Hello,
If our plane arrives at 1:30 pm do you think that we would have enough time to catch a 2:45 bus to Ceiba? How long does it usually take to get through customs? Thanks

You'll be fine if you have flight reservations in advance and travel with only carry-ons. Customs only takes a few minutes if you don't have to wait for luggage. If you have checked luggage you'll have to wait for that and by the time it shows up the lines will be really long.

Have a great trip! Here's a link to our photos if you're interested:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/staceyholeman/collections

Hopeful,
I was inquiring about the buses but maybe a flight would be a better option. What do you think? We would like to make the most of our time but it looks like we will be waiting for a flight or a bus. Which do you prefer? What do you feel is the safest? Thanks

Oops, I see that now. About the bus - I've made a similar connection to the Hedman station to head to Copán. There's a 1:30 shuttle (which you are unlikely to make) and a 2:15 shuttle they say will connect with the La Ceiba bus; if you buy tickets straight through to La Ceiba at the airport you should be fine. Taxis wait just outside the airport for customers and could take you to the station if you prefer.

Bus or flight is a personal choice; I guess if the money wasn't an issue I'd choose the plane. The bus ride isn't especially scenic, I've heard, and takes about 3 hours. You'd also have the added hassle of getting to the station which isn't the greatest place for waiting and you'd get to La Ceiba just as it was getting dark. If you flew you'd still have daylight hours left. I think the flight costs $75 or $80 one way.

I think the flight and the Hedman bus are both safe choices but I might give the flight an edge for feeling safer since you wouldn't have to spend time in bus stations on either end. Hope that helps!

Hopeful,
I would prefer to fly since we wouldn't have to transfer to the bus station. Our flight gets in at 1:30 so from the information I have gathered we will have to wait until 4:30 for a flight. A long time in the airport but I guess there is no easy way. Which airline do you usually use within Honduras? Same thing coming home, it looks like we will have a long wait at the airport.
Would you feel comfortable traveling from the Ceiba area to the airport in a taxi? Do you think that would be safe. I hope that you don't mind all of these questions as I have a lot.

Check out Charlie Meador's Coco Pando site - good links to the airline sites there. We use whichever airline has a schedule that fits our needs. The prices are the same/very close and the safety reps seem good. You can't trust the times, though, since Honduras is in CA.

Check out the websites and see if there's an earlier flight and try to book on line. I thought there were mid afternoon offerings. We didn't make them and couldn't get a seat on a late afternoon flight so had to kill time in the airport from after 1:00 to until almost 10 pm. We made a point of chatting with the locals and ended up getting a sincere invitation to stay with a very nice Garifuna woman that, unfortunately, we couldn't accept due to reservations.

The taxis aren't well cared for and the drivers like to get where they're going FAST, but overall the taxis are safe. Where will you be coming from when you head back to the airport?

Thanks again for your help. We are flying from Newark arriving around 1:30 pm. We are also leaving from SAP and our flight is at 2:30. I will check out Charlie's site. I had read that it's safer to take the bus or fly then to transfer by car. What do you think?
I am also toying with the idea of flying into Roatan and out of SAP. We would have to leave a day later though and it's not direct.

I didn't get it that you were wondering about going from La Ceiba to the SAP airport. If that's the case I agree that busing or flying are much better options.

"Open jaw" flights can be a great option but not at the expense of a poor schedule. Keep me posted!

Hopeful,
Yes, it's actually on arrival and departure that we are going to have to wait for hours at the airport. I was hoping that we could enjoy a bit of our last day but I think we are going to have to take an early flight/bus back. Thanks for all of your help. You've been such help.