COXEN HOLE (also known as Roatán Town) is dusty and run-down, and most visitors come here only to change money or shop. All of the town's practical facilities and most shops are on a hundred-metre stretch of Main Street , near where the buses stop. For tourist information about the island and its events, pick up a copy of the Coconut Telegraph magazine from the Cooper Building; you'll find the headquarters of BICA (Mon-Fri 9am-noon & 2-5pm) here as well, if you want to brush up on Roatán's flora and fauna.

To change travellers' cheques or dollars or get a Visa cash advance, try Bancahsa, or Credomatic. The migración and the post office are both near the small square on Main Street, while Hondutel is behind Bancahsa. HB Warren is the largest supermarket on the island, and there's a small and not too impressive general market just behind Main Street. The island's best-set-up Internet café, Paradise Computers (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 9am-1pm), is a five-minute walk from the centre of town on the road to West End, and though rates are very high (around $12 an hour), the epic cappuccinos and delicious carrot cake help compensate a little. Librería Casi Todo, in the same building as the Qué Tal Cafe , sells secondhand books .

It's unlikely you'll want to stay here unless you have a very early flight. If you do, the Hotel Cayview , on Main Street (tel 445 1222; US$25-40), has comfortable rooms with a/c and private bath, while the Hotel El Paso (tel 445 1367; US$15-25), nearby on the same street, has clean rooms, but communal bathrooms only. There are a number of cheap comedores, serving standard Honduran food , while Qué Tal Cafe , on Thicket Street, just past Paradise Computers, serves European-style breakfasts and snacks.