Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: PARQUE NACIONAL DE PORTOBELO
By bus
The La Guaira
bus
from Colón passes through Puerto Lindo.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
NUEVO TONOSÍ
Don Quijote
Main road 448 2170.
A large roadside restaurant at Nuevo Tonosí (between
Portobelo and Puerto Lindo), serving up delicious, moderately priced French-Italian cuisine,
including home-made pasta, tasty thin-crust pizzas and an assortment of
parilladas
and
Panamanian favourites.
Fri-Sun & public holidays 8am-9pm.
PUERTO LINDO
Bambu Guest House
448 2247, 6710 0168,
panamaguesthouse.com
.
Dutch-run es-
tablishment nestled in a luscious garden overlooking the bay with three stylishly furnished
en-suite rooms and a communal dining balcony, affording great ocean views. Yacht tours
(see
oceantrips.com
)
o
r rainforest walks with a local guide can be arranged. $5 extra for a
sumptuous breakfast.
$70
Casa X
Water's edge by the yacht club.
Informal restaurant serving delicious, freshly pre-
pared seafood with a side of salad,
patacones
or rice ($8), to be washed down with a glass of
wine.
Daily noon-8pm.
Hostal Wunderbar
On the left, main road, just after the turn-off to Cacique 448 2426,
hostelwunderbar.com
.
A range of dorm beds and doubles (some with a/c) in a large, Guna-
style house and a less appealing modern concrete building. There's a kitchen, and a basic
grocery, restaurant and bar nearby. The pool table and traditional
cayucos
(dugout canoes) for
ren
t are nice
tou
ches, but the ongoing construction work detracts from the ambience. Dorms
$11
, doubles
$35
El Perezoso
2-3km before Puerto Lindo, on the right 6962 6060,
perezosopanama.com
.
The open-sided garden restaurant of this Italian-run establishment,
with an Italian and Panamanian menu, is a delight, as is the food. Best to get in touch if you're
intending to dine, since it closes early if business is slack. There are also two rustic wooden
A-frame cabins (for 4-6 p
eo
ple) with fans a
nd
mosquito nets, which are nothing special but
are inexpensive. Camping
$5
/person, cabins
$30
Isla Grande
Isla Grande
's popularity as a weekend getaway for Panamanian urbanites has often led to
hyperbolic descriptions of its beaches and overall beauty. In truth, it doesn't measure up to
the stunning islands of Guna Yala or Bocas del Toro, but if you're in the area and want a
quick shot of Caribbean vibe, a dose of fresh air and a splash in the sea before tucking into
some Creole cuisine, then Isla Grande will do very nicely.
