Bocas del Toro, Panama - carribean dream for two

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Not long ago we made a fascinating trip to Panama province "Bocas del Toro" ("Leaps of a bull"). Señor Christopher Columbus had a rich imagination - he gave such a name to archipelago while discovering America. Some stone, sticking out of the water, reminded him a bull.

The archipelago Bocas del Toro consists of several hundreds of islands, large, small and very small, manned and not. This place on a world map also got its popularity due to the TV show "Survivor" which was made here in the beginning of 2000th years for Russian and French TV.

So, at 7 in the morning on Saturday we landed in a town with the same name "Bocas del Toro" on island Colon. Our small plane flied low and slowly, and we could see all country from height of the bird's flight. Time of the flight from Pacific coast of the country to Carribean takes just 1 hour.

There are 2 air companies that make flights "Panama City - Bocas del Toro" - Aeroperlas (the flight of that company we took) and Air Panama. By the way, we were surprised by the service on board - much better than some big air companies.

The downtown on island Colon is a must-see! Though this part of the island doesn't have a good beach, but there are lots of cheap hostels (US$8-11 per night). That's why many young people from Europe, USA, Canada come here to surf and just enjoy. There are pubs and restaurants to go out at night, so you are not going to feel boring.

We stayed in the hotel Playa Tortuga - a 5-star hotel in 10 minutes by car from the downtown. The price per night is about US$150. Of course there are some cute little hotels in downtown with better prices about US$ 50-100, but for couples who love comfort and don't want to risk - hotel Playa Tortuga can be the best choice.

This hotel has nice rooms, all with ocean view, nice pool, 2 restaurants, one of which is located at the end of the pier and you can enjoy a beautiful panoramic sea view. The service and the food were also good (especially piña colada 😊).

One thing that you must do on Bocas del Toro - make a boat trip. You will find tours offers in your hotel or can go to the downtown - there's plenty of offers. The prices are almost the same everywhere - about US$80-100 per day for a couple (if you go with a group, price will be lower).

We rent a boat for two of us in our hotel and our trip to paradise started. Be ready to see with your own eyes all carribean miracles which you saw on TV or on pictures in internet before! Crystal waters with 5 colors, white sands, waves, sun and your second half - this is where your dream begins!

You can visit island Bastimentos and its famous Red Frog Beach. The beach got its name because of the poison red frog that lives on this island. Little kids will catch these frogs and show to you for 1 dollar 😊 After that you can have lunch in a sea restaurant - a wooden bungalow on piles in the middle of the big blue ocean. One of the must-go place is Zapatilla island. Take a walk along the coast and stay in a place with nobody there - just you, your second half and Zapatilla's virgin paradise. We are sure, you're going to like!

Your guide - a sailor on a boat - will tell you about all places worth to see. Just one last advice - be aware of the crabs. Rod was bited by one of them 😊

Our rating: hotel 8/10, trip 10/10

If you want to get more information about our trips, visit our website - Couple Travelling.
We will be glad to get any comments from you!

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