The Blue Marlin Hotel/Resort is on Isla Carneros which is about a two2 minute water taxi ride ($1 per person) from the main Bocas town. The owners (George and Yessica) welcomed us and were willing to help with anything that we could possibly need on our stay (they took great care of us during our three days and two night stay with friends, for calling water taxis when we needed one, and helping us make contacts for scuba diving).

During our recent trip to Bocas del Toro, Panama we spent two nights in Hotel Bocas Del Toro. The hotel staff was very helpful and most importantly cheerful and hospitable. We were immediately greeted by Denilka and Johayui who offered several available rooms to us; both staff members were extremely friendly, professional, and displayed a sincere desire to make us comfortable.

Tropical Suites is located on Isla Colon in Bocas del Toro Panama. It guarantees an alternative view to life in the beautiful and fascinating province of Bocas del Toro. Set in a convenient location, it provides good access to everything the town can offer such as great restaurants, grocery stores and supermarkets.

Sevilla Suites is pretty nice. Together with my friend Fern, we stayed in Seville Suites for 3 days. It's ideally located at the heart of the city, approximately 15 minutes from the airport. Directly across the street is a small, intimate, and world-class (according to the waiter, but not to us) restaurant. It's situated in El Cangrejo, easy access (by foot) to almost everything.

This hotel really cares about customer satisfaction. I have stayed in hotels in Panama City that were over $200/night and they can't beat the service and quality of the rooms and the price. The hotel is beautifully decorated and they provide you with a bellboy to take your luggage to your room and load it in your car when you are leaving.

"Las Sirenas is an odd concept," admited co-owner Gilda de Ferrer. "It's not a hotel." I sat there, slightly bewildered, listening to Gilda on her porch while drinking fresh lemonade and playing with the #4 key I had just been given at the reception desk moments earlier.

Hotel Toledo is located about a three minute drive from the David bus terminal, about 4 blocks before Hotel Nacional.

After being left out in the cold (or the muggy heat) on the Pension Clark's front steps, it was time to drag my tired, hungry, pissed off ass to another place to sleep. I remember seeing a hotel above the bus terminal so I trudged over there. It's called the Maxi-Hotel and it's a transients dream.

The first thing I wondered about this hostel was, where the hell did they get that name? Anyways, it's directly northeast of the bus terminal which makes it extrememly convinient. Plus it's fun telling cabbies, "shove it, I'm walking!" It's run by a mom and daughter. The Mother is between 70 and 80 years old and is unfriendly. The daughter speaks fluent english. After paying 15 bucks you sign your name in the travel log.

It's a one-stop shop, much like the “Chinitos” on every block in Panama. If you have been reading the wonderful blogs and reviews written on this fantastic site, you know you want to come to Panama. (Nudge, nudge). Panama is the bomb, come visit. Stay in a hostel. All of my “Best of:” articles are just in Panama City, and there are many hostels outside of the city. But since Panama City is the s***, and it's what I know best, I stick to it.

This is one of the few sort-of-high-end hotels in Santa Clara. Assuming you are not interested in the ant farms that are the nearby all-inclusives, Las Sirenas is possibly your best bet for decent accomodations at the beach in the area.

As corny and as seemingly tacky as it sounds, to stay at a casino during your tropical getaway vacation, this is actually quite a decent option. The bottom floor of the Veneto has some nice lounges and high-end restaurants. The second floor is the casino, and the top remaining floors are hotel.

If there was an award for best places that I´ve stumbled upon when I was most in need of hot water and a comfy bed, this would be the blue ribbon winner. It´s located in downtown Chitre adjacent to the Machetazo and it´s easy to miss.

Sapibenega is one of San Blas´ Kuna-run hotels. It has 13 bamboo huts and is known to be the first ¨totally ecological Kuna lodge.¨ While Lonely Planet called it one of the finest ecolodges, it´s extremely similar to the other ones out there.

This is my favorite of the San Blas hotels. It´s name is Kuna for Dolphin Lodge. While you shouldn´t be expecting too much luxury, they do a really good job of tending to their guests. The food is pretty basic and usually consists of treasures from the ocean--fish, shellfish. The islands surrounding the hotel are simply amazing. Bring a book and prepare to sit back in your hammock, relax, and let the breeze take your stress away. Man, that sounded really poetic. And corny.

The Hotel Milan in El Cangrejo is definitely on the McDonald´s value meal of hotels in Panama City. The rooms go for $25/night and are very decent, with one large bed, new bathroom with hot water, and your own personal ice bin.

My trip to Bocas started, the way many of my good stories do, with something hitting me in the face: the woman in the aisle seat next to me stood up to get a book out of the overhead when we hit a patch of turbulence—her well-aimed Poland Springs bottle squirted me in the cheek. The waterfire didn't distract me though—my attention fixed out the window, looking down at the ocean: indigo greens and cobalt blues surrounding the islands that would be my home for the next few days. Bocas Del Toro.