Panama Travel Group offers numerous boat tours for those visiting Bocas del Toro. Below, we have listed some of the more popular destinations, however, custom tours can be coordinated for groups or those interested. Full day and half-day tours are available.
Amenities
We believe that it is the little things that make your vacations important. All of our tour boats provide a shaded area for sun protection. We also provide bottled water, an ice chest with ice, and beach towels for your beach excursions. Most importantly, we provide experienced, bilingual guides who make our trips both fun and safe.
Dolphin Tour
This full day tour that departs daily from our docks. The boat departs at 9:30, so we ask guests to arrive no later than 9:15 (it is best to reserve the day before, as this is our most popular tour). The first stop on the tour is Dolphin Bay, with Isla Cristobal and the mountains of the Continental divide as a stunning backdrop. Watch bottlenose dolphin frolic in their natural habitat. After watching these magnificent creatures we depart to Crawl Cay for our first snorkeling experience. Explore a beautiful coral reef and see a variety of colorful tropical fish, sponges, crabs, lobsters and shrimp.
After snorkeling we stop at one of the three landmark restaurants in Crawl Cay for a quick lunch. After lunch we head to Bastimentos Island and Red Frog Beach, one of the most scenic beaches in the archipelago. After an easy ten minute walk along a manicured path through the rainforest (where it is not unusual to see monkeys, sloths, and the famous red frogs), you come upon a beautiful beach with white sand. Enjoy frolicking in the waves or just stretch out and soak up the sun, the choice is yours.
After the beach excursion, we head to Isla Solarte where we snorkel the dramatic vertical reef known locally as Hospital Point. This reef explodes with color as fish dart in and out of dense stands of coral. After snorkeling at Hospital Point, the boat returns to the dock between 4:00 and 4:30.
Bird Island Tour
This full day tour departs at 9:30. Because Bird Island (also known as Swan Cay) is on the windward side of Isla Colon, this tour is weather dependent and is best explored in late summer and early fall. Bird Island is an uninhabited island that is a nesting site for frigates, terns, and red footed boobies.
The island is protected by Panamanian law so it is not possible to go ashore, but the scenery is magnificent from the boat. After exploring Bird Island by boat (we provide binoculars for bird watching), it is time to snorkel the beautiful reefs that surround the island. Observe soft corals swaying in the current and beautiful angel fish, parrotfish and butterflyfish as they flit about the reef. After snorkeling, the boat departs Bird Island and heads to Bocas del Drago and Starfish Beach, two of the more remote beaches on Isla Colon. Grab lunch at a beachside restaurant and swim, body surf, or just relax under some majestic palm trees.
Don’t miss the hundreds of Cushion Sea Stars that give Starfish Beach its name. After the beach excursion the boat heads south along the sparsely populated coast of Isla Colon. After a beautiful cruise, the boat reaches Punta Manglar (Mangrove Point) for a second snorkeling experience. Punta Manglar is a massive reef where it is not unusual to see spotted eagle rays cruising along the reef line. Watch schooling grunts, snappers, and spadefish patrol the reef as you marvel at the diversity of the underwater world.
Zapatilla Tour
This full day tour departs at 9:30. This tour is weather dependent and is best explored in late summer and early fall. The first stop on the tour is Dolphin Bay, with Isla Cristobal and the mountains of the Continental divide as a stunning backdrop. Watch bottlenose dolphin frolic in their natural habitat. After watching these magnificent creatures we depart to Crawl Cay for our first snorkeling experience. Explore a beautiful coral reef and see a variety of colorful tropical fish, sponges, crabs, lobsters and shrimp.
After snorkeling we stop at one of the three landmark restaurants in Crawl Cay for a quick lunch. After lunch, the boat cruises to the famous Zapatilla Cays for a beach excursion. The Zapatilla Cays are part of the Bastimento National Marine Park so there is an additional $10 fee for non-Panamanians. Enjoy these pristine tropical islands ringed with beautiful white sand.
Swim, body surf in the clear waters or lay out and soak up some rays. After the beach excursion, we head to Isla Solarte where we snorkel the dramatic vertical reef known locally as Hospital Point. This reef explodes with color as fish dart in and out of dense stands of coral. After snorkeling at Hospital Point, the boat returns to the dock between 4:00 and 4:30.
Tour prices vary from $20 to $30 per person, depending on the tour selected.
Special excursions: Please inquire
We also offer half day and full day snorkeling tours in the Bocas del Toro Archipelago.
Reserve this tour: info@panamatravelgroup.com
+507-399-9830 (Panama) | 1-786-539-4731 (USA)
