Panama travel — Panama City, Bocas del Toro, San Blas, Boquete.
Boquete sits in two truths at once: a Chiriquí highland coffee village at 1,200m and one of Latin America’s most established expat scenes. Honest guide to Volcán Barú, the Pipeline and Sendero Los Quetzales, the geisha-coffee fincas, where to stay, and how to do it on a budget when a cafe pour-over runs $10.
Panama’s Caribbean archipelago: Isla Colón for the party scene, Isla Bastimentos for quiet beaches and Old Bank village, Carenero for the dock-bar crawl. Where to dive and snorkel, when to skip the rainy stretch, how to get there from Panama City, San José, or Puerto Viejo across the Costa Rica border.
Panama is the most-developed Central American country and the most-overlooked by Western backpackers. A working guide to Panama City, the Canal, Bocas del Toro, San Blas / Guna Yala, Boquete and Volcán Barú, El Valle de Antón, and the Pearl Islands, with honest costs, transport details, and which parts are actually worth your time.
David is the gateway to Boquete and the Chiriquí highlands. Here is what to do with your hours in this hot lowland capital before the bus leaves: where to eat sancocho, where to stay if overnighting, how to get to Boquete, Bocas del Toro, the islands of the Gulf of Chiriquí, and across the border to Costa Rica.
