EXPEDITION · PANAMA
10 days Pacific and Caribbean
10 days · Pacific and Caribbean
9 nights: 1 in Casco Viejo, 5 at the base, 3 in Bocas
from 2,750 EUR per person
Indicative rate for a group of 4 people, adjusted for 2 to 4. Solo traveler: private tailor-made accompaniment where nothing is shared, quoted after a direct conversation. More than 4 people: additional boats and coordination, personalized quote after a conversation.
A SAMPLE ITINERARY
Two oceans in ten days. Five nights on the Pacific, three on the Caribbean, a crossing of the country in between. Panama allows what very few destinations allow: changing coast, ecosystem and species card in the middle of the same trip.
The first part plays out at the Gulf of Chiriquí base, after a night in Casco Viejo and a switch in one morning: flight to David, the road, the dock, forty minutes of sea. Four full days of fishing with no fixed schedule. Offshore when the window opens, the coast for roosterfish and cubera, the desert islands, the mangrove, the kayak in the bay. A turtle comes up to breathe between two drifts. Ashore, the fruits discovered along the outings, mangoes when in season.
The transition happens in the morning, after breakfast at the base. Boat back, then driver. Two options depending on the group's mood: three hours of road to David airport then thirty minutes of flight to Bocas, or five and a half hours of road with a lunch stop to Almirante, then lancha to the archipelago. Fast on one side, the country rolling by on the other. The choice is made while preparing the trip.
Bocas opens another chapter. You go from fishing camp to a chosen address: beachfront house at Bluff Beach, twenty minutes from town, or refined lodging on Bastimentos and the archipelago for complete calm. Equipped kitchen, air conditioning, barbecue. And the first morning sets the tone: you fish from the beach, in the shore break, a few meters from the house. Jacks, tarpon, groupers, depending on the hour and the tide. No boat needed to start here: the sand is enough. Bocas also lends itself to tables you go back to and laughter you do not plan: we have a few addresses we keep for those we accompany. On the last evening, the end-of-expedition dinner. The other meals are cooked at the house or taken in town, each to their own.
Two terrains, two logics, and one cursor to set: the Caribbean can be lived slow or fished hard. Some groups arrive in Bocas to keep going morning and evening, others to breathe after five days of Pacific: the beach, the terraces, a ride through the archipelago. Both readings hold, and the cursor is set through conversation, when the dates are fixed.
DAY BY DAY
Day 1
Panama City, Casco Viejo
Pickup at Tocumen, transfer to the historic quarter. First night before the switch.
Day 2
The Pacific switch
Flight to David, road, boarding at the dock. Base in early afternoon, first coastal outing possible.
Days 3 to 6
Coiba region
Offshore, coast, islands, mangrove. The program is decided each morning by the sea. Four full days on the Pacific card.
Day 7
The crossing
Boat, road, then flight or lancha depending on the option chosen. Arrival in the Bocas del Toro archipelago. First Caribbean evening.
Days 8 and 9
Bocas del Toro
Fishing from the beach at daybreak, boat to the cays if the mood goes offshore. Or nothing: the house, the beach, the barbecue.
Day 10
Return
Bocas to Panama City flight, transfer to Tocumen for the international flight.
This scope describes what we coordinate for you. Each service is paid directly to the provider on site.
INCLUDED
- Arrival night in Casco Viejo (Panama City)
- Domestic flight Panama City to David
- Driver David to the dock and back
- Boat transfer to the base
- Lodging at the base
- All meals at the base (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
- Boats and fuel at the base
- Fishing coordination by the local partner
- ELSE CODED accompaniment and coordination on site
- Domestic return flight Bocas to Panama City
- Transfer from the base to Bocas (car and flight, or car and lancha depending on the option)
- Lodging in Bocas (Bluff Beach or the archipelago depending on the group profile)
- One end-of-expedition dinner in Bocas (last evening)
- Transfer Bocas to Panama City
NOT INCLUDED
- Meals in Bocas other than the end-of-expedition dinner (every house has a full kitchen and barbecue)
- International flights
- Travel insurance
- High-end fishing gear rental (option, quoted on request)
- Montuosa or Jicarón bivouac (option, quoted on request)
- Alcoholic drinks
FISHING GEAR
Most of the anglers who come to us are experienced practitioners who arrive with their own gear, suited to their style and the species they target. Nothing to add in that case.
For those preparing their first exotic trip, we advise on the right equipment before departure. On site, high-end gear can be rented, and a stock of quality equipment can be lent depending on the outings. This is discussed case by case while preparing the trip.
SEASON
On the Pacific, the high season runs from December to May. It is the pelagic period: marlin, sailfish, wahoo, tuna, dorado. The rest of the year remains very fishable. The bay is protected and coastal fishing works year-round: roosterfish, cubera, jacks, corvina.
On the Caribbean, the best window runs from late August to mid-November. It is the period without swell, when shore casting from Bluff Beach becomes accessible. You step out of the house with a coffee in one hand and a rod in the other: the beach is one minute away. The rest of the year, fishing is done by boat in the sheltered zones of the archipelago: dolphin bay, mangroves, inner spots.
The two coasts do not share the same calendar, and that is a strength. Pacific coastal fishing works year-round, the calm Caribbean window runs from late August to mid-November, the pelagic season from December to May. The formula is set on what you target first.
OPTIONS
Local bivouac, nothing more to plan
One night on an island twenty minutes to an hour by boat from the base. Campfire, night fishing, lobster hunting depending on the mood. Nothing more to plan, other than your own sleeping gear: hammock or light tent, bag. To be mentioned while preparing the trip.
Montuosa or Jicarón expedition bivouac, built ahead of time
Thirty-six to forty-five nautical miles from the mainland depending on the island, Montuosa and Jicarón count among the most remote islands of Pacific Panama. Most boats reach them from well-known coastal stations, at the cost of long hours of navigation. Our base sits as close as it gets, facing the Coiba region: twenty minutes to reach Coiba, then the heading to Jicarón and Montuosa, offshore. Leaving from this close is what makes access to this zone exclusive. It remains a true expedition: two nights minimum, heavy logistics, specific equipment, substantial fuel. Costs adjust to the group configuration, personalized quote after a conversation. To be discussed while preparing the trip.
GET IN TOUCH
Every expedition starts with a call.
Video call or phone. We listen to what you are looking for, we look together at the season, the group, the intentions. The program takes shape there.
We speak fluent French, English and Spanish. Before, during and after the trip, exchanges happen in the traveler's language.
GET IN TOUCH ABOUT THIS EXPEDITION