Bocas del Toro is the capital of the Panamanian province of Bocas del Toro. It is city and a world-renowned tourist resort located on the island of Isla Colon in the Bocas del Toro Archipelago in the Caribbean Sea off the northwest coast of Panama.
It has numerous world-class resorts, many of them specializing in eco-tourism and All Inclusive tourism. It can be accessed by boat by taking an approximately a 20 minute long boat ride from the mainland of Bocas Del Toro. There’s also an international airport for air access.
Bocas del Toro Province is centered around the water. Much of the hinterland of this Province is difficult to access. Hispanic influence in Bocas del Toro Province is weaker and much more recent than in the rest of Panama. The native Ngobe and Bugle people still make up a large portion of the population.
Descendants of 19th century immigrants from Jamaica make up another large segment of the the population of the Province. These two cultures plus Hispanics from other parts of Panama all give the Province a lively cultural diversity.
Relatively few Panamanians live on the island, opting for cheaper housing on the mainland of Panama. Its white, sandy beaches, ecological parks, diving keys, restaurants and food, nightclubs, attractions, tematic parks, discos, shops and markets both in the beachfront zone and the downtown area make it a popular tourist destination year-round for tourists from the North, South, Central America, Europe, Oceania and Asia alike.
Located in the northwestern corner of Panama, the Amistad/Bocas del Toro site includes the area surrounding and including Bastimentos Island National Marine Park and, on the mainland, the National Protected Areas of San San Pond Sack Wetlands, La Amistad International Park, and the Palo Seco Protected Forest.
The Amistad/Bocas del Toro region, recognized as both a Biosphere Reserve and a World Heritage Site, contains a rich mosaic of ecosystems that in total spans 2.5 million acres. The heart of this area is La Amistad International Park, recognized as one of the largest remaining tracts of undisturbed forest in Central America.
This area, renowned for its biodiversity, contains at least 180 plant species found only in the Amistad/Bocas del Toro region or which are limited exclusively to Panama. Among the region’s diverse vegetative cover, one can find four different species of mangroves (red, white, black and pineapple) as well as other important vegetative types such as sea grass, flooded coastal forests, cloud and lowland forests.
English is widely spoken along much of the Central American coast, and Panama is no exception. The locals of Bocas del Toro are descendants of West Africans caught in the slave trade and speak English. One might also notice the mixture of several tongues in the Creole that the natives speak amongst themselves.
These diverse habitats also provide shelter for the numerous species of wildlife, including a variety of species unique to the region.
The region houses three species of sea turtles (leatherback, green, and hawksbill), the West Indian manatee, caimans, Baird’s tapirs, jaguars, the brown-throated three-toed sloth, Hoffman’s two-toed sloth and the red frog, whose skin produces a venom used by the Pre-Colombian Indians to poison their arrows.
The Bocas del Toro region also hosts more than 350 species of birds, including 27 North American migrants such as the wood thrush, prothonotary warbler, and the Magnolia warbler. Bocas del Toro lowlands are also an important flyway for Swainson’s hawks, Mississippi kites, scarlet tanagers, and purple martins. The only Panamanian colony of the rare red-billed tropicbird is found in Bocas del Toro.
With its two long coasts, Panama has long relied on its marine resources. Unfortunately, some of the once common marine species, such as lobster and conch, have become harder to find within the archipelago.
They are threatened by habitat loss, sedimentation, and water pollution due to unsustainable agricultural practices, development, and unregulated tourism. On the mainland, threats include deforestation, habitat loss, and water pollution due to unsustainable agricultural practices, colonization and urban development.
Access can be either via airline or boat, a 350 minutes drive from the Capital or an 85 minute drive from the nearest city of Changuinola will take you to a touristic port where boats arrive each 20 minutes constantly, another way involves air traveling, in which you may take a flight of about 75 minutes from the capital’s secondary international and regional airport, access from outside the country is provided by some airlines. Access via air from the United States is not available directly, however, flights to the city are available with a stop in the capital city of the country and from Costa Rica.
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