Panama is beautiful country with a vibrant Jewish community. I went before COVID but I made sure all the Chabad's are still open. Use this guide as means to plan your Panama trip with Kosher food, beach views, and adventure!
Where to go in Panama:
Panama City
This is where you try out all the Kosher restaurants and nightlife the city has to offer, they do have beaches, but you can find better ones elsewhere. I want to Lula by Darna and had their Gnocchi with Mushrooms. I'm obsessed with mushrooms and Pasta, so I was in heaven.
The City itself is not so interesting for me, I grew up in NYC! I need mountains and beaches.
Bocas Del Toro
It's an island that is a 1 hour flight from Panama City. The island is sooo small that you can walk to the Bet Chabad and Kosher restaurant from the airport!
The Chabad is run by really warm Israelis who are also building a 770 on the water.
The restaurant @falafelbocas sells Israeli styled food.
There's also no like, official address but feel free to reach out to them through their website http://chabadbocas.org/ or Instagram https://www.instagram.com/chabad_bocas/
They roped us into make Challah on Thursday night, and we happily obliged! On Motzei Shabbat a Socccer game broke out across the street. It was the locals vs. the Israelis. We raised the Chabad Bocas flag high and cheered them on!
Since Bocas Del Toro is really small there isn't too much to do. I don't mind that much because I was working on the go so that kept me pretty busy. I also have a tendency to make new friends whenever I have free time on my hands so that's always a fun activity. It was also the rainy season so we stayed in our hostel a lot. I recommend Selina, it's on the same block as the Bet Chabad, it's on the water and it has a great ambiance.
We went on a day trip that you can book at the Chabad to an island. There a few remote and pretty ones you can choose! All of them have crystal clear water that are breathtakingly beautiful. I had a great swim until the rain stopped us.
Playa Vanao
This is where you can learn how to surf. It was my second time in my life taking lessons and I actually caught a few waves! It was a proud moment for me. Sadly, I don't have videos, so you'll just have to take my word for it. We stayed in the Selina hostel which I highly recommend if you are working remotely, they have a really cute co-working space.
Recently, they opened a Bet Chabad! I wish they had one when I was there and I'm excited to follow their journey on Instagram.
San Blas
I didn't make it here but one day I'm going to go back because I heard it's beautiful, look into it!
Here's a map of the key places so you get a visual idea:
Enjoy your trip!
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