Hostal Buena Onda — Hotel in Cartagena

There are some hostels that simply serve as a place to stay then there are hostels that introduce life long friendships and memories that last a lifetime. Which is what I found at Buena Onda. It's a hostel, not a hotel. I stayed in the dorms and looked forward to waking up each morning to have a cup of coffee (free), make breakfast and chat with fellow travelers to see what was on the day's agenda. Having a kitchen is a life saver (and money saver) which includes your own tupperware to store food and space in the fridge. The owner, Sophie, is the BEST! She's at least tri-lingual if not more and is more than happy to share the dos and the don'ts of the island. She's well traveled and well connected in Roatan with a free spirit and heart of gold. The bathrooms were always clean, the dorms swept with beds made daily. There are games to play inside/outside and movies to be had on a projector upstairs on the balcony or inside the cozy shared space. Def hang in the hammocks on the balcony and enjoy the chill vibe that it offers. As well, the hostel is next door to a gas station that has one of the only 3 safe ATMs to get cash, hot food all day/night, and a fruit stand, bakery and chocolate factory just across the street. The beach is just a short walk down the road yet the hostel is out of the hustle bustle of the main road of West End along the beach. The space is safe, has lockers to lock away your treasures and is quiet at night. I would most certainly stay there again if my path takes me back to Roatan. The space is SO affordable and for only $1/day more, you get unlimited supply to bottled drinking water. A true treasure! If you're going to Roatan and need an affordable, safe, loving space to call home while on the island, look...

The location was good, enough away from the busy parking and the chaotic place in the beginning. We didn't find that much information about going there and back. We took the taxi there and boat back. Boat was by far the best option. 25 000 pesos / person by boat and 80 000 pesos for a taxi. It's really a basic hostel, don't think anything else. You got limited water for the shower and you got electricity between 6.30 pm and 6.30 am. But they were honest with that in the booking and the water was enough to shower. You can't flush the toilet so you have to pour in water but that worked for us as well. The hostel have a tour partner for day trips that was really good so you don't have to book anything in advance. The owner and Eddie was really nice and helpful!||||- Be prepared for a LOT of vendors going up and down the beach. It's really nice in the morning when the people going on day trips haven't arrived yet or the vendors. The water is nice and the beach is perfect. The food was not good, everything no the menu tasted like fish (that is the main thing on all menus). None of us slept good during the night but for just one night that worked fine and was really worth it the day after. There is A LOT of hostels on the beach but we just saw maybe two that looked better...

Offers bedrooms a cut above hammock accommodation in a nice location and with very friendly caretakers. The best two rooms are the ones upstairs with balconies on the beach, others more gloomy. Beds come with mosquito netting. Toilets and drip showers were clean. I stayed 5 nights and enjoyed sit-on-top kayaking with a rental further down the beach and visiting the nearby new and well-designed Aviario Nacional (where one absolutely needs insect repellent). Nice snorkelng above coral just in front; the coral looks dead (no colors) but still has beautiful fish. Choice of restaurants nearby, also in evening when most day trippers from Cartagena have left and quiet returns. I got there by shared taxi from Cartagena (20 KCOP) plus a hairy motor ride (20 KCOP) over mud trails behing the beach, returned with hail-down 06:00 am boat to Cartagena (17 KCOP) directly from the hostal. Main nuisance is the noise from waterscooters and their getting too close to swimmers. The sellers wandering the beach are no problem. Power only at night (06:00 pm - 06:00 am). The first floor had a very nice desk...