3 Days in Boquete, Panama
We loved Boquete, Panama so much! It is a small, beautiful town hidden in the mountains. Many people come here to retire! We spent a while walking around and exploring. There are many great restaurants, coffee shops, and markets! We will definitely be returning here one day!
Where We Stayed
There are many different hostels to stay at in Boquete. Though we were tempted to stay at the castle (look it up!), we decided to stay at Hostel Gaia for two nights. It cost us $56 total. It was a very small hostel and had a stream running right through the property. Though there was no free breakfast, the private room we stayed in was one of the nicest ones on our entire trip and there was also a kitchen we could use. The owner was also kind enough to store our backpacks for us while we hiked Volcan Baru.
Café de la Luna Coffee Farm Tour
Brett and I were so happy we decided to go on this tour. This coffee farm was so beautiful and in an amazing location. The tour cost us each $30 plus tip. This also includes transportation from your hostel. You can pay extra for a private tour but we were lucky enough to be the only ones who signed up that day! The coffee farm is run by Richard. He is from California and decided to move to Boquete after retiring. Amy was our amazing tour guide. Richard also tagged along which was nice since he added in extra information after Amy was finished. We got the chance to bite into a coffee cherry and taste the sweet juice, try the amazing tea made from the peeled off skin of the dried cherries, and have a few cups of both the dark and medium roast. We were then taken for a walk through the beautiful property. There was so many different types of fruit trees (lemon, avocado, papaya…) and 8 different types of coffee cherry trees. We got to see the cherries/beans at various steps – as flowers, cherries, drying, and roasting. Lastly, we got to watch and assist grinding the beans! Amy, Richard, and all of the dogs were so great to us and I highly recommend this tour if you are ever in Boquete!
Volcan Baru Hike – Highest Point in Panama
Brett and I both agree that this was the most difficult hike either of us had ever done! But it was also one of the most incredible sunrises and views we had ever seen so very worth it! We asked a cab to pick us up at midnight to take us to the base of the volcano and thankfully he showed up! We started hiking at 12:20am with the hope of reaching the top before the sun came up. Every review we read online said it would take about 6 hours but we reached the top in 3 hours and 50 minutes. The trek was 13.5 km to the top (same route back down) with a bit more walking at the summit. Thank goodness for our headlamp and flashlight since it was so dark! We saw many bats, giant moths, and one owl along the way. We also saw an abandoned truck that scared the crap out of us! The hike itself was hard but we did it! The incline of the switchbacks was quite steep for the majority of the trek with the last 2km being the absolute worst. We stopped quite often to give our legs a quick rest before continuing. Thankfully, there were signs saying how far we had gone.
We got to the summit at 4:10am… almost 2 hours before the sun would rise!! I was so glad I had bought gloves the day before for $3 since it was freezing! Finally, once the sun started to rise around 5:45am, we understood why so many people recommended this hike. The view was incredible and you could see for miles! We were standing at the highest point in Panama beside an amazing cross with views of both the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean! About a dozen other hikers joined us. We sat around and enjoyed the view before heading back down. This will definitely be a hike I will never forget!
Overall, it took us 3 hours and 50 minutes to reach the summit and just under 3 hours to come back down. The hike itself might not be so bad if you pace yourself better but we basically raced up the volcano. The sunrise was amazing so I highly recommend hiking during the night to see it. If you want to see the sunrise but do not want to hike the volcano, it is possible to book a tour and get driven to the summit. We thought we would have to pay the $5 park entry fee once we got back to the bottom but for some reason they didn’t make us.
Here are the things we brought:
- Headlamp/flashlight
- Around 3L of water each and 2 Gatorades
- Bananas, granola bars, and other snacks
- Warm clothes!! (Bring layers)
- Camera to capture the incredible view
- $5 entry fee (might not need)
