Paradise islands, marine life, nature and lots of activities.
Special Destination
Its territory is enriched by beaches with white sands, crystal clear waters with turquoise tones and many palm trees that frame this paradise. However, the most impressive thing about Coiba is not what can be seen with the naked eye, but what can be found under the water. Coiba National Park is one of the largest marine life capitals in the world. Here one meets white sharks, humpback whales, sea turtles, stingrays, and hundreds of other species. Here there are 38 different islands to visit, Coiba being the largest and most recognized.
Within the Coiba National Park are the insular areas of Isla Coiba, Rancheria (Coibita), Jicaron, Jicarita, Afuerita, Canal de Afuera, Uvas, Contreras and Brincanco, which makes it one of the most extensive marine parks in the world together with its continental shelf.
There are several ways to enjoy this World Heritage Site. The most common is to take a day trip either to dive or relax, and it is departing from Santa Catalina in Veraguas. Of course, you can spend the night on the Island of Coiba in one of the cabins in front of a beautiful beach that the Ministry of the Environment has for visitors. Although they do not have as many amenities as those of a hotel, they have everything you need for a good rest, including air conditioning.
Cabins are limited in Coiba, and for this reason most people stay in Santa Catalina, a town with a large community of “surfers” whose amusement park is the imposing waves of a beach that has hosted Championships and World Cups in this sport. From there, you can get tourist guides who organize everything for the trip to the Coiba Marine Park. Before going to this challenging destination; They must make sure that the guide and / or the tourism agency is certified by the Panama Tourism Authority.
Road to Adventure
After a night’s rest, you can have breakfast and look for all the necessary equipment for the trip, including lunch and a guide to snorkel. All this at an estimated price of $60.00 per person. The final cost of the tour will depend on the number of people in a group – now reduced by biosecurity measures – and according to what the guide who provides the service has available. The trip is somewhat long, but the beauty that can be seen on the coast makes time disappear before the magnitude of the beauty of nature.
Depending on the season, sea turtles can be seen on the way, and if you go for a walk between June and November you may be lucky to see humpback whales in the distance. For a unique experience behind the track of these cetaceans, there are packages that are promoted so that your journey has better opportunities to spot them from a certain distance, respecting their space.
Traveling to Coiba can be more challenging if you visit other natural places, such as the small island Granito de Oro, a mini paradise surrounded by crystal clear waters and coral reefs where you can snorkel for 45 minutes and observe turtle species or even small stingrays. There is also Coibita or Rancheria island, there are some cabins there and tourist walks visit many times to settle down and have lunch. In its surroundings there is a sector where monkeys and even crocodiles roam. There is even a crocodile called “Tito “on the shore waiting to be fed by the park rangers.
Internationally Renowned Ecosystem
With 49,300 hectares, Coiba is the largest island in the American Pacific. It was famous for many years for hosting a prison. Even at the beginning of this year, the “National Geographic” magazine dedicated a space to him in its Environment section, where the fact of how this island went from being a prison for almost a hundred years to become one of the regions stands out with the greatest biodiversity on the planet.
Much is attributed to its dark past, these islands were preserved in their virgin state, attracting many species, Coiba besides being the largest island in Central America, is also the largest uninhabited island in all of Latin America.
