Thread: Boquete trip report.

Ever since we wrrived to Panama I have been trying to find a place that has everything I expected Panama to be. My criteria were as follows:

English language schools and pre-K
Food stores with quality goods and good selections
Secure neighborhood, friendly people
Nice weather meaning sunny but no sweating and no chilly weather either
Access to locally grown healthy meats and veggies
Affordable property prices
Restaurants and shops within 15 minutes driving distance
Access to tennis courts with players
Mountains and nature nearby
I had enough beach in my life so that was not something I was looking for

I been to Altos del Maria which was a letdown
I been to El Valle which was worse
Cerro Azul pleeeease

I was ready to give up my search until we took that 5 hours drive to Boquete. The place is awsome. The only thing is about the tennis. Granted I have not been in the Boquete Country Club to see the courts and find out if there are decent players. The courts I found were unfit to be a parking lot let alone tennis. Other than that all other criteria have been met. David is 32 measured kms away which translates to 40 minutes of rolling downhill in neutral where you will find all major supermarkets, hardware stores and fast food restaurants. Going into David however is not essential in most cases since you will find everything locally. Plenty restaurants with good prices and food. Cars and EVEN TAXI CABS stop when you cross the streets. People hail you on the streets, violent crime is virtually nonexistent (drunken fights excluded), the weather being close to perfect although it tends to rain in the afternoons like everywhere else in Panama, you will feel perfect in shorts and a T-short day and night.

To be continued...

Boquete Panama - Cool, Green and the best Coffee in the world
A good site
I like Boquete as well.

There seem to be a complete lack of respect towards erosion in Boquete. The most exclusive area Valle Escondido has condos and houses at the base of a steep rock face begging for a mud slide to burry the whole shitload of people who live there. Upon me driving around found a road where one lane of asphalt was cleary razored off by one such event. People also love putting houses next to the river dissecting the town which more tha once washed hotels bridges and houses away. Jaramillo is one pretty poison IMHO. Volcancito on the other hand is OK. You seldom see police around which points not to the lack of resources but the lack of need for them to be displayed enmasse. Somehow seeing law eniforcement with automatic weapons o nevery corner never made me safer, only nervous because if there is a need for such a show of force I don't feel like sticking around to find out what they are protecting the public from? The ones that are there are very well equipped with ATVs and trucks and keep a low profile. Plenty expats, gobs of coffee which unfortunately won't last for loss of land to developers. Many Indian seasonal workers scurry around and pick coffee in the harvest season. I recommend Ruiz coffee's Coffee Tour led by Carlos who is fluent in English and knows absolutely everything about coffee. Also the Baru restaurant at the central square is a place to try althougservice is slow as molasses. Saturday night they have a disco there. The Creppes restaurant has good French food and an owner who suffers from verbal diarrhea in two languages is fine too. Behind the Villa Marita motel you will find a state of the art hydroponics veggie garden run by the former owner of the motel. Selling to the public organic dreams of greens at dirt cheap. Prices.

More to follow

you found the weather okey ? they get about 20 ft of rain there a year and about 30 ft in potrerillos . when i have gone visiting friends up there that is the only place in panama where i have to wear a long sleeve shirt . and to be honest with you , friends who live up there thought it was just too hot in my area of the country , now that they have been there 2 years they are getting climatized and have said, they are starting to find it cool . but on the other hand with the tennis court you could just build one up there and charge all the other gringos a dollar and a half just to see it . and anywhere outside of the city is a nice place in this country . LOL

Originally Posted by Sir Stressalot

There seem to be a complete lack of respect towards erosion in Boquete. The most exclusive area Valle Escondido has condos and houses at the base of a steep rock face begging for a mud slide to burry the whole shitload of people who live there. Upon me driving around found a road where one lane of asphalt was cleary razored off by one such event. People also love putting houses next to the river dissecting the town which more tha once washed hotels bridges and houses away.

Boquete only floods three out of four years!

2008: Severe Flooding in Boquete and Volcan - Panama Guide

2009: The Big Story - Flooding and Lanslides All Over Panama - Panama Guide

2011: Panama Government Declares State Of Emergency for Chiriqui Province - Panama Guide

Yeah I liked the weather while I was there, even if it rained every afternoon. That is the price you pay for such fertility of land. There are areas that I'd live where flooding and mud slides are both impossible but there are areas I could not even spend a night without the fear of the roof caving in under a landslide. I found it to be just at the perfect temperature for both shorts and jeans, not being cold and not feeling hot wearing either. I lived long enough in the Caribbeans to not miss 9 months A/C usage. After all said and done however I will not rush into moving there unless for some reason Coronado gets old with us.

I guess I was right telling you Boquete might be the best choice for you.

Hi,
I gather you own a car...

So - do you think a person could you live there without it, just walking and taking cabs occasionally?

Sir S,
I gather you own a car...

What would you think about living in Boqueta for a while WITHOUT a car? Just walking and taking occasional cabs or buses. Do-able, or no?

Buses and taxis are cheap and plentiful.....very doable.

Absolutely if you got no kids.

Having a car is too much stress.

Yeah Ed I see you daily on a Diablo Rojo.