Tegucigalpa (Hondurans in general, and people familiar with the city, shorten it to "Tegus", while most locals actually use the full name...) is a great example Central America of urban sprawl gone amok, spread out across very hilly terrain.
Tegucigalpa receives little foreign tourism, relative to the other Central American capital cities. This is largely due to its location far from beaches or volcanoes, and its (supposed) lack of tourist and cultural activities. It is far from the beach, has few to no large grassy parks, is notoriously dangerous, and has a horrible reputation in most guide books, which promote the idea of Tegus as an unfortunately unavoidabe transit hub on the route through Central America.
Of course, the city, a 400 year-old mining center, has a depth that is there for those with time and nerve to find it. It has a plethora of interesting, if decaying, old colonial building, and many old stone streets, windiny intriguingly up steep hills, to hidden parks, stone steps, and old houses.
The defining event in recent Honduran history, and that of Tegucigalpa also, is Hurricane Mitch, which devastated the country in 1998. Mitch reportedly set the country back 50 years. Tegus is still recovering from the massive flooding of the river, and equally massive landslides, both triggered by the rampant deforestation of the hills surrounding the city. Indeed, signs of whole colonias (neighbourhoods) having slid off steep hills are still evident. Workers continue to toil daily in the river, removing silt deposited by the flooding. Many or most people lost friends and relitives during the crisis.
Tipping in Honduras is 10%. Tipping is not generally expected at smaller restaurants but always appreciated.
Tegus has a very nice, modern airport, though there are few specifically budget flights to the city. Less expensive is to fly to San Pedro Sula to the north and closer to the resorts on the caribbean coast and take a bus from there to Tegucigalpa.
There are a number of bus international bus lines running to Tegus from other Central American capitals. These offer first class, very comfortable service at a reasonable price. A trip from Managua, San Salvador, or Guatemala City would cost between 20-40 USD. Ticabus, is the most affordable and frequented by backpackers. Hedman Alas [http://www.hedmanalas.com], Nicabus, and King Quality, are other first class, reliable bus companies. Of course, it is also possible to travel on less comfortable, less expensive lines, but this is difficult or impossible to plan from affar. Internal travel in Honduras is easy enough, and made more easy thanks to the excellent transportation guide published by the Honduran tourism magazine called Honduras Tips, and available online at their website. Travel from La Ceiba, on the north coast, Empresa de Bus Cristina provides good service, at around 10USD for the 7-8h trip.
95% of buses coming to Tegus arrive into Comayaguela, the sister city of Tegucigalpa. It is also reputedely one of the more dangerous parts of the city. If arriving to Comayaguela after dark, it is advisable to take a taxi somewhere, and not walk around looking for a place to stay. Even in the day, walking from bus stations in Comayaguela to a hotel or hostel any distance away would be a bit risky.
January 2005, taxis run from 30L for a short run(3-4 minutes) to 60L across town.
December 2007, expect to pay between 50L for an average drive, up to about 100L at night, depending on distance and driving conditions (drivers may charge more if there is heavy traffic). Also, rapidito (busito) rates have increased this month to 8L per person, and colectivos to 10L per person.
Colectivos, like the city buses, run set routes from one point to another. If you see a long line of people weaving down a side walk, this is most likely a collectivo line.
There are common bus stops throughout the town, but are unlabeled. Find a large group of people standing on the sidewalks for the largest selection of bus routes. To know the main destinations of the buses, look on the front of the bus above the windshield. Most buses operate to distinct neighborhoods and link to El Centro or the market in Comayaguela. In the market in Comayaguela you can also find many inter-city buses with various prices and various levels of comfort, ranging from the most common chicken-bus to double decker luxury buses.
'''Parque el Picacho''', is a park overlooking the city which takes its name from the huge statue of Jesus Christ, also called "Cristo el Picacho", which is visible from almost any point in the city. Free parking is available at the entrance of the park, and entrance to the park is a nominal fee (around 5USD). The views from the park are gorgeous. The park is well maintained, clean, and seemingly not very busy (though likely busier on weekends). To get to the park if you don't have a car, you can take the rapidito bus that passes the park on the way to El Hatillo. The bus leaves from a few blocks north of the central park. If you walk to the end of the Calle Peotanal that begins in fron of the basilica, and follow it to the end, through the black gates, past the Museo de Identidad Nacional, all the way to the Bonillo Theatre, take a left there on the far side of the theatre, walk up one block and the bus leaves on the right. Or just ask someone in this area. On the rapidito ask the fare-taker to tell you when to get off for Picacho (about a 5-10minute walk in to the park gate, then a further 15 to the big jesus...). The bus ride takes around 15 to 20 minutes.
'''National Zoo''', on the same hill as the Picacho statue, with tropical animals such as monkeys, bright-colored parrots, and others. There is a separate entrance fee to enter the zoo. While not a horrible zoo, and worth seeing if you don't mind dropping a few dollars on the entrance fee, the zoo features mostly lethargic animals, the larger ones often noticiably insane as a result of their encagement. The zoo has a variety of monkeys, crocodiles, a jaguar, tapirs (anteaters), snakes, a collection of various raptors, and others.
'''El Cumbre''' The nicest restaurant in town ($20 per person (total) or so) is "El Cumbre" on top of the "mountain" of "El Hatillio." The food is awesome and the spectacular view of the city. Get there about 5:00 PM or 5:30 PM to enjoy the daytime, sunset and evening views of Teguc all in one sitting. Bring a camera.
'''La Milonga''' is an Argentinian restaurant in the part of town called La Palmira. It is a mid to up scale restaurant, where meals are 80-140 lempiras (4-8$). They have a good menu full of healthy and delicious food. They also have an good and reasonably priced wine menu, featuring Argentinian imports.
'''La Terasa de Don Pepe''' a well known eating establishmen just off the central park, la terasa de don pepe serves typical Honduran food at better quality and slightly higher prices than your everyday Honduran comedor. Good for travellers looking to sample the local food while taking little risk of tainted food. The location, on the second story, overlooking the street below (hence the name of the restaurant) is nice. The entrance however is very hidden...But there is a sign. It is located on the street to the east side of the park, one or two blocks to the north.
'''Duncan Maya''' is located just of the park also, on the same street as la terasa, but a bit closer to the park. It is on street level. Duncan Maya is often open later than other places in the area and at a certain hour will be your only alternative to fast food places. That being said, the food is greasy and "American-style" and generally over-priced a bit. But, they do sometimes have live bands at night...
Beers range in price from 12lempiras to 30 depending on where you buy them. The cheapest way to go is to buy bottles from a store, however to do this, or at least to get the cheapest price, you need to have a supply of empties to exchange for new ones. You will have to pay more the first time to buy the bottles, but then you've got the cycle going...
Honduras has four national beers, Salva Vida, Imperial, Port Royal, and Barena. They are all quite similar, all lagers. Port Royal is a bit skunkier.
The local hootch, known as "guaro" presumably deriving from "aguardiente" (fire water), comes in two brands, Tatascan and Yuscaran. This is cheap, strong cane liquor, the choice selection of drunks in Honduras. At 40% alcohol, a litre of this stuff could run you as little as a dollar. Probably best to avoid...or a one time occasion.
Cars are commonly broken into in broad daylight and the thieves don't even bother wearing masks. If you are driving, it is always worth it to pay to park in a guarded lot.
Follow these general guidelines: