Chiriqui Province
The extraordinary Chiriqui Province in West Panama on the border of Costa Rica, offers a wide variety of attractions including highland and beach destinations, Indian cultures, idyllic retirement communities, world class rafting, kayaking, birding, hiking and shopping.
David: The Capital City of Chiriqui Province-Go Shopping
David is the perfect place to stay overnight on your way to Panama City from Costa Rica or on your way to other Chiriqui destinations. Conveniently located on the Panamerican Highway, it's just 45 minutes from the border with Costa Rica and 6.5 hours from Panama City. David has the best shopping in Panama outside Panama City: El Rey supermarket is excellent for groceries, Furniture City for furniture, Do-It Center for hardware and housewares, Chiriqui Mall for clothes and there is even a Price Costco (called Price Smart in Panama).
David Airport is the main airport in the region with flights to and from Panama City, Bocas del Toro and San Jose Costa Rica.
Boquete-
Boquete, a flower filled mountain valley at the foot of the 11,400 ft. extinct volcano Volcan Baru, boasts a near perfect climate, panoramic mountain views, coffee farms, waterfalls, great hiking and a picturesque small town ambience.
It is also one of the few places on the planet where you can view the Resplendent Quetzal with regularity; considered the rarest and most beautiful bird in the Americas.
Boquete was selected by the magazine Modern Maturity of the American Association of Retired Persons as the top place in the Western Hemisphere for retirement or a second home and as one of the top five places by Fortune Magazine. Boquete is 40 minutes by car from David, 7 hours by car from Panama City and one hour by plane.
How To Get There
By air, car or bus. You can fly Air Panama and Aeroperlas from Albrook Airport to the nearby city of David. Airfares are around $180 round trip. David is also an easy 7 hour car trip from Panama City or you can take a bus ($15 one way) from the Albrook Bus Terminal. The Chiriqui Highlands are about 45 minutes from David.
Where To Stay
Where to Stay in David
Gran Hotel National: David’s most popular hotel, the Gran Nacional has everything the tourist and business traveler could want: Excellent accommodations, excellent food in its three Restaurants, 6 on-premise movie theaters, a 24 hour casino and attention from a well trained staff. Located a few minutes from the airport and the Panamerican Highway.
Where to Stay in Boquete
In the Village: You have two fine choices or venues. A hotel in or near the village or on the mountainside overlooking Boquete. Valle Escondido Resort, the Panamonte Inn and Spa, Boquete Garden Inn, Rio Alto Suites and Isla Verde are in or near the village. The Coffee Estate Inn and Villa Marita are on the mountain side.
Los Quetzales in Guadalupe: Los Quetzales has two attractive lodging choices; a pretty European style lodge, including a comfy lobby with a center fireplace and full length mountain view windows, and an on premise restaurant or individual cabins within the cloud forest all in Amistad National Park.
Bambito Hotel: Panama's only mountain resort. A four star hotel nestled at the foot of Volcan Baru featuring a swimming pool, scenic lounge, sauna, hot tub, conference facilities, tennis courts, mountain bike rentals and horseback riding and other tours.
Finca Lerida: About 15 minutes from town, this is a bird-watchers heaven. Finca Lerida is an upscale eco-lodge nestled inside a coffe farm, surrounded by beautiful flora and fauna, with 11 double rooms, each with its own unique decor.
Car Rentals
You can rent a car in David National Car Rental and Thrifty Car Rental and turn it in in Panama City or vice versa- rent a car in Panama City and turn it in in David. The trip between David and Panama City is about 6 hours.
Where To Eat
Valley of the Moon in Volcan: Sample dinner menu: Vegetable Silk Soup™ of the Day, Organic Delight Mixed Salad with Gail’s Poppy Seed Dressing, Signature Espresso Chocolate Cake or dessert of your choice. All ingredients are organic, including minor ingredients like spices. Reservations are advised: 6936 5226.
ww.MyValleyoftheMoon.com
What To Do
Shopping in David
David is the place to get all your shopping done. Highlights are a Price Costco (called Price Smart in Panama), a Do-it Center (Panama's version of a Home Depot), Furniture City with a selection of American furniture, the American style El Rey supermarket and Farmacia Arrocha which is an excellent variety store. Chiriqui Mall is good for clothes shopping and informal dining.
Rafting and Kayaking
Chiriqui Province is famous for both rafting and river kayaking. You can choose an easy family rafting day trip or a variety of more advanced river runs. Even experienced rafters rave about Class 5 Chiriqui rafting opportunties. Chiriqui River Rafting is the rafting outfit to go with, Panama’s original with a more than 20 year perfect safety record.
Highlands and Mountains Attractions
Chiriqui has two highland national parks: La Amistad International Park a 407,000 hectare cloud forest park which is half in Panama and half in Costa Rica and the 14,000 hectare Volcan Baru National Park. The Chiriqui highlands have a near perfect climate, quaint villages, friendly folk, flower fairs, orchid farms, extraordinary birding, hiking and the panoramic mountain views.
Shop Retirement and Vacation Communities
Valle Escondido: In a picturesque valley adjacent to the highland village of Boquete, a premiere residential and resort community on a former coffee farm offering a challenging golf course, villas for sale and rent, overlookng the course and river, horseback riding trails, amphitheater etc. A must see if you are interested in retirement living or real estate investment in Panama.
Valle Escondido
Cielo Paraiso Golf and Resort Community: On a plateau with spectacular 360 degree views of mountains and ocean, an exclusive resort community of estate residences with a golf course designed by Michael Poellot in 2009.
Hacienda Los Molinos: A resort community closer to David, outside the valley of Boquete in a prized location over a spectacular canyon and views of Volcan Baru and the Pacific Ocean, Los Molinos offers high-quality comfortable homes and facilities that address needs of residents such as: a clubhouse, swimming pool, massage center, jacuzzi, tennis court and restaurant.
Las Olas Resort: Reasonably priced beach front lots on twenty miles of privately owned beach on the Pacific Coast, 20 minutes from David and adjacent to Las Olas Resort.
Beach Resorts
Boca Chica, 1 ¼ hours from David is a scenic coastal area with beaches and nearby islands.
There are 3 attractive hotels- Boutique HotelCala Mia, Seagull Cove and Gone Fishing. See our Hotels sidebar for more info.
Las Olas Resort: An elegant all-inclusive beach resort located on a pristine stretch of privately owned beach just 20 minutes from David. The resort offers world class sports fishing trips and local tours to a sea turtle sanctuary, rum factory, mangrove forests and the Chiriqui Highlands.
Highland Destinations Bambito, Guadalupe, Volcan and Cerro Punta
Nestled up in a cloud forest of La Amistad National Park are a series of mountain villages- Bambito, Guadalupe, Volcan and Cerro Punta. The all have beautiful mountain scenery and excellent birding.
Bambito
Home to the landmark Bambito hotel where you can dine on and fish for rainbow trout.
Guadalupe
Home to world famous Los Quetzales Ecolodge and Finca Dracula, an orchid botanical garden with over 1200 species of orchids.
Volcan
Visit the Jansen Family Coffee Farm for coffee tours and horseback riding. Jansen coffee is known in Panama as one of best. Visit Sitio Barriles private farm for a free tour of Pre-Columbian Indian culture & history, several Petroglyphs and artifacts on site and Lagunas de Volcan, Panama's highest marsh ecosystem.
Cerro Punta
View scenic strawberry farms, but dine at what some call the best organic restaurant in Panama-the Valley of the Moon.