Currency in Honduras: what to use and how to exchange

The lempira is named after the 16th-century indigenous leader Lempira and is divided into 100 centavos. Coins run from 5 centavos to 1 lempira, with 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500 lempira notes in circulation. Prices in shops and restaurants are quoted in lempiras; on Roatán and Utila many dive shops, hotels and tour operators quote in US dollars and will take either currency.

The exchange rate has drifted slowly for years, so treat any figure you read as a band rather than a fixed number. Check the rate on the day you travel and again before you change a large amount. Because the lempira is not widely traded outside Central America, you will get a poor rate trying to buy it before you arrive — change money in Honduras instead.

For day-to-day spending, plan on cash for markets, buses, taxis, small comedores and park or reserve entry fees. Hotels, dive operators, larger supermarkets and better restaurants in Tegucigalpa, San Pedro Sula and the Bay Islands take Visa and Mastercard. American Express is much less useful. Keep a small stack of 20, 50 and 100 lempira notes for small purchases; vendors rarely have change for a 500.

Banks are the safest place to change money: you get a receipt, a posted rate and a teller who counts in front of you. Bring your passport — it is normally required for any exchange. Bank hours are typically weekday mornings and early afternoon, and many close at lunch; plan around that rather than assuming a branch is open when you arrive.

Licensed casas de cambio (exchange houses) in city centres and on Roatán often beat bank rates slightly and are faster, but use only established offices with a counter, a rate board and a receipt. Street changers who approach you with a folded stack of notes are not worth the risk of short-counting or counterfeit notes.

ATMs are the simplest way to top up. Use machines inside a bank branch, a mall or a guarded lobby during daylight, cover the keypad, and decline the machine's own conversion offer if it asks — choose to be charged in lempiras. Withdraw in larger amounts less often to limit fees. If a machine refuses your card, try another bank rather than the same machine twice.

Hotels and airports change money for convenience, not value. Change a small amount at the airport if you need a taxi, then do the rest in town.

A quick reference for what to carry and where to use it.

Carry US dollars as your backup currency, not your main one. On the mainland you will convert almost everything, and small vendors simply cannot break a US$20 bill. On the islands, dollars work but you will often get change in lempiras at a rate you did not choose.

Check your US dollar notes before you fly. Honduran banks and shops commonly refuse bills that are torn, written on, heavily creased or older than the current design, and this is one of the most common money problems visitors report.

Budget in lempiras once you land. If you are tracking costs, the country budget and daily cost pages give you a realistic range for accommodation, food and transport, and the tipping page covers what to leave in restaurants and to dive crews.

Do not rely on a single card. Card skimming and ATM fraud happen in the cities, so use machines in guarded locations, check the card slot for loose fittings, and keep a spare card somewhere other than your wallet. Travel insurance with a card-fraud or theft clause is worth having if you are carrying several days of cash.