Caribbean Coast

I read on Chiriqui Chatter by Don Ray there is talk of a direct flight from Florida to David.
They are building a new airport in David to have these flights, just have to look around to see when the flights will start .

The closest Caribbean beach is only a 45 minute drive from Panama City on a new divided tollway to Colon. You exit the tollway at Sabanitas, turn right at the El Rey and take the road easterly towards Portobelo.  Therefore, Panama City (PTY) presents your airport of choice from Miami. It is NOT the white sand beach you'll find throughout the Caribbean no matter what the brochures say.

Development-wise, there is not much built in this area.  At least one gated community of single family homes exists. The "grandest" development begun is Bala Beach in Maria Chiquita - midway or so between Sabanitas and Portobelo. This large-scale project envisioned 10+ residential buildings, a hotel and onsite restaurant. Buildings 1 and 2 have been "completed" (according to the developer but not most buyers) but no further work is underway. Clearly, the project is in distress and the developer is facing financial fatigue as it has not really done what is needed to convince buyers to close.  Indeed, few have even risking loss of their deposit.  Persons contracting for units in buildings 3 and 4 will never see their buildings built in their lifetimes, but perhaps will have an ability to take over defaulted buyers' units in buildings 1 or 2.  I do NOT recommend this development, but you might keep an eye on it in the future and see what has become of it.  If the present developer would get out of the way and go under, then perhaps new money could come in and continue the project.  Right now, no one wants to buy in the isolated location without seeing continued construction, which the present developer has failed to do for whatever reasons.  In other words, buildings 1 and 2 alone - even if every buyer closed - would not bring the amenities expected with a much larger scale development.  Demand was good in 2007 to 2008 and the units were very favorably priced for what was SUPPOSED to have been delivered, but not now.

P.S.  My comments and observations are directed only to the "closest Caribbean beaches" in the Portobelo area and not Bocas del Toro.

They have been talking about direct flights from the US to David since 2008.  First it was TACA airlines, then Aeroperlas (which is now gone) and of course Air Panama (whose planes come from COPA).  Yesterday the head of Panama's tourism and the head of COPA airlines announced the first direct flight from Boston to PTY.  There was no mention of flights to David.

There is an organization called davdirect.org - some guy with a website who is on a missión to get direct flights to David from anywhere!  If you want to join him on his site I'm sure he will appreciate it. 

But its still all talk.  There are no direct flights from any place in the US to David.  Not for 2013.

And the airport in David is not new, it's being remodeled.  It's been there a very long time.  They are also remodeling the airports in Rio Hato, Colon and one other.  Panama will then have five regional airports to make it easier to get around Panama instead of using buses for everything - and this is because Panama removed their train system many years ago including the tracks.  It would have been way easier to get around Panama by train over bus.  Can't go backwards now. 

smiley2 wrote:

I read on Chiriqui Chatter by Don Ray there is talk of a direct flight from Florida to David.
They are building a new airport in David to have these flights, just have to look around to see when the flights will start .

Thanks Auntieflo, guess wishing for a direct flight from the USA to David dosen't make it so !

Hello, My husband and I live in Bocas del Toro and we love it but it is not for everyone.
This is the rain forest side of the Caribbean(215 inches per year) and everything is green and lush. The beaches are beautiful. It rains for some time almost every day or night but not all day  or night usually. We have learned when we get a sunny, flat water day.. do not hesitate.. go out on the water and enjoy it for it may rain the next day. There are enough sunny or partly cloudy days to suit us and we don't mind the rain, it is warm and liquid sunshine. We much prefer it to snow and cold. The road to get here is Panamerican highway and very good. The roads in Bocastown are pretty good. they have paved many in the last ten years although the road to Bluff beach is still partly sand and potholed.
You would want to be pretty healthy to live here. We have a hospital but they are pretty basic and if you need serious or chronic care you best be nearer a bigger hospital such as David or Panama city. We also have the Floating Doctors, a volunteer group from the states that came here to serve the Indiginous people but have a clinic anyone can go to.
As far as International airport, you fly into Panama city from Miami and then take a smaller plane to Bocas. David has recently become International and they are supposed to start direct flight from the states to there soon, but that is so far just talk no action.
You can drive from Panama city to Bocas by going on the Pan American highway for about 8 hours, then you have to take a ferry to Bocas since we are an island.
There are plenty of Expats here who live here full time and part time but I don't know how organized they are. There are definitely plenty of people to make friends with.  There are some small American type developments but mostly folks are pretty independent here and live all over Bocas del Toro and the surrounding islands.
We put up with the fact there is more trash than we like and try to organize recycling and educate the natives. Progress is being made,... slowly. All in all, we live right on the beautiful Caribbean in a lifestyle that we could never afford in the states.
Hope that helps

Yes, there are good Caribbean beaches (Red Frog and Bastimiento)in Bocas del Toro which is about 8 hours drive from Panama City. Alternatively, you can fly by Air Panama - 45minutes on a twin-engine turboprop. Suggestion - fly up and take the bus back to PC.

Tocumen (PTY - Panama City) airport is where you will have to fly to from Miami.

Just over an hour's drive from PC is Portobelo on the Caribbean sea. There are very nice beaches (white sand, clear water)in this area. Take the Corredor Norte from PC and turn off at Sabanitas. Take the road to Portobelo. Corredor Norte is a modern 4-lane toll road. Portobelo has the ruins of two forts and an old Spanish chapel. It was plundered several times by the famous British pirate, Sir Henry Morgan, operating out of Port Royal, Jamaica.