The ferry to Roatán, and whether you should take it
There are two ferry companies, four crossings a day in each direction between La Ceiba and Roatán, and a ninety-minute ride across open water. There are also several small planes doing the same trip in under half an hour. Most pages about this tell you the schedule. This one starts with the question you actually have: which one should you take.
Fly or sail: the honest comparison
⛴️ By ferry
- 1 h 30 across 68 km / 42 miles of open water, usually a little rougher after midday
- about US$31 one way, adult, regular class
- 4 crossings a day each way, two operators
- you can take real luggage without paying for it
- you arrive at Dixon Cove, not the airport
✈️ By air
- under 30 minutes in the air
- 7 movements between RTB and La Ceiba on 2026-09-13, that day all flown by Aerolineas Sosa
- the route is served by Aerolíneas Sosa and CM Airlines; which of them flies on a given day varies
- on a BAe Jetstream 32, a 19-seat turboprop
- strict baggage limits on an aircraft that size
- you land at Roatán airport
The real trade is not time, it is tolerance. Ninety minutes on a boat that crosses open sea is not the same ninety minutes for everyone, and a nineteen-seat turboprop in Caribbean afternoon weather is not the same twenty-five minutes for everyone either. Pick the one whose bad day you would rather have.
The flight count above is not an estimate: it comes from our own airport page, which reads the day's movements at RTB. The figure shown is for 2026-09-13, and it is a count of that day, not a timetable. Both carriers fly this route, and the split between them changes; check the airport page for the day you are actually travelling.
How rough it gets, and why the morning is the better bet
Here is the part the operators do not put on their websites, and the booking aggregators cannot know. It depends mostly on the wind, on its strength and its direction, and that is the only honest answer. That said, as a rule, the afternoon is a little rougher than the morning. And when it is rough it is not merely uncomfortable: people are sick. I live here and I have made this trip.
Which is why the useful advice is a time, not a pill. There is a morning sailing in each direction, every day, with both operators. Toward Roatán they both leave La Ceiba at 9:30 a.m. Toward the mainland, Dream Ferries leaves Roatán at 6:30 a.m. and Galaxy Wave at 7:00 a.m. If you have any doubt about how you handle boats, book one of those and build your day around it rather than the other way round.
And if the afternoon sailing is your only option, that is a real argument for flying instead: twenty-five minutes of turbulence beats ninety minutes of swell for most people, and the comparison above is what that choice actually looks like.
Which of the two boats to take
On La Ceiba to Roatán, the two companies run the same crossing at much the same hours. Between them, Dream Ferries has the newer and more comfortable boats, and it is the one I take. That is not a ranking and not a partnership: it is one resident’s preference, as of 14 September 2026.
The choice only exists on that route. Guanaja is served by Galaxy Wave alone, Útila by Dream Ferries alone. Comfort is not a decision you get to make on either.
Booking ahead, and what you can bring
In high season the sailings fill up. From December through April, and during holiday weeks, turning up at the dock without a ticket is a gamble. The rest of the year it is far quieter.
On luggage there is no practical limit and no excess fee. That is the ferry’s real advantage over flying: the local flights are operated with small aircraft, where the allowance is tight and billed quickly. If you are coming for several weeks, or with dive gear, the boat costs less than it looks.
On arrival, the Dixon Cove dock is about twenty minutes from most hotels in West End and West Bay. Taxis meet every arrival; agree the fare before you get in, which is the local custom. I do not sell that transfer.
Where to buy tickets
Both companies sell direct, and neither shows up in the big travel sites. Utila Dream ferry tickets and the Roatán sailings are on Dream Ferries; Galaxy Wave sells its own.
The two operators
Tickets are bought direct, on their own sites. Neither sells through a booking engine.
Galaxy Wave La Ceiba · Roatán · Guanaja Schedules and booking Official site 
Dream Ferries La Ceiba · Roatán · Útila Schedules and booking Official site We do not sell these tickets and earn nothing on them. These links go to the operators’ own sites.
Galaxy Wave asks you to check in at the terminal one hour before departure, which is the detail that catches people out.
How far it actually is
Neither operator publishes this, and nor do the booking sites. Port to port, La Ceiba to Roatán is about 68 km, or 42 miles, which is 37 nautical miles, measured in a straight line between the Muelle de Cabotaje in La Ceiba and the dock at Dixon Cove. The vessel's actual track is a little longer, since it has to leave and enter two harbours.
That figure is worth having for one reason: it checks out against the timetable. Sixty-eight kilometres in ninety minutes is twenty-four knots, which is exactly what a fast catamaran does. The distance and the published crossing time agree, so you can trust both.
Where the two terminals are
Both companies leave from the same stretch of coast on the south side of the island, and their two terminals are 111 metres apart. That is close enough to walk between by accident, and far enough to board the wrong boat if you are in a hurry. Check the name on your ticket, not the building. Both docks are at Dixon Cove, on the south coast between Coxen Hole and French Harbour; the map below shows exactly where each one sits.
The two ferry terminals, 111 m apart
Roatán ferry terminals
Galaxy Wave 16.32865, -86.50013 · Dream Ferries 16.32817, -86.50104 · Bip Bites gas station 16.32930, -86.50327
The map loads only if you ask for it.
Galaxy Wave 16.32865, -86.50013 · Dream Ferries 16.32817, -86.50104 · Bip Bites gas station 16.32930, -86.50327 · Points placed on Esri satellite imagery, 14 September 2026, at each terminal entrance on the car-park side Open in Google Maps: Galaxy Wave · Dream Ferries · Bip Bites gas station Satellite imagery: Esri,
Maxar, Earthstar Geographics. Base map and place names: OpenStreetMap, ODbL.
How to reach Roatán, Útila, Guanaja and La Ceiba
The four places are connected by the same two companies, but not in the same way, and that is the part nobody lays out. Read on 2026-09-14:
- Roatán Galaxy Wave ferry to and from Guanaja, La Ceiba. Dream Ferries to and from La Ceiba, Útila.
- Útila Dream Ferries to and from La Ceiba, Roatán.
- Guanaja Galaxy Wave ferry to and from La Ceiba, Roatán.
- La Ceiba Galaxy Wave ferry to and from Guanaja, Roatán. Dream Ferries to and from Roatán, Útila.
The La Ceiba to Roatán ferry is the one most people mean, and it is the busiest: four sailings a day between the two companies. Beyond it, the ferry from Roatán to Útila and the ferry from Útila to Roatán both exist and both run once a day with Dream Ferries. The la Ceiba to Utila ferry runs twice a day. The ferry from Roatán to Guanaja is the odd one out, three days a week and Galaxy Wave only. And the return, the ferry Roatán to La Ceiba, leaves at 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. — the calm ones.
La Ceiba is the hinge. Every route touches it, which is why a crossing between two islands sometimes goes through the mainland and takes a morning rather than an hour.
⚠️ One trap, and it is in Galaxy Wave’s own paperwork. Their fare table lists Útila routes, but Galaxy Wave does not sail to Útila. Their published schedule never mentions it, and that matches what happens on the water. Útila is Dream Ferries. If you saw an Útila price on the Galaxy Wave site, it does not mean there is a Galaxy Wave boat.
How often it actually runs
This is the question people ask in forums and nobody answers plainly, because each operator only talks about itself. Put together, there are four crossings a day in each direction between La Ceiba and Roatán: two with Galaxy Wave, two with Dream Ferries. Nothing runs hourly. Miss one and you usually lose half a day, which is why the schedule below matters more than it looks.
Roatán ferry schedules, read today
⚖️ These are read automatically from each operator's own website, not copied by hand. Last read on 2026-09-14. Ferry times change, sailings get cancelled for weather, and a page that freezes a timetable becomes a liability. Always confirm on the operator's site before you travel.
Galaxy Wave ferry schedule: La Ceiba, Roatán and Guanaja
- Roatán → La Ceiba : 7:00 a.m. · 2:00 p.m.
- La Ceiba → Roatán : 9:30 a.m. · 4:30 p.m.
- La Ceiba → Guanaja via Roatán : Fridays and Saturdays: 9:30 a.m.
- Roatán → Guanaja : Fridays: 12:00 p.m. - Saturdays: 4:00 p.m.
- Guanaja → La Ceiba via Roatán : Saturdays and Sundays: 8:30 a.m.
Utila Dream ferry schedule: La Ceiba, Roatán and Útila
- Roatan – La Ceiba: 6:30 am → 8:00 am (1h 30min) Roatam Dream
- Roatan – La Ceiba: 1:00 pm → 2:30 pm (1h 30min) Roatam Dream
- La Ceiba – Roatan: 9:30 am → 11:00 am (1h 30min) Roatam Dream
- La Ceiba – Roatan: 3:00 pm → 4:30 pm (1h 30min) Roatam Dream
- Utila – La Ceiba: 7:00 am → 8:00 am (1 hr) Utila Dream
- Utila – La Ceiba: 3:20 pm → 4:20 pm (1 hr) Utila Dream
- La Ceiba – Utila: 9:00 am → 10:00 am (1 hr) Utila Dream
- La Ceiba – Utila: 4:30 pm → 5:30 pm (1 hr) Utila Dream
- Utila – Roatan: 10:20 am → 11:30 am (1 hr) Utila Dream
- Roatan – Utila: 2:00 pm → 3:00 pm (1 hr) Utila Dream
- Roatan – Utila escala en La Ceiba: 6:30 am → 10:00 am (1 hr)
- Roatan – La Ceiba escala en Utila: 2:00 pm → 4:15 pm (15 min)
Dream Ferries, official site. utilaferry.com redirects to the same company, so it is not a third operator.
Fares
One-way adult fares, read from Galaxy Wave's own fare table on 2026-09-14. Round-trip tickets exist and cost less than two singles; we do not list them here because the operator's table does not tie them to a named route, and we are not going to guess.
All 24 one-way fares, by route and class
| Route | Class | Adult | Child 5–10 | 60+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roatán - La Ceiba | Regular Class | US$30.00 | US$12.00 | US$18.00 |
| La Ceiba - Roatán | Regular Class | US$31.00 | US$13.00 | US$19.00 |
| Roatán - La Ceiba | First Class | US$31.00 | US$13.00 | US$19.00 |
| La Ceiba - Roatán | First Class | US$35.00 | US$17.00 | US$23.00 |
| La Ceiba - Guanaja | Regular Class | US$56.00 | US$29.00 | US$42.00 |
| Guanaja - La Ceiba | Regular Class | US$55.00 | US$28.00 | US$41.00 |
| La Ceiba - Guanaja | First Class | US$60.00 | US$33.00 | US$46.00 |
| Guanaja - La Ceiba | First Class | US$59.00 | US$32.00 | US$45.00 |
| ROATAN - Guanaja | Regular Class | US$35.00 | US$18.00 | US$26.00 |
| Guanaja - ROATAN | Regular Class | US$35.00 | US$18.00 | US$27.00 |
| ROATAN - Guanaja | First Class | US$39.00 | US$22.00 | US$30.00 |
| Guanaja - ROATAN | First Class | US$39.00 | US$22.00 | US$31.00 |
| Guanaja - Útila | Regular Class | US$40.00 | US$20.00 | US$28.00 |
| Útila - Guanaja | Regular Class | US$40.00 | US$20.00 | US$28.00 |
| Guanaja - Útila | First Class | US$44.00 | US$24.00 | US$32.00 |
| Útila - Guanaja | First Class | US$44.00 | US$24.00 | US$32.00 |
| La Ceiba - Útila | Regular Class | US$24.00 | US$12.00 | US$17.00 |
| Útila - La Ceiba | Regular Class | US$24.00 | US$12.00 | US$17.00 |
| La Ceiba - Útila | First Class | US$29.00 | US$16.00 | US$21.00 |
| Útila - La Ceiba | First Class | US$28.00 | US$16.00 | US$21.00 |
| Roatán - Útila | Regular Class | US$24.00 | US$12.00 | US$18.00 |
| Útila - Roatán | Regular Class | US$24.00 | US$12.00 | US$18.00 |
| Roatán - Útila | First Class | US$28.00 | US$16.00 | US$22.00 |
| Útila - Roatán | First Class | US$28.00 | US$16.00 | US$22.00 |
Children under 5 travel free on every route in that table.
Getting to the ferry from San Pedro Sula
The other question forums keep asking, and it usually starts from a false premise. There is no ferry from San Pedro Sula to Roatán. There never was: San Pedro Sula is inland. Every boat leaves from La Ceiba, and most international arrivals land at San Pedro Sula, which is a road trip away. The ferry company does not organise that leg, and the booking aggregators sell you the crossing without mentioning it.
The two sailings leave La Ceiba at 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. with Galaxy Wave, and the terminal asks you to check in one hour before departure. Work backwards from that, not from the sailing time. If you would rather not improvise it, write to us. Arranging private ground transport is something we do, and we would rather tell you honestly whether it is worth it than sell you a transfer you do not need.
The crossings people look for that do not exist
Three searches come up often enough to deserve a straight answer, and the answer is the same for all three: no.
- Belize City to Roatán ferry: there is none. That water is open Caribbean, not a channel. Tropic Air flies it instead, and our airport page shows those arrivals.
- Cancún to Roatán ferry: there is none either, and the distance makes it unlikely there ever will be. It is a flight, with a connection.
- Car ferry to Roatán: the passenger boats do not take private vehicles. Cargo reaches the island another way. Rent on the island instead.
Roatán to Utila, and why people think it does not exist
There is a direct crossing, but only Dream Ferries runs it, and only once a day in each direction. Galaxy Wave does not serve that route at all. Anyone who checks the better-known operator first concludes there is no direct boat and books two legs through La Ceiba, which the same company also sells as a stopover routing. Both appear in the schedule above.
Arriving by sea is still arriving in Honduras
If the ferry is how you enter the country, the paperwork is the same as if you had flown. The Honduran customs declaration asks for your means of transport and lists Marítimo beside air and land, and it is filed both on the way in and on the way out. Which form you need, and which one you do not. There are two, and only one is required.
Once you are on the island
The ferry docks at Dixon Cove, not at the airport, so a transfer booked against a flight number will not be waiting for you. The Roatán guide covers the island and its areas, the airport page carries today's flights if you end up flying after all, and our guided excursions run from both sides of the island.