They frequently raided the Spanish treasure ships, cargo vessels carrying gold and silver from the New World to Spain. English, French and Dutch pirates established settlements on the islands. During this time, buccaneers found the vacated, mostly unprotected islands a haven for safe harbour and transport. In contesting with the Spanish for colonisation of the Caribbean, the English occupied the Bay Islands on and off between 15. On several occasions, the islands were subject to military occupation. Sea travellers frequently stopped over at Roatán and the other islands as resting points. Various economic activities were engaged in and political struggles played out between the European powers, chiefly Britain and Spain. Throughout the European colonial era, the Bay of Honduras attracted an array of individual settlers, pirates, traders and military forces. More devastating for the local people was exposure to infectious diseases to which they had no immunity, such as smallpox and measles. Soon after, the Spanish began trading in the islands for slave labour. Christopher Columbus visited the neighboring island of Guanaja on his fourth voyage (1502–1504). The indigenous people of the Bay Islands are believed to have been related to either the Paya, the Maya, the Lenca or the Tolupan, which were the tribes present on the mainland. Satellite islands at the eastern end are Morat, Barbareta, and Pigeon Cay. This section is called Helene, or Santa Elena in Spanish. The easternmost quarter of the island is separated by a 15-meter-wide channel through the mangrove forest. Further to the east are the settlements of Mount Pleasant, French Harbour, French Cay, First Bight, Parrot Tree, Jonesville and Oakridge on the south coast, and Punta Gorda on the north coast. To the east of Coxen Hole are several cays, including Jesse Arch Cay, Sarah Cay, and Second Cay. West of Coxen Hole are the settlements of Gravel Bay, Flowers Bay and Keyhole Bay on the south coast, and Sandy Bay, West End and West Bay on the north coast. The most populous town of the island is Coxen Hole, capital of Roatán municipality, located in the southwest.

Most of the infrastructure is on the western half of the island. Offshore reefs offer opportunities for diving. The island rests on an exposed ancient coral reef, rising to about 270 metres (890 ft) above sea level. Roatan Bay Islands from hotel lobby display

Isoar roatan honduras