Thread: Looking for the downside

Hello all,

I am very interested in retiring in Panama or Ecuador. I haven't been to either but from my research so far I like Panama best.
The only downside I can see in Panama is the amount of rain. How does the rain occur? Is it raining constantly or is more of an hour or two a day of pouring? Or is it totally unpredictable?
Any input is welcome.

Thanks,

Jim

Dry season in Boquete it will only rain every couple of weeks or so, but the winds are epic. Wet season? Sometimes it rains buckets all day long, sometimes it's sunny all day long. Sometimes the clouds are down on top of your head and just they just mist you. Mostly it is sunny and beautiful until the afternoon and the clouds start rolling in, then a nice rain for an hour or so to cool off the day right around dark, so it is nice and cool for bed.

It rained pretty hard last week due to a tropical storm brewing on the Caribbean side. Lots of beautiful waterfalls coming down the mountainsides....and the streets

A lot of it depends upon where you live, like Becky mentioned Boquete can get very wet. During the rainy season much of this country is getting rained on pretty darn hard. Flooding is not uncommon in many areas of Panama BUT this small country is very diversified. I live on the Azuero peninsula which is the driest section of the country. This area (in my opinion) is the best place to live during the rainy season. We still get a lot of sun during the rainy season but we are actually happier with a nice cloud cover. The sun here is very bright (and hot) so some grey skies are appreciated. The offset is the dry season, where there is little to no rain whatsoever, things turn brown, and holy cow it's hot.

Honestly, if I could, I would spend the dry season in the highlands (4-5 months) and the rest of the year on the Azuero.

By the highlands do you mean Boquete? I don't understand how high winds and rain figure in to how Boquete is such a favorite of the expat community...I would like the higher altitudes to avoid the heat and bugs but not if it means "epic" winds and daily rain. Cuenca Ecuador sounds better already!

Thanks Becky, MRWOOHO and, Hiddenspring. That was exactly what I was loking for.