Feliz Navidad
For the final week of 2018, my family and I visited Boquete, a small town at the foot of a large volcano and a mountain range in the western part of Panama.
We flew down to Panama City by way of Miami, landing a little late. Given an already tight connection to our local flight to western Panama, it was not really a surprise that we ended up missing our third flight. So, we got booked onto a flight for the following evening and stayed overnight at a nice hotel in Panama City. This gave us an unplanned chance to stop in at the Panama Canal museum and to get a quick look at the Panama Canal itself. Not a bad delay!
We eventually got onto our final flight a day late and made it to David, Panama in the western part of the country. We were picked up there by John, who works as a guide for one of the local outdoor adventure companies. He took us on the last leg of the trip, a 45-minute drive from David to Boquete. John was friendly and full of local knowledge. He told us about the area and also about the outdoor activities he guides. We made a note and planned to ask for John for at least some of our planned adventures. We finally arrived by 7pm on the second day of the trip, in time to have a nice dinner at the resort.
Our boutique hotel was called Los Establos, and is located about a mile up some steep roads into the mountains. Los Establos means “the stables,” and the property has a history of serving as stables but today it is a small hotel of about 25-30 rooms on beautifully landscaped grounds that include a working coffee plantation. There are spectacular views of the nearby volcano and mountains.
After a great dinner and some wine, we looked into the available day-trips and half-day trips. There were about a dozen adventures available, some a few hours, some half day, and a few all day. We decided on and booked a group of adventures, some as a full family, others just involving those most interested. We booked ziplining, canyon river swimming, white water rafting, a hot spring visit, a coffee plantation and processing tour, a visit to an apiary (bees), and a 4 hour hike with birdwatching and a chance to see monkeys and sloths. Great stuff! We then turned in early, enjoying our beautiful rooms.
The location was incredible, and we had great meals at the hotel and in town. We enjoyed spectacular views of the mountains and the beautiful landscaped grounds. On the walk to breakfast every morning, there was a huge rainbow visible. Each day after our adventures, we played pool and enjoyed drinks at the hotel happy hour. On Christmas Eve, there was a special meal and at midnight the whole town of Boquete shoots fireworks to welcome Christmas day. Later on Christmas day, there was a parade in the town which some of us attended. Our week was absolutely amazing.
The rest of this post is a small collection of our many pictures.
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| Sign at the foot of the town |
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| Sculpture in the town square |
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| Los Establos, where we stayed |
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| Los Establos |
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| Los Establos |
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| Los Establos, beautifully landscaped |
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| Rainbow every morning on the walk to breakfast |
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| Visiting a Coffee Plantation |
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| Yellow coffee fruit is ready |
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| Green coffee fruit is not ready |
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| Red coffee fruit is ready |
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| Natural drying, one of several processes |
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| On the "Pipeline Hike", we saw the oldest tree in Panama |
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| The sign says 1000 years, but we were told it is much older |
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| Flowers on the hike |
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| Flowers on the hike |
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| Flowers on the hike |
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| We saw lots of birds on the hike, but the highlight was seeing 15-20 howler monkeys |
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| This mature male was protective of his group |
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| At the canyon river swim |
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| Good place for a jump, about 12-15 feet up |
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| Mike takes the plunge |
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| Richie jumped in, too. Later, Tacey and I jumped as well. |
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| Ziplining! Way up in the mountains |
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| Our family, ready to zipline |
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| Mike |
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| Rich |
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| Tacey |
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| Deke |
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| We got "certificates" at the end after zip lining 13 platforms up in the mountains |
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| Another river swim in a great location |
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| Tacey, Deke, Mike at Los Establos |
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| Steve and Mike at the Christmas Parade |
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| Steve and Deke get a beer in town |
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| Our family with John, our guide |
