We Want To See MONKEYS!!!

My daughters really want to see and hold monkeys. Any advice on where to do this on our own? :D

You will see a lot of monkeys at Maya Key http://www.mayakeyroatan.com/en/index.html

However, no holding the critters there, or any where that I have ever travel to.

We had spider monkeys climbing all over us at Victor Bodden's. :D You actually go inside a large enclosed area with them. There is a fee which was included in our Zip & Dip price. I'm guessing that even if you didn't want to do the Bodden Tour i.e. you wanted to take your own transportation there, you could pay the fee and visit the monkeys on your own. However, I wouldn't have wanted to try to hold one...well, only if he was in a really deep sleep. :eek:

We had spider monkeys climbing all over us at Victor Bodden's. :D You actually go inside a large enclosed area with them. There is a fee which was included in our Zip & Dip price. I'm guessing that even if you didn't want to do the Bodden Tour i.e. you wanted to take your own transportation there, you could pay the fee and visit the monkeys on your own. However, I wouldn't have wanted to try to hold one...well, only if he was in a really deep sleep. :eek:

I believe Victor's price to interact with the monkees and other animals is $5 pp. The OP may want to compare the price of a tour with Victor to what it would cost to just grab a taxi there. It may be a better deal to book a guide.

I have posted my monkee pics under Bodden's review so I won't repost them here. Plenty of others have posted theirs also. They a a lot of fun. Another suggestion for animal interaction is the iguane sanctuary. The iguanas are free roaming and will happily eat right out of your hands.

This is so weird, people want to visit Roatan to see and play with non native monkeys that are imorted and bred for tourists to play with, its too bad the petting zoos in the USA do not allow monkey so then people can enjoy natural Roatan wildlife. I bet if they import a giraff people pay a lot to feed it, maybe this is why they in Mexico paint stripes on donkeys for a picture wit a zebra

This is so weird, people want to visit Roatan to see and play with non native monkeys that are imorted and bred for tourists to play with, its too bad the petting zoos in the USA do not allow monkey so then people can enjoy natural Roatan wildlife. I bet if they import a giraff people pay a lot to feed it, maybe this is why they in Mexico paint stripes on donkeys for a picture wit a zebra

You are right- Sandiver! In America they would be to worried about liability to allow such interactions. This is not an activity I initially wanted to do- but I'll admit to thoroughly enjoying the experience.

You are right- Sandiver! In America they would be to worried about liability to allow such interactions. This is not an activity I initially wanted to do- but I'll admit to thoroughly enjoying the experience.

Do not you think this exploits the animals? Afterall, they are not even natural to Roatan,What happens when a animal more cute comes along? Is it ok yo import them, breed them captive simply for human tourist enjoyment?

Do not you think this exploits the animals? Afterall, they are not even natural to Roatan,What happens when a animal more cute comes along? Is it ok yo import them, breed them captive simply for human tourist enjoyment?

There are zoo's all over the world for people to enjoy animals that are not native to their own country. I'm not sure why Roatan should be any different. I fully agree with the people of Roatan creating a business so they can make a decent living and provide for their families. If I saw poor living conditions for the animals, I would feel differently, but I found the animals well cared for there.

Of course, you are entitled to your opinion and I have no desire to get into an argument with you [once again]. I like to focus on the positive.

I actually had to calm down my kids at Victor Bodden's place when we entered the monkey area.

Basically, the kids had too much energy, and the monkeys are NOT domesticated.

So... stick a few wild monkeys in an area where there are small humans bearing their teeth, making loud noises, jumping up and down while reaching for the monkeys...

The monkeys were upset... so I felt I needed to calm my kids down before someone got bit.

Someone did get bit, wasn't my kid, didn't break skin, but the monkeys made their point to him.

I found the best way to get the monkeys to interact with us was to put stuff in a pocket. One little guy spent a few minutes on my shoulder, digging into my shirt pocket, looking for goodies.

Make sure your kid doesn't stress the monkeys out, though. What we recognize as laughter and smiles, they (the monkeys) may misconstrue as aggressive/dominant behavior.

We booked through Victor's as well about a year ago. My husband, me, sister, brother in law and my niece who was 7 at the time. Picked us up at the pier in our own van. Drove around the island. We went to the iguana farm and then to zip line. The posts here about the monkeys are somewhat biased. I found them inquisitive. My niece was somewhat fearful since at one point my husband had 5-6 of them all over his back and hanging from his forearms by their tails.

They offered to drive us around to show us the beaches but after 4 hours my niece was exhausted and ready for the ship.

This was the highlight of our cruise. Zipline is so fun and safe for kidss They tailor the trip to what you are interested in with your own personal driver. I can't say enough good thing about Victor.

people want to visit Roatan to see and play with non native monkeys that are imorted and bred for tourists to play with.

YUP that's me!!!! I am not going to Roatan just to see monkeys, but I will still see them and I will still go there! :) And I will love it. Call me weird.