San Blas Islands

A new island to visit every day of the year, how cool does that sound? San Blas is an archipelago of close to 365 islands, of which only a tenth is inhabited. Also called Guna Yala, these islands are inhabited by the indigenous population. They are out of the purview of the constitution of Panama and have their own institution of governing authority for the tiny population of 30,000 inhabitants. This archipelago has an autonomous constitution which the inhabitants doggedly preserve. Some islands are as small as a 10-minute walk around its periphery. San Blas will leave you with an aftertaste of a parallel world existing at a stone’s throw from the cosmopolitan capital. The 400 km long Caribbean coastline is easily reachable from the capital city in a few hours. There is a $25 or above fee that tourists have to pay to enter this territory.

A visit to San Blas can be made into a convenient day trip. But what’s the need to rush? We recommend staying here for at least 2 nights to absorb the beauty of this destination that was opened for tourism only very recently. There is nothing to do in particular in San Blas except island hopping. So come prepared with beach towels, water to drink and an interesting book to read while you lay around on the white sand beaches. However, if you desire, you can also scuba dive, snorkel, windsurf and indulge in some sport fishing by contacting a tour operator. The most prominent islands of the Panamanian comarca are Isla Perro (Dog Island), Isla de las Estrellas (Starfish Island) and El Porvenir, the capital of the Panamanian comarca of Guna Yala.