Great trip overall
Panama
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Feb 13 - Feb 28, 2025
Overall the trip was well planned with lots of tours and things to see and do. Here are my comments in more detail:
- we planned out own 2 weeks in Bocas del Toro prior to the schedule that KimKim (Jessie) set up for us. In hindsight 1 week would have been more than enough time in this area. It is definitely a party area with lots of young people but the area also needs better care and maintenance. We were not impressed with the amount of garbage littered everywhere.
-thank you Jessie for arranging transportation from Bocas to Boquete. While Jerry the driver was very friendly I thought he drove a bit too fast to feel safe on some of the roads but all was well, we arrived safe and sound
- we would have loved at least 2 more days in Boquete! We didn't have time to really explore the town or some of the interesting hikes in the area. Jessie please rethink how many tours you book in a day: after a long drive to get there, we were scheduled for a night tour of the jungle - thankfully it was postponed until the next night due to rain. In addition, I had NO IDEA how hard the hike up to Baru volcano would be and that it would start at midnight (thank goodness the night tour had been cancelled). While I had trained for the hike, at about the 8th km my groin 'popped'. The guide encouraged me to go on even though I told him I was in pain and felt a bit faint. I made it up another 2 kms before I said that this was crazy and that I needed to go back (I knew that if I continued to the top, I would NOT be able to make it back down). In hindsight, given my age, I should have booked just for the hike up and then had a ride down. The guide Daniel, was nice but too young. He didn't listen to me when I told him what I was feeling, he walked ahead of me and wasn't even an emotional support and someone to talk to. Also the headlamp I was given did not have strong batteries and I had to use my cell phone to see plus no option of hiking poles! For the price those things should have been included (I couldn't bring my hiking poles with me on the plane).
- my husband loved the hanging bridges hike and would recommend that again. He said the guide was knowledgable and friendly.
- I would pass on Los Cangilones Canyon: it was crowded (buses of people came in) and was dirty with litter left behind. It didn't feel really pleasant. The guide Luis was very nice and he generously brought us water and fresh fruit which was amazing.
- We all really liked the short walk into the waterfalls as the water was clean and fresh. Again as a group we did pick up a fair amount of garbage. There was some miscommunication between guides. Since the night hike was cancelled a second time, we were suppose to add on the hot springs but Luis didn't know anything about it. Thankyou Jesse for reimbursing us for that cost.
- In hindsight, there were too many tours booked for Boquete leaving us feeling quite tired.
- Carlos, driver, picked us up in Boquete and took us to get our rental vehicle in David. RAVES to Carlos!!! excellent driver and he very kindly waited over an hour while we did all the paperwork for the rental - he didn't leave us until he knew we were set to go.
-LOVED Magic Mountain Inn in Las Lajas. Very clean and new. Beautiful views and great breakfasts. And the owners pointed us in the right direction for great food - local pizza place was fantastic and one of the best meals of the trip was at Naturelamente restaurant which the owner made the reservation for us.
- Driving directions to Santa Catalina led us to an extra 3 hours of driving as a bridge was out on the route suggested, not fun.
- Hotel Sol y Mar was very comfortable and the dinners in the restaurant were excellent! The trip to Coiba National Park was excellent and the boat driver went out of his way to ensure that we saw dolphins, tuna jumping, a flock of pelicans flying over the water and some brown footed boobies sitting on a log in the middle of the ocean.
- Again directions to get to Valle de Anton were challenging (there were no road signs to guide us).
- The Golden Frog Inn was great - clean and comfortable. The town of en Valle was quaint with some good restaurants. It also felt good to have a little cooler weather as a break.
- Edwin, driver in Panama City, was excellent. We were 45 minutes late getting the car rental place but he was there waiting with a smile on his face (probably cause we looked a bit shell shocked at the traffic in the city - crazy).
- Was not impressed with the Hilton Garden Inn. There was a HOT tub on the roof but no swimming pool to relax in. The front desk couldn't break a $100 bill for us (not could the restaurant even though we were going to buy something) so we had to go to the casino. Also the location wasn't great. Suggestion: book a hotel in the old town. A much more interesting area to stay.
- LOVED our tour guide, Eduardo. The City Tour was excellent - saw so much of the city and learned much of its history plus the canal of course.
- I would pass on the Panamena Night Tour. The food wasn't very impressive and felt like we just went to some tourist areas and didn't really get a feel for the culture to the food. It was really disappointing.
- LOVED the Soberania National Park Tour! That was so much better than I expected!!!
- Edwin was ready and waiting for us for the early morning drive to the airport and we arrived safe and sound and in plenty of time for our flights.
As I said overall a really great tour as we got to see so many different places in Panama . Maybe space the tours out better and be super aware of the ages of the travelers and ensure that they are all aware of how much so of these tours will take. We came home very tired as it was so active but feeling very glad we saw as much as we did.
Jesse, thank you for being so responsive while we were traveling and different issues came up.
Hotel Reviews
VERY clean, new and comfortable rooms and facilities. The owners were fantastic and the breakfasts each morning were delicious and plentiful. The views are amazing and the grounds are well laid out with flowers and interesting trees - the butterflies enjoyed it as well! Highly recommend if you are in the area.
While the rooms were very clean and comfortable, the landscaping and bird life was absolutely fantastic! I wish I had more time just to sit in the gardens plus the breakfast was excellent.
Really liked that this was a little more rustic (built on the side of a hill which was a little challenging walking up all the steps) and the view from our shared deck was amazing. The best thing about this place was the manager Gino Testo and the chef Arlin Camarena. Gino couldn't have been more attentive and helpful - he works nonstop (I was exhausted watching him) and he consistently wanted to ensure that we were having a great time. Arlin prepared amazing fish and seafood dinners - we were not tempted to eat at any other restaurants in the area because we were sure that they wouldn't top what Arlin prepared. The only reason that I didn't put 5 stars was that on our second day there, the driveway was being repaired and we couldn't drive off the property to do some more exploring. We did go for a walk but were unable to get to the surfing beach which was disappointing. I am sure with the driveway repaired, all is goof.
Exceptionally clean and comfortable in a beautiful location with gorgeous landscaping. A fairly long walk to town was the only downside but even then it was only a $5 cab ride.
While it was clean and the beds comfortable it wasn't located in a very interesting area, the staff weren't very helpful (issues getting $100 bill broken down, trouble getting directions - was told to google it and we weren't using wifi - and there wasn't a swimming pool only a NOT tub which was definitely not needed in 30 plus weather. Would not stay there again nor would I recommend it.
Activity Reviews
LOVED this experience!
Outstanding and so much more than we expected. Our boat driver was so good at spotting animals and giving us such an amazing experience.
I asked the night before I was to be picked up "if I could do this". At midnight when picked up, I asked the guide "can I do this". Having never done a hike like this (but I did a lot of training at home before coming down there), I had no clue what to expect. The guide, while nice, was ill equipped to 'hear' me when I said that I was in pain, that I was concerned about how I would get back down if I made it to the top. I was given a headlamp that lacked good batteries and had to use my cell phone since we started the hike at midnight and it was pitch black. No hiking poles available either. I was actually doing quite well until km 8 when my groin 'popped' - very strange as that has never happened before and was VERY painful. The guide encouraged me to go further even though I told him I was in pain and a bit dizzy. On we went for another 2 kms and which point I said that I could make it for the remaining 3 kms but would never be able to get back down so we needed to turn around. The guide walked 4-5 m's in front of me so wasn't offering any moral support. Finally at one point as 4x4 trucks were bringing tour groups up the mountain, the guide asked me if I would be willing to pay one of the drivers to let me ride with them. I jumped at the chance since I was in tears from the pain in my groin. Thankfully the last truck had room for one person. I never made it to the very top as I was in too much pain but I got as close as the truck could go so was happy about that. Thankfully I was fine within 48 hours and didn't damage myself but given the cost and my own expectations (rightly or wrongly), I was very disappointed in the lack of medical awareness and support
Unfortunately this hike was cancelled 2 nights in a row due to heavy rainfall.
Not worthwhile. While the water felt good and it was fun to jump into the canyon, the place was too crowded (busloads of people arrived) and it was dirty. There was litter everywhere making us feel 'cringey'
Wonderful experience! A very long boat ride but was very fun seeing the flock of pelicans, the brown footed boobies, the school of tuna and the dolphins swimming alongside the boat. The snorkeling was great as well.
So much better than expected! We saw a lot of the various areas of town plus a good 2.5 hours at the canal learning about its history and watching the boats for through the locks.
Not worth it. I thought we would get a 'flavour' of the culture as well as the food but instead we experienced some touristy stuff including a roof top bar that could have been in NYC or London England
