Visitor Question: I’m traveling to Utila from the US, and will need to make daily phone calls of short duration (less than 5 minutes) for work. It is imperative that I’m able to make these calls… Do you recommend purchasing a phone through a local provider? I saw information for  International Phone Calls/Internet Service on the internet, and am wondering the approximate cost is for a phone call at a facility like that. Is the service frequently interrupted or unavailable?

UtilaGuide Responds:

There are 3 main options for making calls back to the USA/Europe from Utila.  All very inexpensive and reliable:

  • An internet cafe which will have USA phone service. This should be very inexpensive.  For example, we have Monthly USA phone service at our house for $20 usd a month unlimited.  Of course, the internet cafe will need to make a little profit, but it is relatively inexpensive.

    Annie's Internet Cafe, Utila, Honduras (Photo courtesy of DestinationUtila.com)

  • Option 2: Get yourself a skype account that you can call phone numbers- you buy credit ahead of time with your credit card. Very cheap again…Then you just log into your skype account and an internet cafe if you are not bringing your computer and call from the computer. If you are bringing computer, many places have WIFI service. This option is probably going to be your best bet. (The receiving person does not need skype- it lets you call phone numbers)
  • 3rd is buying a LOCAL phone- from Frank Morgan’s office at Sosa in center of town. Calls to USA from here are 1-2 lempiras per minute  ( just like 5 cents a minute), but you’ll need to buy the phone which can run from $30-80. 
  • Some USA phone services let you call from here, but I believe its fairly expensive- I’m not to sure about those details. Maybe one of our readers can add more.

    Caye Caulker Internet Cafe, Utila, Honduras (Photo Courtesy of DestinationUtila.com)

Overall, pretty reliable, yes….

Hope that helps-  Andi with UtilaGuide.com