After much Trip Advisor research, my fiance and I decided on having our wedding at the Island Pearl- sight unseen. My wife communicated with Sofia, Cori, and Angela for almost a year leading up to the trip on the details of our stay and the ceremony. They were very responsive the entire time. We brought with us 21 family and friends and were more than a little concerned that the facilities of the Island Pearl / Bananarama complex would not stand up to the hype. People thought we were crazy for having our wedding in Honduras in the first place and then to never have seen the place was sort of the crazy icing on the cake.

Every expectation we had going into this was completely exceeded. Both resorts are extremely nice but the Island Pearl is ridiculous. We stayed in the studio at Island Pearl. It was basically an incredibly beautiful and huge shower with a bed next to it. The porch was private and beautiful and we loved the hammock there. The room was nice but next time I think we stay in one of the other homes on the property where some of our family stayed. If you can get the beach front homes, run with them as they are fantastic.

The beach is glorious, diving exceptional, drinks and food yummy. We loved the swim platform 30 yards off the beach and all congregated there throughout the week. Understand that you are on a tropical island so if it takes you an extra couple minutes to have a server take your order it is not a big deal- relax!

We arranged for a rehearsal dinner for everyone in the courtyard of the Island Pearl near the Vintage Pearl restaurant and the staff helped set up a barbecue outside with a steel drum group playing. Food was great, atmosphere beautiful and a good time had by all. The actual wedding ceremony took place the next day at the other end of the courtyard, right off the beach. Nadia did the girls hair and makeup and did a incredible job. Birds of Paradise flowers all around, beautiful white linen everywhere, they even trimmed some trees in advance to make sure everything was perfect. Devin Stevens did our photography and did an absolute unbelievable job. We have the most beautiful wedding pictures I've ever seen, all bias aside.

The reception took place at the Vintage Pearl restaurant which was extra cool because there are no shoes allowed in there making it feel extra beachy. The food was fantastic and we hired Kristofer Goldman's band to play afterwards. We partied all night with the staff in the restaurant- Terry and Angela rock!

The next morning my wife and I just laughed and both said that we had pulled it off. We had the wedding our friends are still talking about 8 months later. An absolute epic trip of a lifetime. We will definitely be back and can not thank all those involved enough!!

Beachhouse #25 was our home away from home! It was cozy, comfortable, clean and had everything we needed. The kitchen was perfect, we had all we needed to cook a full baked chicken dinner, mashed potatoes, the works! We did eat a lot of our meals at the local restauants on site (Thirsty Turtle and Vintage Pearl) both were excellent and delicious food! The staff at the resort we found to be very pleasant all the time. From the grounds workers to the cleaning staff to the servers, everyone was very accommodating to our needs. I liked that they always seemed to have a smile and and Hola for us! We liked the relaxed atmosphere at Bananarama and Island Pearl resort....I noticed while walking the beach every day that some of the other resorts were more the traditional modern condo type places, while Island Pearl were more rustic homes! I felt like I was truly in a tropical paradise and not just another hotel room. The air conditioning kept it comfortable, especially for sleeping. You really don't spend a lot of time in the rooms during the day....too much to enjoy outside that is for sure! The beds were comfy, and the cleaning lady came every day to see if we needed anything at all. We didn't feel the need to have her clean each day but she brought us towels and always emptied our trash. We had the breakfast everyday at the Thirsty Turtle (which comes with your room stay) We found it to be great all of the days! Plenty of food and really tasty. If you didn't like the breakfast they were featuring you could always have the fruit plate and cereal. The coffee was hot and ready and it was wonderful to sit out and watch the morning activities on the beach while enjoying breakfast! We had different sandwiches, chicken and pizza while there and never had a complaint! Dinner at the Vintage Pearl was quite elegant in comparison and were pleasantly surprised at the amount of food we were served. A lot of of fine dining restaurants tend to be skimpy on their servings, not the case here at all. The wine selection was wonderful also. We were there during tropical storm Ernesto and the managers made sure to inform us what was being done as precautions etc....turned out of course not to be anything serious and ended up enjoying the waves that the storm brought in! We loved that we could do everything that we wanted right there...they also have a great tour center were they can show you things to do around the island and even set some of the excursions up for you. Great service for the guests! It has only been a few short weeks since we've been there and already we're trying to figure out how soon we can go back!

This is my second time staying at Island Pearl and fourth time at Bananarama/Island Pearl complex. This stay we were at Bananarama for the first night (reviewed separately) and then a beach view 2-story villa for 5 nights. We received substantial savings by booking in advance. Even though there were only 2 of us, we wanted the extra room that the villa provided over a room at Bananarama. The villa has a kitchen with table, bathroom with huge shower and bedroom with 2 twin beds on the first floor. Second floor is a bedroom with Q bed and screened in porch. The first floor has a very large outdoor porch with chairs, a hammock and rope chair.

The chairs at the resort (at bar, breakfast, on the room patios and in our kitchen) are very hard. On the patio they have cushions, but they are somewhat flat. We sat on folded towels in the kitchen. The cusions could use a washing. Same for the rug at the outside of the room and in the bathroom.

We were there when Ernesto hit. Luckily we just lost one day when it rained on and off and the water was rough. We were glad to have the extra room of the villa. Everyone made it to breakast as there was a lull in the rain, but it was pouring at lunchtime. Staff came by to see if we wanted to order lunch. This was a nice touch. They also waived the $2 charge for renting movies. By dinner the sky was showing clearing in the distance and things were back to normal.

There was quite a bit of beach erosion and washed-up debris along the whole beach. However, the next morning, the entire beach had been cleaned and restored and the water was back to normal. The only sign that there had been a storm was the Bananarama diving platform was still chained to trees on the beach.

The staff at this resort is very friendly and helpful. Service is a little variable. Paying customers get taken care of first, and quickly. Sometimes we were taken care of quickly and sometimes we had to wait a little. But the staff were always friendly, happy and hustling. The view is beautiful so a short wait was not unpleasant. They have lots of drink and food specials every day so dining is reasonable. The brick oven is a new addition and the pizza is delicious.

The beach is beautiful here, but it was a little more crowded than 2 years ago. Chairs are provided but we never encountered anyone to help move them out onto the beach. And they need to be wiped down and cleaned once in awhile. Beach towels are now charged - $5 a week. I protested this as I felt that the price of a villa (more than double the rate of a room at Bananaram) should include a towel. No one wants to waste space in a suitcase carrying beach towels. They should do what other hotels do and give you a card that you can exchange for a towel. At the end of your stay, when you return the towel you get the card back. If you don't return the card at check-out then they can charge you for a towel.

Check-in and check-out was very quick. All in all, this place is a good value and has a nice atmosphere.

We stayed in beachfront house #25, really a great location. I choose Island Pearl based on reviews and location.
House...large enough for the four of us with one large bedroom up and one down and one bathroom on the downstairs level. Really thin pillows on the beds, you may want to consider bringing your own. Kitchen was adequately equipped. Have the driver stop on the way in from airport and get groceries. The small market near Island Pearl only has the basics. If you want anything more than beer, wine and canned goods you'll need to stop.

Service...We didn't have any problems with the staff, but our experience was they never went out of their way to be helpful. Reception staff when we arrived not at all welcoming. Wait staff not much better.

Food...Good pizza and that's about all I really cared for. If you like a hearty breakfast consider making you own. The hot item in the morning was adequate but not very well prepared. Fruit plate also just okay.

This is an ideal location, close to snorkeling, water taxi's and restaurants but don't think we would return.