Complete Travel Guide to Lago de Yojoa, Honduras

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Honduras’ largest lake is a special place that is well worth a spot on your itinerary. 

Referred to as Lago de Yojoa or Lago Yojoa in Spanish, or Lake Yojoa in English, however you want to call it, it is gorgeous.

A beautiful and friendly taste of rural life in Honduras, the Lago de Yojoa region is full of outdoor adventures. 

From hiking on rainforest trails, kayaking on the lake, ziplining over the country’s largest waterfall or simply relaxing at the epic D&D Brewery and Lodge, we thoroughly enjoyed our few days here. 

It was a refreshing change of pace from the tropical Bay Islands, and we felt like we got an authentic insight into the Honduran mainland. 

This travel guide will share everything you need to know about visiting Lago de Yojoa.

We’ll cover which shuttles or chicken buses to take to get there, where to stay, where to eat and the top things to do. 

Lago de Yojoa in less than 30 seconds

About Lake Yojoa

Lago de Yojoa is Honduras’ largest freshwater lake. Formed by a volcanic explosion, the lake spans over 79 square kilometres (31 square miles). 

It is sandwiched between two of the country’s best national parks and is surrounded by lush mountains and swampy wetlands that are a haven for hundreds of species of birds. 

The eastern edge of the lake skirts a major highway connecting two of the country’s biggest cities, San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa.

While the lake is vast and there are several small towns around its shore providing access to visitors, there’s one area that has become synonymous with the name ‘Lake Yojoa’.

When travellers say they’re visiting ‘Lake Yojoa’ they generally mean the small village of Los Naranjos in the northern corner of the lake. This is where D&D Brewery & Lodge is located, which was the catalyst for international tourism to the region. 

Sure, there are popular hostels around Central America which have become a mainstay of the Gringo Trail. But I can’t think of anywhere that has had an impact on an area like D&D. 

Honduras is already one of the least visited countries in the region and is sadly left off many traveller’s itineraries. If they do visit, it’s most likely for scuba diving in Utila or to visit the Mayan ruins in Copan Ruinas. 

Not anymore! D&D and its eclectic owner, Bobby, a beer brewer from Virginia, have put Lago de Yojoa on the tourist map, with its safe, clean and incredibly awesome lodge.

These days, tourism has expanded and D&D isn’t the only decent place to stay in the area. But their work has left a permanent mark on the region and will forever be the reason for Lago de Yojoa becoming a permanent fixture on the tourist trail in Honduras.

So for the purposes of this post, when I say Lake Yojoa, I really mean the small village of Los Naranjos and its surrounds. 

💡 Important note: Los Naranjos doesn’t actually sit on the lakefront, and there is really nowhere you can go to walk or drive to the lake’s edge. The town sits on the edge of a canal that you kayak down to reach the lake. 

How to get to Lake Yojoa

From La Ceiba (for Utila, Roatan and Pico Bonito/Rio Cangrejal)

We approached Lago de Yojoa from La Ceiba, after our time on Roatan and Utila. Whilst we sadly didn’t visit, La Ceiba is also the jump-off point for Pico Bonito and Rio Cangrejal, so these instructions will also apply if you’re coming from there. 

This is probably the most common route for getting to the lake, and you’ve got a couple of different options. 

🚐 BY SHUTTLE

The easiest and laziest option is booking a shuttle.

D&D was running a shuttle from La Ceiba directly to their door (where you will most likely be staying) once a week on a Friday for $15. I don’t know if they still do this, but they are great to communicate with so I would start with that option if Friday works in your itinerary. 

Alternatively, Roneey Shuttle runs a route from La Ceiba to Lago de Yojoa daily for $45 USD. 

It departs at 8:30 am and aligns with the ferry arrivals from Utila. The shuttles aren’t allowed to pick you up directly from the dock, however, there are representatives waiting there who will shuttle you into taxis (for free), and you’ll meet the van in a car park nearby. 

However, you need to be aware that they don’t drop you off in Los Naranjos where D&D is located. They drop you off on the side of the highway in La Guama, which is on the other side of the lake. 

From there, you can coordinate a taxi with D&D. They will have someone waiting for you when you get off the bus to drive you the final 30 minutes to the lodge. We went with this option and it was 250 Lempira (around $10 USD) and we split it with another girl on our shuttle. 

We had a really quick and smooth trip, I think it was around 4.5 hours.

I have this photo of me holding my welcome beer at D&D taken at 1:45 pm, and we definitely did not leave on time at 8:30 am, so this was a pretty smooth and easy travel day! 

🚌 BY PUBLIC BUS

The other option is taking the public bus. With hindsight, this would have been just as simple and way cheaper, and I wish we had done this. 

From La Ceiba, you need to take the Transportes Cristina bus to San Pedro Sula. It departs multiple times per day from their terminal located here.

As far as I can tell, you can’t buy tickets online in advance, but generally, the route doesn’t sell out. It should be around 180 Lempiras (~ $7 USD) and the journey should take 3.5 – 4 hours. 

The quality of the buses varies, but it’s a proper coach, not a chicken bus. It’s going from point to point and won’t stop constantly. 

The bus will terminate at the main bus terminal in San Pedro Sula (Terminal Metropolitana de Buses). You’ll need to head inside and find the appropriate window for the ‘El Mochito’ route and buy your ticket. It’s a huge place but people are helpful. Just be sure to say you are going to D&D/Los Naranjos, so you don’t end up on the wrong side of the lake. 

This route will be on a proper chicken bus, so it can be quite slow depending on how many times it stops. You should expect to pay around 70 Lempira (~ $3 USD), and it should take between 1.5 – 2 hours. 

The bus will drop you off in the town of Los Naranjos. You’ll see a sign for D&D and it’s just a few hundred metres walk down a dirt road. 

From Copan Ruinas

We did this route in reverse, but the same thing applies. 

There is no way to go directly from Copan Ruinas to D&D/Los Naranjos. You always have to go via San Pedro Sula. 

From Copan Ruinas to SPS, there are two options depending on the day you’re travelling. 

The comfortable option is the Hedman Alas bus, which is a long-distance coach. Their operations tend to be inconsistent, so they may or may not be running at the time of your visit. 

They only run the route from Copan Ruinas to SPS a few times per week, so check their latest schedules here to confirm if it works for you. The trip should be around 3.5 hours, and tickets cost 469 Lempira (~ $20 USD).

This is definitely the preferred option, and although it might cost a little more, it is far, far more comfortable and quicker. 

If that is not running or doesn’t depart on the day you want to travel, you can take the Casasola Express colectivo van. We managed to find a timetable on a website here that was correct for us, but I don’t know if this is still accurate. I would recommend checking in with your accommodation or going to the ‘terminal’ (the dusty lot the buses depart from, located here) the day prior to confirm departure times. There are multiple departures per day. 

Our reverse trip was hot, sweaty, cramped and slow. We paid 160 Lempiras (~ $6 USD) and the trip that should have been 3.5 hours took more than 5. 

Either option will drop you at the bus terminal in San Pedro Sula, and follow the instructions above to find the chicken bus to El Mochito. 

From Nicaragua 

Lago de Yojoa is a common connection point between Honduras and Nicaragua. If you’re travelling Central America northbound, you can book a shuttle with Roneey Shuttle to take you from Leon to the lake. 

The shuttle is $60 USD, supposedly takes 8 hours (but I would anticipate a lot longer), and they run the route 3 days per week. Read more and book the shuttle here. 

The same thing applies as with the shuttle from La Ceiba in regard to the drop-off. They will drop you at La Guama and you’ll need to organise a taxi for the final stretch of the journey. 

How to get around

Once you’re in Los Naranjos, plenty of the things you’ll be doing are accessible on foot. It’s a small town and you can walk to many attractions. 

There are a handful of things to do outside town, and you’ll need some kind of transport to reach them. I’ll detail the options more specifically for each activity, but you’ve got a few methods to choose from. 

The El Mochito chicken bus that you may or may not have taken to get here is handy for a few sites. If this bus doesn’t get you to where you want to go, it will at least get you to Peña Blanca, a larger town nearby, where more buses and colectivo routes depart. 

Otherwise, there are tuk-tuks around town, and D&D can organise a taxi for you if needed. 

Certain sites (like some of the national parks) are almost impossible to reach with public transport and will require a taxi for at least some portion of the journey.

It’s often easier to just coordinate one with D&D straight up, and try and find some other guests to share the costs rather than navigating a combo of buses, colectivos and taxis, which might only save you a small amount of money but waste a lot of time. 

D&D also offer tours to certain locations, which are surprisingly affordable if you can round up enough other travellers to meet their minimum numbers. 

Where to stay in Lake Yojoa

• D&D Brewery & Lodge: the classic place to stay in Lago Yojoa, and really it is as good as people say. It’s a hostel so you can get a cheap dorm bed, but there are also plenty of private rooms with private bathrooms, and it doesn’t have a party hostel vibe. It’s situated in a lush rainforesty area, it feels almost like a jungle lodge. There’s an outdoor fire pit, plenty of places to sit and relax, hammocks to laze in, board games to play and of course their restaurant and brewery on-site. I will say that it gets quite busy on the weekends with locals, and we had a bit of noise on a Saturday night, but once Sunday night rolled around, it was quiet and peaceful again.

• Bioparque Paradise: if you don’t need a dorm bed, you might prefer this option which is just up the road from D&D. It’s actually one of the best activities in the area, a private nature reserve with some gorgeous hiking trails, but you can also stay here in a few rustic cabins.

• Garden Coffee & Cabañas: also known as ‘Hospedaje en el Lago’ this lovely cafe that we enjoyed also has really cute cabins available for rent in a nice garden setting. It is a bit closer to the highway so it didn’t feel quite as lush, but it was still very pretty and tranquil. 

D&D can book out! It is very popular with international tourists, but also with locals on the weekend. Don’t assume you can get a bed if you turn up last minute! As soon as you know your dates, book in. If you miss out, some of these other options are really great, and there’s no reason you can’t go and hang out at D&D in their restaurant/bar area and enjoy some nice meals and craft beer there. 

10 Things to do in Lago de Yojoa

1. Kayak on the lake

If you do one thing in Lake Yojoa, make it kayaking on the lake! 

It’s surprisingly not that easy to lay eyes on the lake from Los Naranjos, and by far the best way to experience it is by kayak. 

You can rent kayaks from D&D for $10 USD for a single, or $15 USD for a double for the whole day. They’ll drive you and the kayaks down to an entry point on the canal. 

However we wanted to spread the love, so we walked into Los Naranjos and rented from one of the local stalls along the canal. 

There are kayaks lined up everywhere, so you won’t have any trouble finding someone. We paid 200 Lempira (~ $8 USD) for a double for the whole day. 

The first part of your paddle will be down the narrow canal. It’s around 1.5 km (1 mi) before you reach the entrance to the lake.

Once you’re out in the lake, you’re basically free to go wherever you like. You will NOT be able to see it all (it’s 79 square kilometres remember). We opted to turn right out of the canal, and we spent a few hours switching between paddling and floating. 

We thought we had reached an island, but it turns out it was actually the opposite shoreline. I’ve tracked our rough route on the map below.

We spent ages floating along the shoreline in the shade as there were so many birds around here! We saw (and heard) multiple toucans which was exciting. 

All up we were on the water for about 4 hours and paddled almost 10 km (6 mi). It was tough work and hot in the sun, so start as early as you can and wear a hat and sunscreen. 

2. Cataratas Pulhapanzak

The biggest waterfall in Honduras is only half an hour away from Los Naranjos. 

It’s very easy to get here, as any of the El Mochito buses heading towards San Pedro Sula will pass near the entrance. 

You want to get off the bus on the side of the highway around here (tell the driver where you’re going and he’ll know where to drop you). Then you’ve got a short 15-minute walk to the entry to the falls. 

Entrance costs 100 Lempira per person (~ $4 USD) and you don’t need a guide. 

Due to the insane force of the waterfall, you can’t swim anywhere near it. Some short trails lead to a couple of observation decks offering different vantage points to see the waterfall and feel the spray. 

You can usually swim in the calmer sections of the river well above the falls, but sadly on the day we visited the water was completely brown after recent heavy rain, so it wasn’t too appealing. 

For some bigger thrills, you can opt to take part in other activities like ziplining over the top of the falls, which looked awesome. Or doing a very intense tour where you walk behind the falls, and swim and jump in some pools around it. I was super keen to do this, but the brown water put us off a bit. 

The falls are open 7 days a week from 7:00 am – 6:00 pm. It can get pretty crowded on the weekend with local tourists, so if you’ve got the option of visiting on a weekday it will be much quieter.  

I’ve got more a detailed guide to visiting Cataratas Pulhapanzak with lots more information about these epic falls. 

3. Los Naranjos Ecological Park

This excellent nature reserve and archaeological park is in the heart of Los Naranjos town. 

The entrance fee is a little stiff for international visitors ($10 USD) considering the park isn’t that big, but we still really enjoyed it. 

You enter through a gate in town, located here, and it is a bit confusing at first as you have to walk for a while before reaching the ticket booth. Once you’ve paid your ticket, you cross the swing bridge and you’re inside the park. 

There are a couple of different trails to explore through the beautiful and lush rainforest. The park has a long boardwalk over the marshy wetlands on the edge of the lake, and you get some lovely views over the water. This is probably the closest you can get to the lake in Los Naranjos. 

There is a cool observation tower you can climb up for some nice views over the rainforest, and even some small Lencan archaeological sites. 

When we visited it was quiet and peaceful and a very relaxing way to spend an afternoon in nature. 

The park is open every day from 8:00 am – 4:00 pm (although we entered in the late afternoon and stayed well past 4:00 pm and nobody seemed to mind). 

4. Bioparque Paradise

Also known as Finca Paraiso, this is a coffee plantation turned private nature reserve. 

It’s a short walk from D&D, and the sprawling property has a number of different trails, a camping area, cabins and a small restaurant. The Rio Helado flows through the property, and they’ve created some unique ‘swimming pools’ with fresh and icy water channelled from the river.

We spent a few hours here hiking, and we combined a few different trails. They’ll give you a map and a brief explanation when you arrive, but we focused on the trails to the right of the entrance that passed by the Poza Azul (a gorgeous blue pool that was a sacred Lencan site) and inclined to a lookout. 

The rainforest was gorgeous, we didn’t encounter anyone else on the trails and we were looking out for toucans the whole time! We didn’t see any, but we heard their calls. There were lots of gigantic ceiba trees and we just loved soaking up the forest after being on the coast for so long. 

Entry is normally 150 Lempiras (~ $6 USD), but if you are staying at D&D and show evidence of this, it is discounted to 100 Lempiras (~ $4 USD) per person. 

The park is open daily from 7:00 am – 5:00 pm. 

5. Stroll along the canal and explore Los Naranjos

There isn’t much to Los Naranjos, but it’s a really sweet little town and worth wandering around. 

There are stunning mountain views in every direction, and it’s particularly gorgeous at sunset time when the sun drops behind the mountains. 

You can stroll along the grassy bank next to the canal for quite a distance, and it’s such a nice place to sit down and relax for a while. 

We stopped for a beer at The Canal, which has a small floating pontoon. If you’re wandering in the morning, head to Pacamara’s Cafe in the same area for a coffee. 

6. Lake ridge hike

There is a trail in Los Naranjos that inclines up a ridge overlooking the lake, offering some fantastic views of the whole lake and mountainous surrounds. 

D&D offers a daily guided hike for $10 USD per person, with no minimum numbers needed. They estimate it takes 3 hours return. 

After a bit of research, and seeing the location pinned on Google Maps, we decided to give the hike a go solo. 

Well, that was a bad idea!

We’re not great navigators at the best of times, but we just could not work this trail out. We spent almost an hour trying to vertically climb through a very dense forest where we thought the trail was leading, but eventually admitted defeat. 

Turns out we needed to pass through a gate onto private property, where we would pay a local person a fee of 100 Lempira (~ $4 USD) to pass. Sometimes they won’t be around, and other times they might try and squeeze a bit more out of you. It’s private property, so fair enough.

If you want to do the hike, I would recommend just going with D&D, their staff and guides are friendly and they employ locals. Otherwise, ask around for more specific instructions from other travellers who successfully make it before you set off. 

7. Cerro Azul Meambar National Park

Also known as ‘PANACAM’ this fantastic national park has some gorgeous trails through dense forest, with small waterfalls, caves, views over the lake and wildlife spotting opportunities. 

You don’t need a guide, and there is a great loop trail that covers a large chunk of the park and should take you around 3 – 4 hours. 

The entrance is 180 Lempiras (~ $7 USD) for foreign visitors, and the park is open daily. You can actually stay on-site at the PANACAM Lodge, and access to the trails is via the lodge. 

Getting here is a bit tricky. Although it’s not far, it requires a few different transport changes and aligning the times is nearly impossible. 

First, you need to get to La Guama. There are colectivos that pass through Los Naranjos for La Guama, otherwise, you can take a taxi, which should cost no more than 250 Lempiras. From La Guama, you’re looking for the ‘Santa Elena’ shuttle (it may be a colectivo taxi) which should drop you close to the entrance of the park, if not all the way. I don’t know how frequent these are.

The easier option is letting D&D organise a taxi for you, which will wait for 4 hours while you hike the trails and then bring you back. They currently charge 1,200 Lempiras (~ $50 USD) and you can split that cost with 4 people if you fill the car. 

8. Santa Barbara Mountain National Park

The other national park around Lago de Yojoa, this one situated on the western side of the lake and housing Honduras’ second tallest peak, Montaña Santa Barbara. 

The 2,744 metre (9,003 ft) summit is bathed in a mystical cloud forest, and the park is filled with orchids, dripping epiphytes and the elusive and spectacular quetzal bird. 

I’m sure if you’re very intrepid there is a way to get to the national park independently, but the area is pretty remote and public transport here is either non-existent or very convoluted. Plus, hiking the unmarked trails without a guide is dangerous. 

D&D offers reasonably priced tours with expert local guides who are familiar with the park. 

If you’re up for the challenge, you can tackle the summit. It looks incredibly steep and will be at least 8 hours roundtrip. If you want to experience the cloud forest but don’t need to reach the top, you can go on a dedicated quetzal-seeking walk, without so much incline! More on this below. 

9. Go birdwatching

I never thought I would be interested in birds, but after travelling for so long, I’m now a bird fanatic! 

The Lake Yojoa region is home to over 500 species of birds, including pretty cool species like toucans and quetzals. 

Although you’ll see birds on a solo kayak or hike around the lake, if you’re serious about spotting some feathered friends, you should join a dedicated tour with an expert guide, which D&D offers.

You’ll take a rowboat boat out onto the lake very early in the morning (6:00 am) and spend a few hours looking for different species with the help of your guide’s laser vision.

If seeing a quetzal is high on your priority list, you’ll need to ascend a little higher than the lake.

The Santa Barbara Mountain National Park is one of the best places to spot quetzals in Honduras, and there’s around a 75% chance you’ll see one. 

D&D offers tours with a local guide, hiking through the cloud forest specifically searching for quetzals. Prices depend on how many other people are joining you for the tour. 

🦜 If you love birds, don’t miss Macaw Mountain in Copan Ruinas

10. Taulabe Caves

We didn’t visit this cave system, but it looks really interesting.

You need to get yourself to La Guama, and then jump on any bus heading south along the highway towards Tegucigalpa. The driver will let you off at the caves, the entrance is right along the highway.

As far as I understand you used to be able to enter the first part of the cave independently, however, it seems now a guide is mandatory.

It looks like they offer a short 30-minute guided walk inside the cave. There are some unique stalagmites and stalactites, and the cave is nicely lit with coloured lights.

It’s $4 USD for foreigners, and the cave is open from 8:00 am – 4:00 pm 7 days a week.

Where to eat

• 🍕 D&D Restaurant: the food at D&D is excellent and very fairly priced. Throughout our stay, we tried the breakfast, lunch and dinner menu, and we didn’t have a bad meal. Their desayuno tipico (typical Honduran breakfast) was fantastic, the pizzas were yummy and make sure you try the anafre which is a traditional bean, cheese and chorizo dip. 

• 🍫 Ivo’s Cafe: one word: brownies. After the chocolate shops on Roatan and Utila, the brownie addiction was real and Ivo’s delivered. Just up the road from D&D, this cute little cafe had tasty brownies, really nice iced coffees and some yummy sandwiches for lunch. We visited LOTS. 

• 🍻 The Canal: this local spot is a roadside restaurant, but they also have a floating pontoon kind of bar on the canal. Don’t bother with a cocktail (we had wishful thinking that we could get a nice drink in the middle of rural Honduras and ended up with straight vodka after a lost-in-translation moment). But it’s a great spot for a beer overlooking the water, and you can order food from the restaurant. It’s not that cheap but they have some great local options and seafood dishes. 

• 🍰 Garden Coffee & Cabañas: in case you need more options for coffee and brownies (apparently we did!) this cute little cafe is just across the highway from D&D. It’s in a gorgeous garden setting, and they’ve got all kinds of sweet treats.

• 🌮 Comedor Francisca: a cheap local spot on the main road with delicious and affordable baledas. 

• ☕️ Pacamara’s Cafe: I was actually shocked at how many great cafes this tiny town had! We didn’t get to try Pacamara’s as it was closed when we were in the area, but it’s right along the canal so it’s a nice place to stop after a morning stroll along the waterfront. 

Travel tips for Lake Yojoa

• 🏧 ATMs: there are no ATMs in Los Naranjos, the nearest are in Peña Blanca (a 15-minute drive away). Best to come stocked with Lempira, although D&D and a handful of the cafes around the area will accept credit cards. 
• 🫶🏼 Safety: rightfully so, a lot of travellers are wary of visiting Honduras outside of the touristy Bay Islands. There are a lot of places in this country that are NOT safe, but this region isn’t one of them (read more in our Honduras safety guide here). In fact, we found people extremely friendly and welcoming here. They’re sitting right in the sweet spot where tourists are visiting, but not en masse. 
• 🐄 Rural life: Lago de Yojoa is totally safe and tourists do visit, but if you’re coming from Utila or Roatan, it will be a significant change of scenery. This is a quiet, rural area and it doesn’t have the same tourist amenities. 
• 🗣️ Spanish: if you were enjoying speaking English on the Bay Islands, where most locals speak it and there are a lot of international visitors and dive masters, be prepared that it’s back to Spanish when you get on the mainland! 
• 🌤️ When to visit: Lago de Yojoa follows the usual wet/dry season for the region. November – April is the dry season. We visited in March and had perfect sunny days. 

Final thoughts on Lago de Yojoa Honduras

We absolutely loved our time in Lake Yojoa. It was all the best parts of travel in Central America, despite not being one of the typical ‘highlight’ destinations. 

It was slow, laidback and beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed a few days ambling along hiking trails, playing board games and chatting with travel friends around the fire at D&D, and eating brownies in lovely gardens each afternoon. 

Sometimes you appreciate the in-between destinations just as much as the popular ones and Lago de Yojoa was this kind of place for us. 

MORE HONDURAS MAINLAND POSTS

• How to Visit Cataratas Pulhapanzak, Honduras
• Copan Ruinas, Honduras Travel Guide: Mayans and Macaws
• Visiting Macaw Mountain in Copan Ruinas, Honduras