The very best port on our Exotic Western Caribbean cruise was Roatan, Honduras. To some extent, this was a self-fulfilling prophesy, because before we left home, we booked space on a terrific Princess excursion: "Canopy Adventure & Tabyana Beach with Lunch." At $104 per person, this is the most expensive shore excursion we've ever taken, but I'd have to say it was well worth it.
Princess brought us off the ship exactly on schedule, and after filling out some release forms, we hopped in a tour van and began winding up the mountainside to the Canopy Adventure. 
Fitted with helmets and harnesses, we zoomed through the jungle canopy on ziplines, enjoying fabulous views of the jungle all the way down through thirteen cable rides of 120 to 600 feet each, stopping at platforms along the way to change cables for the subsequent leg. The ride on the zipline is exhilarating enough just going straight and stopping yourself by pulling down on the cable as you approach the platforms, but the guides liked adding to the adventure by shaking the cable up and down or in a circular motion to make the zipliners bounce and spin. 
The views became increasingly more remarkable, with panoramic ocean views and, near the end, a river valley we crossed over.
Fitted with helmets and harnesses, we zoomed through the jungle canopy on ziplines, enjoying fabulous views of the jungle all the way down through thirteen cable rides of 120 to 600 feet each, stopping at platforms along the way to change cables for the subsequent leg. The ride on the zipline is exhilarating enough just going straight and stopping yourself by pulling down on the cable as you approach the platforms, but the guides liked adding to the adventure by shaking the cable up and down or in a circular motion to make the zipliners bounce and spin. 
The views became increasingly more remarkable, with panoramic ocean views and, near the end, a river valley we crossed over. 
Even though we didn't seem to be making much effort other than to stop at the platforms, by the time we reached the bottom, we all definitely felt like we had been exercising. We checked out the photos taken of us, bought some souvenirs, and then the tour van took us over to Tabyana Beach.Tabyana is everything you could want in a Caribbean beach. The wide and deep sandy area has plenty of lounge chairs and some hammocks. Refreshing iced tea, lemonade and water are included in the price of admission. Other drinks are available for extra charge. The warm, turquoise sea beckons with a beautiful coral reef a short distance from the shore. 
Going to the far left, where the craggy rocks jut out into the ocean, reveals a remarkably beautiful and diverse section of reef with many tropical fish to enjoy. In the mean time on shore, there's a great reggae band playing at an open air bar. After snorkeling for a couple of hours, we headed up to the included lunch, which was a barbecue buffet featuring hamburgers, hot dogs and assorted side dishes, all of which were delicious, but the star of the meal was the barbecued chicken, prepared in some kind of Caribbean jerk/barbecue sauce. We actually had hoped to get space on the $89 excursion without lunch, but I'm glad it was sold out. The lunch tasted great, and we were able to head out for some more snorkeling and beach time rather than rushing back to the ship.Our friends Linda, Mike, Dan, Joni, Tom and Moyra ended up doing essentially the same tour on their own, taking a taxi to an alternative zipline through the jungle and then to the beach next to Tabyana, stopping for lunch in between. This can be a great way to save money, especially when traveling with a small group.
Going to the far left, where the craggy rocks jut out into the ocean, reveals a remarkably beautiful and diverse section of reef with many tropical fish to enjoy. In the mean time on shore, there's a great reggae band playing at an open air bar. After snorkeling for a couple of hours, we headed up to the included lunch, which was a barbecue buffet featuring hamburgers, hot dogs and assorted side dishes, all of which were delicious, but the star of the meal was the barbecued chicken, prepared in some kind of Caribbean jerk/barbecue sauce. We actually had hoped to get space on the $89 excursion without lunch, but I'm glad it was sold out. The lunch tasted great, and we were able to head out for some more snorkeling and beach time rather than rushing back to the ship.Our friends Linda, Mike, Dan, Joni, Tom and Moyra ended up doing essentially the same tour on their own, taking a taxi to an alternative zipline through the jungle and then to the beach next to Tabyana, stopping for lunch in between. This can be a great way to save money, especially when traveling with a small group.
