Golden sands fringed by an emerald ocean, beautiful sunrises and the most stunning views of the Pacific Ocean, provide the perfect setting for The InterContinental Playa Bonita Resort and Spa. Nestled on a private beach and surrounded by lush tropical vegetation, the Resort has been designed as an enchanted enclave of infinite pools, cascades and exotic gardens with an impressive architecture inspired by a fusion of Mediterranean, Colonial and Panamanian styles offering the perfect facilities and services to conveniently enjoy this Paradise.

On the Pacific Coast of Panama…

• 2km of private beach on the Pacific Coast of Panama, overlooking the sunrise and the entrance of the Panama Canal
• 20 min. West of Panama City
• 40 min. from Tocumen International Airport (PTY)
• 10 min. from Marcos A. Gelabert – Domestic Airport
• 15 min. to the Panama Canal’s visitors Center in Miraflores
• 10 min. from Horoko Golf Course
• 30 min. from the Summit Golf Course
• 45 min. from Gamboa Rainforest Resort
• 20 min. From Taboga Island (by Ferry)
• 2 hrs. To the Pearl Islands (by Ferry).

For leisure activities, the InterContinental Playa Bonita is a sanctuary for the senses. The 10,000 sq. feet holistic Spa offers restful luxury that defines the perfect rejuvenating experience with soothing therapies, outdoor massages, seaweed wraps, facials and exotic invigorating treatments, while the resort pools and private beach offer an array of watersports and activities to sooth every personal preference.

The InterContinental Playa Bonita Resort & Spa has been conceived as the ultimate prize for those who enjoy the good life. From original and extravagant incentive groups to your own personal incentive vacation, the resort provides and array of activities and attractions to enterntain the most curious and well travelled visitors.

Just minutes from the Resort, excursions can include visits to Panama Canal Miraflores locks´ visitors center, the historical colonial district of Panama city, the Amador Causeway, or an exploration of the tastes of Panama with the many dine around options in the city. From Playa Bonita boat trips are offered to the Pearl Islands for salt water fishing, whale watching or simple relaxation and sun worshiping.

Located just 40 minutes away on the banks of the Panama Canal and in the heart of the Soberania national park, is the Gamboa Rainforest Resort, Playa Bonita’s sister property, offering tours that include the Rainforest Aerial Tram, educational exhibits, wildlife observation safaris and fresh water fishing at the Panama Canal. 

Offering a magical blend of ambience, pampering service, and luxuries facilities, our guests every need has been thoughfully anticipated. The 300 All Ocean View Rooms and Suites offer an elegant décor combining world class comforts with a touch of Panamanian inspired elements. Take your senses on a culinary tour though our three remarkable dining venues, or enjoy 24 hour in-room dinning at your room’s own private balcony as you gaze out at the islands and the Panama Canal entrance.

Resort Features:

• 300 Deluxe Rooms including 15 One Bedroom Suites and 2 Presidential Suites
• Three Restaurants and a Lobby Bar
• 24 hour in Room dining
• Concierge and Guest Relations Service
• Club InterContinental Lounge
• Laundry and Valet services
• Gift Shop
• Heliport
• Multilingual staff

 Special Groups and Incentives Features

• 12,500 sq feet of meeting and banquet space, on 7 column-free meeting rooms of various sizes.
• Main Ballroom capacity of 850 people banquet style with an impressive double height of 16 feet.
• Separate outdoor venue for private group functions
• Hospitality Suite
• Private group check-In
• Dedicated groups and conventions coordinator
• On site audiovisual services
• Custom, specialized themed events
• In House DMC
• Also available: Group Coordinators office, Turndown gift option, Customed assistance at the airport, fruit and flower arrangements, photographer, music and enterntainment.

 The InterContinental Playa Bonita Resort & Spa is set to have a soft opening by December 15th, 2005. Our online reservations system is not active yet. Please contact us for any reservations requests.

Sales & Reservations
Bern Hotels & Resorts Panama
Tel. +(507) 206-8800
Fax. +(507) 206-8870
U.S. Toll Free 1-877-800-1690
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website: www.playabonitapanama.com

SOURCE: Don Winner @ Panama-guide.com

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Source: VIP Panama

On Behalf Of Charles A. Garcia: Here is the information on El Valle. If you go to files on most of these forums you will find the information posted by me there on El Valle including the Panama Guide. You can find out much about Panama quicker if you visit the files of these different forums and look. You would be surprised how much effort has been put in by the members to make it easier for the newcomers to find information which has previously been asked. Better Hotels to stay at in El Valle. These prices vary and may be less or more than what is mentioned below.

From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Charles A. Garcia
Sent: Tuesday, November 15, 2005 4:19 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [americans_in_panama] Re: car rental and getting a good map

HOTEL LOS CAPITANES 13 rooms, tel #: 983-6080 [email protected] and website http://www.panamainfo.com/loscapitanes/ Good restaurant.
Includes breakfast. Around $60 per night.

HOTEL CAMPESTRE 28 rooms Tel #: 983-6146 website at www.hotelcampestre.com. Includes breakfast [email protected] Around $60 per room.

HOTEL LOS NANCE’S BED & BREAKFAST 5 Rooms Tel #: 983-6126 Includes breakfast. $60 per room. Recommend persons renting here have 4-wheel drive, as this is up on the side of the hill above Park Eden, and road very steep.

RINCON VALLERO 14 Rooms Tel #: 983-6175/264-9119 Includes breakfast.
Email address is [email protected] and their website is at www.rinconvallero.com. Excellent restaurant. Rooms from $80-around $110.

PARK EDEN BED & BREAKFAST 5 rooms Tel #: 983-6167 / 226-8858 www.parkeden.com & www.panamainfo.com/parkeden [email protected]
5 rooms, includes full breakfast 2 persons per room, additional cost per each additional person. $60/$85/$95/$95 and an entire house with two bedrooms $195. No restaurant.

LA CASA DE LOURDES 3 Rooms Tel #: 983-6450 / 269-6237 This is the tops, nothing better…Gourmet breakfast included…exclusive cuisine & accommodations…where the IN people dine. 16 Rooms from $175. Best gourmet restaurant & luxury accomodations in the area.

CRATER VALLEY ADVENTURE SPA 8 Rooms Tel #: 983-6942 http://www.crater-valley.com/docs/rooms.htm http://www.crater- valley.com/ [email protected] Tel #: 215-2326 & 983-6942 Fax:
215-2329 Among the best in El Valle. Has pool,restaurant, sauna, massage parlor, beauty saloon, and lush grounds. Expect it to be pricey, but worth it. Room Rates: $90-$110.

APARTOTEL EL VALLE: 13 Rooms Tel #: 264-2272 [email protected] New large rooms with just the basics, but clean & spacious. Natural thermal waters pool. www.panamareservation.net Rooms from $37.50- $60 per day. No restaurant.

Some of the other places available at much more economical rates:
Hotel Don Pepe: 983-6835
Hotel Greco: 983-6149
Hotel Residencial El Valle: 983-6536
Cabañas las Mozas: 983-6071
Cabañas de Colores: 983-6613

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Source: VIP Panama

A rich, historic past with every modern convenience.  Caesar Park Panama is one of the most favored hotels in Panama City. The architecture is reminiscent of Panama’s colonial charm, and the personality within reflects the high-spirited Latin culture. Here guests will find a European-style casino and three outstanding restaurants, all set in a lush tropical setting more like a resort than a business hotel. Luxurious accommodations and convenient proximity to the Atlapa Convention Center, airport and business center make  Caesar Park Panama ideal for the business traveler.

The beautiful Republic of Panama is located in Central America between Costa Rica and Colombia. The Caribbean Sea lies to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. Its capital and business center, Panama City, is situated on the south (Pacific) coast at the southern entrance to the Panama Canal. Conveniently located in the heart of Panama City, Caesar Park Panama is the ideal place to stay for both the business and leisure traveler:

    * Only 15 minutes from Tocumen International Airport
    * Just 10 minutes from the city’s financial and business districts
    * Immediately adjacent to the Atlapa Convention Center
    * Close to many of the main tourist attractions

Caesar Park Panama has has 353 luxurious guest rooms and 8 suites. Each features the comforts and amenities that you have come to expect from a luxury hotel. All rooms boast sweeping views of either the city of Panama or Panama Bay and the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. Nonsmoking rooms and facilities for the disabled are available. The hotel recently completed a renovation of 168 rooms and all of the conference centers.

Guest Rooms: Each of Caesar Park Panama’s 353 guest rooms features:

    * Individual climate control
    * Color, cable television with pay-per-view movies
    * Direct international access telephones with voice mail messaging
    * Wireless Internet
    * Telephone in the bathroom
    * Safe deposit box
    * Hair dryer
    * Coffeemaker
    * Iron and ironing board
    * Fully stocked refreshment center

All our guests have free access to our Club Nogui (Fitness & Spa), including the pool area, tennis courts and gymnasium.

Deluxe Rooms: In addition to all the amenities found in our traditional rooms, deluxe rooms offer additional amenities and services:

    * Deluxe bathroom amenities
    * Bathrobes
    * Turndown service

Executive Rooms: Guests on our Executive Floor can make use of our exclusive Executive Club Lounge on the 14th floor. Here you will enjoy:

    * Free continental breakfast every day
    * Evening cocktails and hors d’oeuvres
    * Use of the TV lounge
    * Intimate dining and meeting room
    * Internet access to check e-mail

Extra Executive Floor amenities include:

    * Special welcome amenity
    * Daily newspaper
    * Free shoeshine
    * Complimentary pressing of one suit or dress

From the finest imported beef to the freshest Atlantic seafood, you will find just the right dining experience at Caesar Park Panama. With three exceptional restaurants, a Pastry Shop and Deli, the Lobby Bar, Peach Monkeys Lounge, In-Room Dining, Poolside Dining and refreshments, there is something for every occasion.

Asian Bistro Monsoon: Experience real pleasure on a culinary round trip through Southeast Asia, tasting authentic and delicious dishes from China, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam. Our Chef offers a wide variety of fresh seafood creations, the main component of our menu, on daily basis. You, your friends and family will also enjoy a Sushi station and other exciting delicacies especially prepared for you. And while we bring Southeast Asia to your table, admire our spectacular saltwater aquariums and that represent the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Crostini: A casual and inviting al fresco Italian restaurant offering the finest pizza and pastas, served in a tropical garden setting. Located between the swimming pool and gardens, it is also close to the children’s play area and tennis courts. Crostini serves the pool area with a delicious lunch menu and refreshments.

Café Bahia: Caesar Park Panama’s popular coffee restaurant features daily international theme buffets and casual à la carte dining. Café Bahia caters to the international traveler and local businessmen and families. Especially popular are the Sunday Champagne Brunches and the regular festivals that celebrate cuisines from around the world. For a perfect mid-afternoon break, English High Tea is served every weekday afternoon.

Conferences: Caesar Park Panama is one of the most complete meeting and conference facilities in Panama. And while Carsar Park Panama is one of the oldest, most established and respected hotels in the country, the hotel recently finished a complete renovation of all conference rooms, meeting areas, ballrooms, and salons to keep up with the times. The hotel features over 2,995 square meters of modern and flexible meeting space including:

    * 497 square-meter (5,304 square-foot) Gran Salon, accommodating up to 600 guests
    * 14 additional meeting rooms accommodating up to 350 guests

Caesar Park Panama’s culinary staff provides outstanding catering services for on- and off-site functions.

Peach Monkeys Lounge: Enjoy pleasant business meetings or the company of your friends in a relaxing and cozy atmosphere with exquisite cocktails, wines and liquors. Located on the lobby level.

Contact Information:

Caesar Park Panama
Via Israel & 77th Street
PO Box 6-4248, El Dorado
Panama City, Republic of Panama

Telephone : (507) 270-0477
Fax: (507) 270-6903 Executive Office
Fax: (507) 226-4262 Business Center

Reservations:
Tel : (507) 270-6960
Fax: (507) 226-0116

Via e-mail:
[email protected]

Sales & Marketing:
Tel : (507) 270-5900
Fax: (507) 270-6500
e-mail: [email protected]

General Information:
e-mail: [email protected]

SOURCE: Don Winner @ Panama-guide.com

. . . . . . .

Source: VIP Panama

. . . . . . .

Source: VIP Panama

“Ideally located only a few minutes from downtown Boquete, the Oasis Hotel has charming and relaxing accommodations.
This pleasant riverside hotel is situated next to the Caldera River, not far from the Boquete fairgrounds and offers attractive and scenic surroundings, as well as a centrally located base for your Chiriqui highlands holiday.

Eleven rooms with private baths are available, as well as conference facilities, color TV. A Continental breakfast is offered which can be enjoyed riverside in the hotel lounge.

An excellent choice for a family reunion, a relaxing holiday or for a very special occasion, the hotel is newly built by the daughter of the Menendez family who settled in this area 60 years ago. Anayansi Menendez is your Innkeeper.

Come for a visit and enjoy small town charm, picturesque views, and sometimes rainbows in the mornings. To find life as it should be, just bring your camera and a smile to the Oasis Hotel.”

We are located in Ave. Buenos Aires
Boquete, Crossing the Yellow Bridge, next to the Riverside Restaurant,
in Front of Conservas de Antaño.
Call us: 507-720-1586 507-615-3769
email us:[email protected]

www.boquetenet.net

. . . . . . .

Source: VIP Panama

. . . . . . .

Source: VIP Panama

We spent the weekend out on Isla Grande at the Banana’s Resort. Here’s a quick trip report. (Note: It seems like the link we had for Banana’s in Panama Guide already is broken. I’ll find their new webpage and fix the broken link later…)

For starters, we made our reservation on Saturday morning by calling the office in Panama City. After they had confirmed they had an open room at $119 per night, I informed them I was retired an entitled to the pensionado discount. They dropped the price to $83 per night, and that was honored when we got out to the island. So, good news there.

If you’ve never been out to Isla Grande it’s worth the trip. To get there, drive towards Colon and turn right in Sabanitas (after passing a McDonald’s on your left) the turn is to the right at the intersection where the Rey’s supermarket is. After this turns there are signs the whole way so you can’t hardly get lost. Follow signs to Portobelo, and then you go past Portobelo to get to La Guaira and the parking area for Isla Grande.

I was suprised to see the new secured parking facility for the Banana’s resort (see photo below.) It’s manned 24/7, and there’s a clean restroom there. The attendant has a list of current reservations, and he will make a cell phone call to have a launch sent over to pick you up. There are guys there to help you haul your bags down to the beach.

The boat ride out to the island takes about 20 minutes or so, and will cost you $3.00 per person. The hotel does not cover this cost. “Polaco” (the guy driving our boat) walked with us down to the check-in desk and waited around until the clerk explained that the boat ride out was not included. I guess they’ve had some misunderstandings before from guests. In any case, I paid the guy and he left.

This was the second time that I’ve been to Banana’s resort. I went out there about two years ago when my parents visited Panama, and in reality the place has not changed much. I was actually kind of surprised that I was able to get a room on short (no) notice for a Saturday night in the middle of the summer. Two years ago we had to go during the week because the weekends were booked. This time, the hotel was not even halfway full.

I asked around as to why, and got basically the same answer from everyone — it’s due to a combination of bad weather (lately) on the Atlantic side and additional competetive pressure from the other big resorts such as Decameron, Barcelo, and Gamboa. Fewer people are willing to drive the pothole-filled road and take a boat trip out to Isla Grande to actually pay more than what it costs to stay at a big resort that’s a lot easier to get to than Isla Grande.

Our total bill for a one night stay, including discount, was $173.00. Toss in an additional $6.00 for the boat ride out and our lunch in Portobelo the next day and Banana’s turns out to be an expensive way to see Isla Grande. The restaurant at the hotel is expensive. We had a “normal” meal with a couple of drinks and the tab was $50. Breakfast the next morning was another $15. After having done the “all included” thing at Decameron, it felt like we were getting nickeled and dimed to death. But, in the end, it works out to about the same cost per person, per night (about $90) as a stay at either Decameron or Barcelo.

With that having been said, the place is still visually beautiful. There are three rooms in each of the little bungalos that are tucked into the side of the hill, two downstairs (left and right) and one upstairs. There are two queen beds in each room, air conditioning, TV, hot water, towels and soap. There are only ten channels on the television, but if you’re there to watch TV you’ve got issues. I’m just telling you what’s out there. There are no phones in the rooms, and Bellsouth does not cover the area for cell phones, so if you’re planning to go, make sure you give people the number of the desk in case you want them to be able to reach you. The rooms are large and spacious, have a patio with a hammock, and are actually very nice.

So, we got settled in and headed for the beach. We only had about an hour or so left of sun and wanted to get in some salt water time. Be sure to bring some “surf shoes” because the the “beach” ends where the water starts, and if you want to go out into the water you’ll be walking on rocks and reefs. It’s good snorkeling territory when the tide’s in, with lots of bright tropical fish to look at. But, if you don’t have the right kind of footgear you’ll take two steps out, then head right back to your beach chair.

We went down to the restaurant for dinner at about 7:00 PM. The food was good, but overall pricey for what you get. There were only two serious negatives about this trip, the first being the loud sucking sound coming from my wallet every time we ate or drank anything. The second was the live entertainment…

They had a “Congo Show” which consisted of locals from Portobelo who sang and danced in the local fashion for about an hour. The music and dancing in the local style is derived from the African heritage, in a combination of styles that incorporate traditional rythms and beats from the Congo and Bantu people of Central Africa. Drums and hand rattles are the major instrumentation for this music which is dedicated to spirit beings known as Nkisis. The songs and chants, often in a hybrid combination of Spanish and Bantu words, play a central role in rituals. For the most part, the words to the music tell a story about something that happened in the central singer’s life, and there’s a chorus that’s repeated several times during the show. It is colorful, lively, and fun to watch and hear. That was the upside.

The downside was that the performance was mismanaged by the hotel staff. The guy at the reception desk told us twice to “remember the Congo show at 7:30…” Other than that, they just showed up and started playing, singing, and dancing. I’ve seen these kinds of performances before, know a little about the history, culture, and background, and can speak Spanish. So, I was able to follow along with the lyrics and know what was going on.

Almost everyone else at the hotel was either from the US or Europe, spoke no Spanish, and knew nothing about the music style, history, or culture. Basically, it was lost on them. If you remove the meaning of the lyrics, the basic beat does not vary much or at all from song to song, and it gets monotonous. No one explained to the guests what they were seeing, described the costumes or the music style, or let anyone at all know what was going on. After about three or four songs, some had taken some pictures but many of the guests were just basically ignoring the dancers comepletely.

I asked around the next day and several other guests all told me the same thing — the hotel staff should do a better job of incorporating the show into the evening, and providing a little background to fill it out. Anyway, that’s my beef on that point…

We pulled some chairs up by the ocean and watched the surf, drank wine (more sucking sounds from the wallet area) and then headed to bed. It actually rained a lot off and on during the night. The staff said that business was off recently as well because of heavy surf and lots of rain on that side recently. But, the rain made for great sleeping background noise, and we slept in…

Almost missing breakfast. Which, again, was not bad at $6.50 per pera son, but it’s a one-price and choose from six options kind of thing, so you have to spend the $6.50 on breakfast or go hungry. Like, you can’t just get coffee and toast. Can you tell the continuous sucking sounds from my wallet were getting on my nerves?

Anyway, enough of that. We packed up and headed for shore. We wanted to do the Portobelo thing (which is another article). Overall, Isla Grande and Banana’s is a nice place, but they’re in a tightening market at the end of a pothole filled road, and there’s a boatride in a fiberglass cayuco through choppy waters in between them and their customers. There’s no way this place should be half filled at this time of year. It should have been packed. I guess the newer resorts are siphoning off some customers, and bad weather took away others, but it seems to me that the hotel management is going to have to change some fundamentals in order to compete. That’s just my observation. In the end, it’s still a nice place, and worth a visit.

SOURCE: Don Winner @ Panama-guide.com

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Source: VIP Panama

Michael Taylor owns this very nice three bedroom townhouse on the golf course at the Costa Blanca Royal Decameron Resort in Farallon, Panama. He rents out the three bedrooms in the Villa to guests.

Let me start off with a standard Panama Guide disclosure statement. I just stayed for two nights at Michael’s townhouse free of charge. Michael is not sponsoring Panama Guide, but I felt obligated to tell everyone right up front that I stayed there for free. Michael called me a couple of weeks ago, after having seen the article I wrote about the Los Capitanes hotel in El Valle and he wanted to know if I would come and take a look at what he was offering at the Decameron Resort. I said sure, sounds like fun. And, as long as you readers know my view could me slightly “tainted” by the free room, then I feel I can rest easy.

That having been said, let me tell you a little about the townhouse. It’s basically a three bedroom house, with one bedroom on the first floor and two upstairs. Each bedroom has it’s own full bathroom and can be rented as an individual hotel room. The first floor also has the living room, dining room, and complete kitchen and a guest bathroom. There’s a door to the living room, so it’s possible to rent the entire first floor with the bedroom, living room, dining room and kitchen, and then two other parties can rent the other two bedrooms upstairs. There are a lot of different combinations that will work.

Now, I just got my new professional SLR digital camera, so I used this trip to break it in and learn a little about it. I took about 300 pictures around the Villa, golf course, and the Decameron resort. Unfortunately for this article I can only use five pictures, and the maximum size is 300 by 300 pixels, so I’m kinda limited at what I can show you. Michael is going to be using some of the pictures I took to spruce up this website about the townhouse, so maybe you’ll see some of them there.

The townhouse itself is very nice and comfortable. All of the rooms have a private bathroom and air conditioning. The downstairs bedroom has two queensized beds, and each of the two upstairs bedrooms have a kingsized bed. The livingroom, dining room, and kitchen are very nice and comfortable. There is a complete kitchen with a ‘fridge, stove, microwave and all utensiles, washer and dryer, etc. We were very comfortable staying there, and the maids clean up after the guests. As far as the hotel is concerned, the rooms in the Villas are extensions of the hotel. Like, there were towels and little bottles of shampoo and stuff like that. I mean, it’s half private house and half hotel. Different, but very nice…

The townhouse is located just off the right-hand side of the middle of the fairway of Hole #1 of the brand new Mantaray Golf Course. As a matter of fact, his back yard is about 200 yards from the first green, and all throughout the day we saw happy golfers driving by to play their second shot and make their approach. I didn’t realize that the golf couse was open for business, and didn’t come prepared to play. I fully expect to remedy that the next time I go. Doug (the golf pro) gave us a guided tour of the course, and I’ll probably be doing another article about the course before too long, so stand by for that. It’s a very nice course.

There are probably more than 100 townhouses already built, and they are putting up more just as hard as they can. They are selling really well, and for good reason. They’re doing a nice job on the construction, design, and groundskeeping. The lawns are manicured, security is excellent, and the houses themselves are very well built and comfortable. There are several families that live there full time as well as several expats. Most, however, are used as private weekend beachhomes.

Owners, visitors and guests have access to the private and exclusive Beach Club. Guests who are staying at the Decameron Hotel can not use the Beach Club and they have their own facilities. We went through the Beach Club a few times at different times of the weekend, and there were a few people there but it was not jammed packed or crowded. It’s a very nice facility with a pool, restaurant, bar, and beach bohios. We ate there twice and the food was excellent.

But by far the best deal was to buy the “Convi-Pass” at the reception desk of the Decameron Resort. The passes cost $30 per person per day, and it gives you full access to the resort, plus all you can eat and drink from 7:00 AM until 2:00 AM the next day. That’s all you can eat, breakfast, lunch and dinner, and open bar all day. Without getting into all the details, we spent the day between the beach, the pool, eating at the restaurants, and getting hammered at the bar. We had a really good time, took full advantage of the passes, and certainly got our money’s worth.

There are something like eight different restaurants were you can eat dinner, each with a theme (see the Decameron website for details.) You have to schedule an appointment for dinner, and we set ourselves up with a late dinner at the steak restaurant (forgot the name, sorry…) All the food was excellent, all day long. Breakfast and dinner were buffet style, and dinner was sit-down and served. Very nice, well done, and organized.

The hotel itself was packed with guests. There are more than 600 rooms in the hotel and they were all full. It’s a big task for the staff to feed all those people and keep everyone happy. They were doing thier best to meet the challange. One thing I saw that impressed me — there was a chef out and walking around the buffet lines where we ate lunch. He had a radio in his right hand and would relay orders to the kitchen to call for replacements for dishes that were being depleted. As the guests chowed down, he called for more. He was hovering over the salad bar like it was his personal mission to keep it perfect.

Also while we were eating lunch, I observed the table turn-over procedures in action at the table next to us. The people who were seated there finished eating and stood up to leave. As soon as they were walking away and it was obvious they were done, a steward swooped in and cleared the dirty dishes. A second guy came in with clean napkins, utensils, and water glasses. A new group of guests were seated and attended to. The whole process took about 45 seconds. Let’s just say they’re used to taking care of a lot of people.

At this point, it’s late and I’m tired. I’ll be adding more to this article later. But for now, g’night…

(Added on 18 January 2005) Much better. It’s hard to write well when you’re eyelids are drooping. Now, where was I…

After the publication of the first part of this article, I received several emails from Bill Murphy. He owns townhouse #51 at Decameron and wanted me to let you all know that he rents his out as well. His email address is [email protected] and you can call (507) 223-0582 to make reservations. His townhouse is basically identical to Michael Taylor’s.

I wanted to talk a little about the beach and pools at the Decameron resort. We spent the better part of the day just hanging out on the beach, going back and forth between the ocean and taking dips in the pools. There’s basically one long (huge) pool that runs along the front, ocean side of the resort. There are thatched hut bohios on the beach with beach chairs, so you can set up shop in a bohio, then go into the ocean and swim and then back into the pool for a fresh water dip.

There are a couple of showers for washing off salt and sand but really there were not enough. I only saw a couple of showerheads, and one of them didn’t have much water pressure. There was actually a line of people waiting to hose off.

The beach and ocean there is very nice. The size of the surf changes depending on the rising or falling tides and offshore winds. For the most part you can easily get out past the breakers and swim. The water was very warm and nice, and about as clear as the Pacific ocean gets along that part of Panama’s coast. There were all kinds of kids playing in the sand and making sand castles and stuff like that. Classic beach stuff…

There’s an activities hut where you can rent jet skis, small sail boats, and sign up for trips on banana boats, fishing, etc. There’s all kinds of water sports stuff to do there. Decameron is a very nice, top notch resort.

A little about the golf course. There are now nine holes open for play, and the back nine will be open shortly, before the end of February. There’s a lot of water in play, some long holes, tight fairways, and trees and other obstacles that come into play. The course is very well designed and is in fantastic shape. The resort has a dam and manmade lake on the Farallon river and can pump more than 1,800 gallons of water per hour onto the golf course when necessary. The course will be a total 7,100 yards when finished.

SOURCE: Don Winner @ Panama-guide.com

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Source: VIP Panama

Michael Taylor owns this very nice three bedroom townhouse on the golf course at the Costa Blanca Royal Decameron Resort in Farallon, Panama. He rents out the three bedrooms in the Villa to guests.

Let me start off with a standard Panama Guide disclosure statement. I just stayed for two nights at Michael’s townhouse free of charge. Michael is not sponsoring Panama Guide, but I felt obligated to tell everyone right up front that I stayed there for free. Michael called me a couple of weeks ago, after having seen the article I wrote about the Los Capitanes hotel in El Valle and he wanted to know if I would come and take a look at what he was offering at the Decameron Resort. I said sure, sounds like fun. And, as long as you readers know my view could me slightly “tainted” by the free room, then I feel I can rest easy.

That having been said, let me tell you a little about the townhouse. It’s basically a three bedroom house, with one bedroom on the first floor and two upstairs. Each bedroom has it’s own full bathroom and can be rented as an individual hotel room. The first floor also has the living room, dining room, and complete kitchen and a guest bathroom. There’s a door to the living room, so it’s possible to rent the entire first floor with the bedroom, living room, dining room and kitchen, and then two other parties can rent the other two bedrooms upstairs. There are a lot of different combinations that will work.

Now, I just got my new professional SLR digital camera, so I used this trip to break it in and learn a little about it. I took about 300 pictures around the Villa, golf course, and the Decameron resort. Unfortunately for this article I can only use five pictures, and the maximum size is 300 by 300 pixels, so I’m kinda limited at what I can show you. Michael is going to be using some of the pictures I took to spruce up this website about the townhouse, so maybe you’ll see some of them there.

The townhouse itself is very nice and comfortable. All of the rooms have a private bathroom and air conditioning. The downstairs bedroom has two queensized beds, and each of the two upstairs bedrooms have a kingsized bed. The livingroom, dining room, and kitchen are very nice and comfortable. There is a complete kitchen with a ‘fridge, stove, microwave and all utensiles, washer and dryer, etc. We were very comfortable staying there, and the maids clean up after the guests. As far as the hotel is concerned, the rooms in the Villas are extensions of the hotel. Like, there were towels and little bottles of shampoo and stuff like that. I mean, it’s half private house and half hotel. Different, but very nice…

The townhouse is located just off the right-hand side of the middle of the fairway of Hole #1 of the brand new Mantaray Golf Course. As a matter of fact, his back yard is about 200 yards from the first green, and all throughout the day we saw happy golfers driving by to play their second shot and make their approach. I didn’t realize that the golf couse was open for business, and didn’t come prepared to play. I fully expect to remedy that the next time I go. Doug (the golf pro) gave us a guided tour of the course, and I’ll probably be doing another article about the course before too long, so stand by for that. It’s a very nice course.

There are probably more than 100 townhouses already built, and they are putting up more just as hard as they can. They are selling really well, and for good reason. They’re doing a nice job on the construction, design, and groundskeeping. The lawns are manicured, security is excellent, and the houses themselves are very well built and comfortable. There are several families that live there full time as well as several expats. Most, however, are used as private weekend beachhomes.

Owners, visitors and guests have access to the private and exclusive Beach Club. Guests who are staying at the Decameron Hotel can not use the Beach Club and they have their own facilities. We went through the Beach Club a few times at different times of the weekend, and there were a few people there but it was not jammed packed or crowded. It’s a very nice facility with a pool, restaurant, bar, and beach bohios. We ate there twice and the food was excellent.

But by far the best deal was to buy the “Convi-Pass” at the reception desk of the Decameron Resort. The passes cost $30 per person per day, and it gives you full access to the resort, plus all you can eat and drink from 7:00 AM until 2:00 AM the next day. That’s all you can eat, breakfast, lunch and dinner, and open bar all day. Without getting into all the details, we spent the day between the beach, the pool, eating at the restaurants, and getting hammered at the bar. We had a really good time, took full advantage of the passes, and certainly got our money’s worth.

There are something like eight different restaurants were you can eat dinner, each with a theme (see the Decameron website for details.) You have to schedule an appointment for dinner, and we set ourselves up with a late dinner at the steak restaurant (forgot the name, sorry…) All the food was excellent, all day long. Breakfast and dinner were buffet style, and dinner was sit-down and served. Very nice, well done, and organized.

The hotel itself was packed with guests. There are more than 600 rooms in the hotel and they were all full. It’s a big task for the staff to feed all those people and keep everyone happy. They were doing thier best to meet the challange. One thing I saw that impressed me — there was a chef out and walking around the buffet lines where we ate lunch. He had a radio in his right hand and would relay orders to the kitchen to call for replacements for dishes that were being depleted. As the guests chowed down, he called for more. He was hovering over the salad bar like it was his personal mission to keep it perfect.

Also while we were eating lunch, I observed the table turn-over procedures in action at the table next to us. The people who were seated there finished eating and stood up to leave. As soon as they were walking away and it was obvious they were done, a steward swooped in and cleared the dirty dishes. A second guy came in with clean napkins, utensils, and water glasses. A new group of guests were seated and attended to. The whole process took about 45 seconds. Let’s just say they’re used to taking care of a lot of people.

At this point, it’s late and I’m tired. I’ll be adding more to this article later. But for now, g’night…

(Added on 18 January 2005) Much better. It’s hard to write well when you’re eyelids are drooping. Now, where was I…

After the publication of the first part of this article, I received several emails from Bill Murphy. He owns townhouse #51 at Decameron and wanted me to let you all know that he rents his out as well. His email address is [email protected] and you can call (507) 223-0582 to make reservations. His townhouse is basically identical to Michael Taylor’s.

I wanted to talk a little about the beach and pools at the Decameron resort. We spent the better part of the day just hanging out on the beach, going back and forth between the ocean and taking dips in the pools. There’s basically one long (huge) pool that runs along the front, ocean side of the resort. There are thatched hut bohios on the beach with beach chairs, so you can set up shop in a bohio, then go into the ocean and swim and then back into the pool for a fresh water dip.

There are a couple of showers for washing off salt and sand but really there were not enough. I only saw a couple of showerheads, and one of them didn’t have much water pressure. There was actually a line of people waiting to hose off.

The beach and ocean there is very nice. The size of the surf changes depending on the rising or falling tides and offshore winds. For the most part you can easily get out past the breakers and swim. The water was very warm and nice, and about as clear as the Pacific ocean gets along that part of Panama’s coast. There were all kinds of kids playing in the sand and making sand castles and stuff like that. Classic beach stuff…

There’s an activities hut where you can rent jet skis, small sail boats, and sign up for trips on banana boats, fishing, etc. There’s all kinds of water sports stuff to do there. Decameron is a very nice, top notch resort.

A little about the golf course. There are now nine holes open for play, and the back nine will be open shortly, before the end of February. There’s a lot of water in play, some long holes, tight fairways, and trees and other obstacles that come into play. The course is very well designed and is in fantastic shape. The resort has a dam and manmade lake on the Farallon river and can pump more than 1,800 gallons of water per hour onto the golf course when necessary. The course will be a total 7,100 yards when finished.

SOURCE: Don Winner @ Panama-guide.com

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Source: VIP Panama

 We just spent the weekend at the Los Capitanes hotel in El Valle. What a wonderful place…

We decided to launch out of Panama City on Saturday afternoon on an impromptu excursion to the interior. We really didn’t have a plan, and our route took us to check out the beaches at Chame, Gorgona, Coronado, and Barcelo. We decided to spend the night in El Valle and catch the Sunday morning artisan’s market.

Many thanks to Charly Garcia. I called him up on the cell and asked for a recommendation for a hotel and a phone number. He recommended the Los Capitanes hotel and we called to make a reservation. Lucky for us, they had space. We pulled in just after dark and got settled in.

Like I said, we loved the place. The grounds are visually stunning. The rooms are spacious and comfortable, the landscaping is beautiful, and the staff is friendly and attentive.

If you live in Panama City, every now and then you just simply need to get away from the heat, noise, traffic, and motion. Los Capitanes is tucked up against the side of the rim of an ancient volcano in El Valle. (For more details on El Valle, please see this article written by Charly Garcia, who owns a house there and retires to El Valle on the weekends.

After we got settled into our room he headed for the restaurant for dinner. Both the owner and menu are German, and we learned that Los Capitanes is the gathering place for the German expatriate community in El Valle. Everything we ate was wonderful and the service was very good.

After dinner we took a walk to enjoy the mountain breezes and clear night skys and stars. Bring a jacket because it gets chilly at night (we went packed for the beach and were a little “lite” in the warm clothing department.)

We headed back to the hotel and found the owner Manfred with some guests in the hotel bar. We socialized for a little while, then got a bottle wine and headed for our room. We spent the rest of the evening just hanging out and talking on the patio in front of our room, drinking wine, listening to music, and talking, enjoying the evening breezes and the sound of the gurgling brook that runs next to the property.

In the morning we got up and headed to the restaurant for breakfast (which is included in the $55 per night price) and found people picking fresh oranges from the tree that grows right next to the restaurant! One guy was up in the tree, picking oranges and tossing them down to the girl on the ground with the wheelbarrow (the photo doesn’t do the scene justice…) Talk about fresh squeezed orange juice!

As expected, breakfast was perfect (and the orange juice couldn’t be beat.) We paid, packed up, said our goodbyes, and headed for the market in town to shop for “stuff.” Later we headed up to see the “El Macho” waterfall. We would have done the Canopy Tour but didn’t have the right shoes on for adventure travel (see and upcoming article on that…) Maybe next time.

If you haven’t been to El Valle, you should make a trip up there, it’s certainly worth it. And, Charly was right. Los Capitanes is a fantastic place to stay while you’re there. If you go, tell Manfred I said “hi.” and thanks.

SOURCE: Don Winner @ Panama-guide.com

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Source: VIP Panama