Location

Some Facts and History

• Only 32km south of the Costa Rican border.
• The national currency is the Balboa, which is equivalent to the American dollar. There are not balboa bills, only coins, that are equal to American coins in size and value. The American dollar is also a legal currency.
• Four major islands: Colon island, Bastimentos, Popa island and Cristobal island.
• During the 17th century the bocas archipelago became a safe haven for pirates. The pirates were able to build and repair ships freely due to the absence of Spaniards in the Bocas del Toro. The abundance of food and wood from the rainforests made this an ideal location.

Getting There

There are several ways you can reach Bocas del Toro from Costa Rica. We chose the 8 hour, bus/water taxi route explained below, but Sansa, Nature Air, and Air Panama have daily 2 hour flights from San Jose for about $60 USD per person each way.

The Trip

We began our journey in the Terminal del Caribe bus station located at Aventia 13 Calle Central in San Jose, Costa Rica. Buses leave for the border town of Sixaola at 6am, 10am and 12pm, but the trip takes about six hours so I’d suggest taking an early bus like we did.

The tickets cost about $10 per person.

The border town of Sixaola on the southeastern edge of Costa Rica is little more than a bus stop and a border crossing. From where the bus drops you off you’ll need to walk back westward, toward the main road, about 200 meters before climbing a rather steep path up to the Costa Rican side of the border. The immigration office is tucked away on the West side of the road before you begin to cross the bridge to Panama.

TRAVELS TIP: When crossing back into Costa Rica, the immigration official will likely want to see proof that you will be leaving Costa Rica within your alloted VISA and may therefore ask for a copy or the original of your plane ticket out of the country. If you do not have this, you may be forced to buy a bus ticket on the spot, or they may simply not let you into the country.

The border crossing itself is not for the weak hearted. It’s an old railroad bridge spanning the river Sixaola that is now covered with a patchwork of boards that allow people, and 18 wheelers, to cross. Be prepared to squish yourself up against the rusting railing as a semi or a bus passes you only inches away. A few pictures of the bridge are below.

The Panamanian side of the border has a completely different feel with its serious looking, submachine gun toting soldiers. You’ll have to enter the far office to get your passport stamped and pay your entrance fee of $5 USD. They don’t normally have a lot of change so don’t hand them a big bill. At that time you will receive a separate sheet of paper, this is your VISA so do not lose this!! You’ll need to take your passport and VISA back outside to the walk up immigration booth where they will stamp your VISA and send you on your way.

There are multiple ways to get to Bocas del Toro from here, but we chose to take a communal taxi with five other tourists to the water taxis operated by Bocas Marine & Tours at Changuinola. The taxi was $10 USD per person and the water taxi was $6 per person. Each leg of the trip took about an hour. The water taxi is a fun ride through old canals and mangrove swamps, but I’d suggest bringing something to sit on as parts of the trip are rough and the fiberglass benches are hard. You may also want to bring a long sleeved shirt or light coat as it can get a bit chilly when the boat is at full speed.

TRAVELS TIP: There are two kinds of taxis in Panama, official taxis and pirate taxis. The latter used to be illegal but the problem got so bad that the Panamanian government decided to handle the situation in an odd way. They now issue separate licenses to the pirate taxis which allow them to charge you whatever they want, so BE CAREFUL. You may get seriously ripped off. Official taxis will have the emblem on the side and so are easy to spot.

The water taxis arrive on the far end of town and unfortunately for us our hotel was on the complete opposite end. Taxis here are very cheap though, costing no more than a dollar or two to traverse most of the island.

The atmosphere is laid back and Rastafarian to be sure, but you’ll more than likely be politely accosted as you walk down the street with people offering you fliers for various bars or trying to sell you marijuana. I didn’t get a good shot of the main street because it was quite long, but a partial shot from a small soda is below.

The first night we stayed at La Veranda. The room was pleasant but the three of us all felt that it was a little overpriced at $55 USD for a pretty basic room. A/C was an extra $6.50 per night and there was no TV, however there was a mini fridge. Also, they have a “no shoes” policy on the second floor. We aren’t sure why exactly but we suspected it was because the managers apartment was below us and our shoes would be loud on the wooden floor.

On the way to the La Veranda we were a bit lost and the owner of Casa Amarilla shouted down from his balcony with assistance. He also helped us find the bank and informed us of when the best bus left from Sixaola for our return trip. We checked out his hotel that night and stayed there for the remaining days. I highly recommend Casa Amarilla. Each room has A/C, a mini-fridge, cable TV, WiFi, hot water shower and a digital combination safe. Also each room entrance is covered by its own security camera. At $50 per night it can’t be beat.

As we discovered, there isn’t much to do in the town of Bocas except eat, sleep and party. It is mainly the jumping off point for other excursions. There is a decent small beach about a kilometer from town (pictured below) but if you want to experience the true beauty of the area, you’ll need to leave the Island of Bocas.

The day before we left my girlfriend and I decided to take a water taxi to Playa Wizard on the nearby island of Bastimentos. The taxi cost $8 per person and that includes drop off and pick up at a scheduled time. I’d suggest just paying the operator half the money before and half after you get back just to make sure you aren’t marooned.

Here we are pulling into the drop off point.

Playa Wizard was one of the most beautiful beaches I’ve ever seen. Partly because of the clear, warm, blue water and the pristine white sand that runs right up to tropical forest, but also because besides the two of us, there were a total of four other people on over 2 kilometers of beach.

The sun is intense so bring lots of water and a snack or two as the taxis usually don’t return for 4 to 6 hours. Also beware the rip tide on this beach, because of the sea floor and the cove it is very strong and pulls you in many different directions.

We tried several restaurants on Bocas but didn’t have much luck until the last night, when we ate dinner at The Pirate. The prices were average for the island at $6-$10 per plate, but the Mediterranean style dishes were excellent.

Our ride back to San Jose was the same as our ride out to Bocas with the total travel time being around 8 hours. Be sure to purchase your water taxi ticket well in advance as the boats fill up quickly and only the two earliest will get you to Sixaola in time for the express bus back to San Jose.

Budget

This was one of my more expensive excursions from San Jose. Including the bus tickets ($20), taxis ($20), water taxis ($22), border crossings ($5), three nights hotel ($135) and food ($80), the total for 4 days and 3 nights in Bocas del Toro came to about $282.00 USD.