Daniel Johnson's Monkey and Sloth Hang Out — Attraction in Roatán

Booked this in place of an expensive excursion while in port on a cruise ship. Our reservation included explicit emails with directions on where to go once off the boat. We followed them and found the Daniel Johnson team waiting with a large sign. Fair warning it looks fairly chaotic once out of the cruise port area but they were easy to find and they led us on a quick walk to where they park the vans. They grouped us together and pretty quickly we set off with our driver. We were in a group of 5 total in the van and our driver gave us a wonderful history of the island as we made our way. Once we arrived at the hangout (It is when you arrive here that you will pay your money in cash) we quickly were brought back to the animals and everyone got a chance to hold a sloth. It was amazing! From there we went into the monkey cage and they placed sunflower seeds on our heads and the monkeys went around jumping from person to person gathering the seeds. It all felt very safe and the monkeys never caused me to be afraid. This is very easy to wait just outside the cage and watch your friends if you don't want to participate. After that we went into a parrot cage and they placed a large macaw on each of our heads and you had photo opportunities. Again if you have any fear of birds you can wait right outside the cage and watch. Each cage was about 15 minutes of interaction time and felt like plenty of time. I had purchased the hangout, snorkeling, and beach time so we were then given fins and scuba gear and boarded a large barge style boat with benches on either side. We left pretty quickly and were taken out maybe 5 minutes away where we were given instructions on who to follow. The water was about 4 feet deep so most adults could easily stand. We saw some large lobsters, schools of fish, and other marine life. The coral wasn't colorful but I have no idea what is normal color for coral. The snorkeling was the highlight of my cruise. After snorkeling we were taken across a little bay (5 minute boat ride) to a little island to hang out on the beach. They had a bunch of lawn chairs, bathrooms, and a restaurant to order food and drinks. We ordered the chicken tenders, onion rings, and a drink and it was all very reasonable. The restaurant was called Brady's Cay if you want to look them up online. Our original driver met us there when we arrived and asked our original group of 5 what time we wanted to leave. We all agreed to get back to the boat we would leave at 3pm. At 3 we gathered our things and they called the barge over to get us and our driver was ready and waiting. It was fantastic and stress free all for 55 bucks a person. What a steal! I highly...

We visited the new location in November 2024 as part of a tour booked through Viator. There were various groups arriving by car and mini van. We were ahead if the busses from the ships. You can also arrive independently and pay on the spot. Verify hours and prices on their web site if you go this route.

Cages were fairly spacious and the “off duty” sloths were free to roam in the trees. Apparently there’s very little risk of them getting lost because 1) they move at sloth speed ;) and 2) when the business is closed someone stays overnight in the park to keep track of the sloths and put them back in the trees if they fall off.

During our morning visit, we were grouped with other visitors, about 10-12 in the group. We left the assembly area and walked past some large cages with monkeys that were not available for interaction for various reasons.

First we began in the Macaw cage with 4 beautifully colored birds of at least 2 species; these flew around and hopped on people’s heads.

Next our group went to the sloth area (not a cage) and the sloth keeper put a sloth around each person’s neck for several minutes while your companions took photos. Very cute & cool. While that was occurring our group guide told us about the sloths.

Finally our guide led us to the Capuchin monkey cage. We had to leave EVERYTHING in a licker just outside the monkey cage so they wouldn’t take things from pockets etc . Then we entered the cafe with another group. The 2 groups formed separate semicircles and the monkeys came down to investigate us. Done were enticed down with treats but once 1 monkey was checking us out the others cane to see what was happening.

There were rest rooms in our way out if the facility (before the gift shop) and we were advised to wash our hands before leaving. Good advice after interacting with animals.

4 stars because, even though the animals all seem well cared for and most of the staff have worked with them for several years, I still gave qualms about captive animal encounters because I can’t really know if the animals enjoy it as much ad being free. I appreciate that Daniel Johnson’s obtained most of the animals in their care from rescue or confiscation sbd they probably would not be able to return to their wild state....

I found out about this via Youtube and my best advice is to skip the cruise-led excursions! Daniel Johnson's monkey/sloth hangout is the best! They provided sufficient instructions on where and how to find our driver and when it was over we were dropped even closer to our ship than where we found them.

We were lucky enough to get Luke Johnson as our tour guide and he is an amazing guy! Hes a gentleman and just a sweetheart! Overall he was very accommodating and knowledgeable. He gave us very useful and interesting information to help us go about our vacation day. He was patient with my friend and me, and I now know more about the island, the people, the culture, the food, the history, I could go on. If i were to return to Roatan I'd feel at home just from the warm experience that Luke Johnson provided.

The sloth hangout is his family's business and you could tell from the way they interact with each other that they're family. They were very welcoming and inviting, and very pleasant. I didn't feel hard-pressed or pressured to participate in extra services or buy a gift from their merchandise table like I did the following day in Mexico. At the monkey/sloth hangout everyone was easy-going and very nice. I enjoyed holding a sloth! Something about it nearly brought me to tears. The sloths are calm and gentle, very opposite from the monkeys who are young, hyper, and fun! I elected to do zip-lining as a part of my package, which I will review separately but switching over to the other event was done seamlessly and safely. I can speak for my friend and I when I say this event was the highlight of our ENTIRE CRUISE! I have nothing negative to say! It was a great vacation experience and an even greater life experience that I will never forget! IF you can't deicde on what activities to do in Roatan and have read this whole review let me tell you that you will get well worth your money and even more! There is no comparison just go ahead and book (i'd advise to do it online in advance so you have all the instructions, also they do not accept card, have your cash in hand and be prepared to have little animals jumping on you so don't wear anything too fancy or that has a lot of dangling or...