Geography

Where is Honduras?

Honduras is located at the heart Central America, which is the thin stretch of land joining North America and South America.

As you can see from this map, Honduras is not a very large country.  It is 112,498sq.km (43,432sq.miles).  To put this into context, Honduras is somewhat smaller than England, or North Korea, or the American state of Ohio, but it is slightly larger than Cuba, Bulgaria, or the American state of Virginia.  It is almost exactly the same size as Benin.

The Central American Neighbourhood

It is usually said that Central America is made up of five small countries with strong historical and cultural ties:  Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panamá.

Honduras is located at the very center of Central America and has borders with:

• The Caribbean, to the North
• Guatemala, to the West,
• El Salvador, to the Southwest,
• Nicaragua, to the Southeast,
• The Pacific Ocean, to the South

How to get to Honduras

By land If you are already in one of the neighbouring countries in Central America, it will be easy to drive or take a bus across the border into Honduras.  Bus companies have regular services connecting all mayor cities in Central America.  Over 70% of Honduras's territory is cris-crossed by mountain ranges, there is no railroad network.  On the other hand, the roads winding over the mountains provide an entertaining driving experience.

By air If you're coming from further away, the best way to visit us it to fly into one of the international airports in one of the larger cities:  Tegucigalpa (our capital city), San Pedro Sula, La Ceiba or Roatán.  Mayor airlines have flights from cities in the southern US, such as New Yourk, Houston, New Orleans and Miami.  Connecting flights from Europe are available with connections in mayor airports the US, México and Costa Rica.

By sea Alternatively, you can arrive on one of the cruise ships that regularly dock at Roatán, one of the islands off our Caribbean coast.

Maps, maps, maps!

Departments and cities

Honduras is divided into 18 administrative regions callled departmentos ("departments").  The departamentos have been named after historical figures, including Spanish conquistadores, native chieftains, and heroes of our independece.  Check our Honduran history page to find out why.

The capital city is Tegucigalpa, located in the central part of the country.  To the North, San Pedro Sula is the second largest city and the industrial centre of the country.  Tela, La Ceiba and Trujillo are also on the Caribbean coast and are popular destinations for tourists.

Mayor cities and departamental division.
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Roads

All mayor cities in Honduras are now connected by the road network.  All roads shown in the map are paved, but the roads to smaller towns and villages are dirt roads.  Due to the mountanous nature of the terrain, most roads provide an entertaining drive and interesting views of the valleys and mountain ranges.

Main road network.  
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Rivers

Honduras is criss-crossed by a complex network of rivers run from its mountain ranges and irrigate its valleys.  The Patuca river offers adventurers an opportunity to explore the deep jungles to the east of the country. The Cangrejal river, near the city of La Ceiba, is well known for river rafting fun.

River network.  
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