATM machines throughout the island. Most in areas that are most frequented by tourists. For example, there are no bank offices in West End and West Bay, but there are several different ATM machines in these communities.

Many banks from the US and EU generally have the credit cards with restricted for use in third World countries. This situation includes Honduras. As such it is a good idea to let your bank know that you will be traveling to Honduras. This way they are aware that you will be using your credit card. Nothing more embarrassing that pulling out your credit card to pay and finding that the system rejects your card!

ATM Machines in Roatan

If you do need to visit the bank for a transaction that you can’t solve at the ATM, consider the following. Honduras law provides for special attention to senior citizens. One of the benefits are special fast lane tellers for senior citizens. If you are 60 or older, you are entitled to this special treatment. So when you walk into a bank and get your ticket, make sure you use the “Tercera Edad” or “3a Edad” ticket. This could save you lots of time at the bank!

Over the years, the Honduran banking system has consolidated, resulting in fewer banks. This means that most banks in the system are solid and have offices throughout Honduras. As a general rule, Banco Atlantida and Banco de Occidente are solid conservative banks. All bank accounts in Honduras have an insurance that guarantees that your deposits of up to 10,000 dollars are safe.

A good way to reduce any risk, which is minimal, is to have no more than ten thousand dollars in an account. If you need to have more money, spread it around in the different banks! This way your money and savings within the Honduras Banking system will always be 100% safe!

Transferring funds from US banks to Honduras banks is easy and efficient. As a general rule, you will have funds wired from a US bank to your Honduran bank the same day. Keep in mind that the Honduras banking system can get suspicious of your transfers if they are large sums of money. If you keep your wire transfer to ten thousand dollars or less, they will not bother you.