All-Inclusive San Blas Islands Day Tour from Panama City

The Islanda are spectacular. Our driver to the site was very knowledgable and gave us a deep historical intro to the site. I wanr to ask the organizers to thank him. It was worth every penny and of course met some great people there.

The place is paradise; however, there are some considerations to take into account… The drive from Panama City is very long, on a one-lane, non-passing road, with curves, climbs, and descents, not suitable for people prone to motion sickness. The drivers are friendly, but the journey is not. The arrival at the port is very chaotic and creates uncertainty; however, they know exactly where you are going and incorporate you into a mixed group of 20 people. The islands are beautiful, but they do not provide instructions on where to paddleboard, kayak, or snorkel; you have to ask where and how, and they try to charge you for everything even when you have paid for everything because you do not have any indication that they should not charge you. And if you do not clarify it, they will charge you. The food looks good, but I got food poisoning from the seafood dish; I left practically everything, but what I ate made me very sick. From the end of the meal, I was vomiting, which made my experience terrible, and I just wanted to finish it, and there was still one more hour on another island plus the return trip. On the way back, we encountered a police checkpoint that delayed the journey by 40 minutes for a car inspection while the others passed slowly since there was only one officer checking. I know this is not related to the tour, but it does affect the experience. Dirty bathrooms, no water, and a fee; the port does not have an area to change into swimwear, and the entire experience is very rustic overall.

This experience was amazing so I will start from the beginning. I took my 10-year-old son to the sandblast Islands. We left from Panama City where picked us up promptly and communicated. Well. We drove about an hour and stopped at a market, but just a small place we could buy somefood and or snack snacks and use the bathroom and then we continued on. We went through the mountains at this point and the road was paved. was new. It was very windy up down around. I typically don’t feel well as a passenger in the vehicle on a regular basis anyways and I took medication so I would lesson the nausea. It did help given that the car ride was already approximately three hours just being tired and a bit hungry and then adding the windy roads didn’t help much, but it was bearable and it was a very nice drive. The guide pointed out birds and animals in the trees such as sloths there was also a lot of iguanas things of that nature we arrived to the I guess the dock where we were we gonna take the boat to the island or islands and we had to wait about 30 minutes once we got there which was good because it was busy, but also you want to use the bathroom before you go given that the ride was pretty long. Most people had had coffee and breakfast by that point so they were anticipating using the bathroom as well as just being on land and not being moving in some kind of vehicle felt good. Gave you time to get a little bit organized and then once we got on the boat, it was very nice. It was covered. You don’t get wet much at all on the water was very calm so perhaps if it was rough you would you might get wet and we went to the first island we spent about two hours there it was so beautiful. The water was clear. You could see everything. The sand was white white. I would bring a lot of sunblock and drink a lot of water even if you’re paying attention, you’re getting dehydrated if you aren’t drinking. On the island you can buy some small food. There was chicken. It’s fried and french fries there was some little snack snacks you could get andof course they sold alcohol and nonalcoholic beverages. They did accept card. There was a little bit of a charge for the card because the percentage that get charged, they pass onto the consumer, which was maybe a dollar or so then we left this island. We went to another very very small island which had a sandbar which was also amazing there were starfish in thewater you could walk around on the sandbar and on the tiny island they sold things to you buy like little memorabilia’s they only accept cash and most the indigenous people they didn’t speak any English or Spanish. They have their own language, but they could tell you how much they wanted for each item they didn’t appreciate pictures most of them you you have to be very respectful. They are a person they’re not just there for entertainment. We then went another island where we had lunch and the food was very delicious. I had chicken and as well as my son had chicken members of our group hadfish. There was a vegetarian dish and there was also shrimp. Kind of look like a stirfry with rice and beans and you could choose like fried banana or different veggies so that was that was really yummy and it came with a drink of your like some kind of soda or juice or water. We didn’t stay there very long and maybe an hour so if you finished eating, you couldgo explore there were swings in the water. The water again was crystal crystal clear it was so beautiful. There’s also bathrooms that you can use you weren’t charged to use any of the bathrooms. I know some places you have to pay $.25 that’s also something I should mention when you get to the port when you first arrive where you’re gonna get on the boat to the islands you need to have some coins so $.25 per person to use the bathroom bathrooms there. After we ate and our visit was done on that island we went to the final island and we stayed there for just maybe 30 mins, then we made our way back to the dock and at this time, it was now nearing 4 o’clock in the afternoon boat ride back was very nice. It was relaxing. A lot of people were very tired and falling asleep. After which we arrive to the dock, we could use the bathroom prior to leaving. Just know that it’s gonna be quite busy cause everybody’s coming back aboutthis exact same time because it will be dark shortly and that’s why we’re leaving around that time. So we drove back we made one stopat a little convenient store. Could use the bathroom. If you wanted a snack you could buy something once again. And we arrived to our condo around 8 PM. There was a bit of traffic which is perfectly normal. There’s a lot of traffic in Panama City. There’s only three ways in and out. All in all it was an amazing experience. I highly highly recommend visiting the sandblast islands. It was pictures ass pictures. Do not do it justice. It was just an outstanding experience. If I would’ve known, I would have stayed on the sandblast island at least for a night if not too, there’s things to do if you water and there’s volleyball you know you can relax in the sun and if you enjoy reading or just playing games with family or if you’re solo, you just wanna look out I mean it’s beautiful. You can really just spend time being present. One of the most memorable things I did on my holiday in Panama. I would 💯 go back just to stay on the San Blas islands!

Very good attention from johny, all the way was very attentive to everyone coming on the tour. Super recommended

Excellent trip, very well organized and a must if you are like to explore and experience different cultures and scenes. Everything from the pickup, ride and boat ride was well executed. Guna Yala aka San Blas(t) islands are truly a blast.

Had a very good experience. It was exactly as described. The drive was long on very windy roads. One teenager (not our family but sharing ride) got nauseous on the drive and we gave him some Dramamine. Our guide (Richard), driver (Joel), etc. were very courteous and helpful. At the dock area, where our driver dropped us off and we waited to board the boat, we were waiting with 60 or 70 people for boats. The restrooms there were disgusting and one needed to pay a quarter to use the facilities. When we got there it was initially unclear that payment was required and we got yelled at. This was not the fault of Tau Travel. Several companies had people waiting there. It was just the dock area. But, Tau might let people know and have some quarters available. Also, pressure the dock to improve the facilities. They were REALLY bad. Also, be aware that entering the indigenous area requires an actual border crossing with passports. It’s not like driving onto an Indian reservation in the U.S. It’s almost like entering another country. The islands were beautiful. It was a lovely day.

Best ever the prole the place all the Service is great join this trip never forger

The islands are beautiful on any tour! We did not make 4 islands as planned and for what we paid lunch could be better (all to ship). It is worth visiting the islands for their beauty but I don't highlight this tour... I think there are more beautiful islands and they won't. They take them away and don't explain the island's name!

We had the best time on this trip Excellent value for money. Our driver Javier was friendly, an expert on the twisty roads and determined to spot a sloth for us which he did! The boat was bumpy, our guide was v friendly The islands we visited were absolutely beautiful. We had a good amount of time on each. The food was good, vegetarian option too Even some WiFi and card payments on some islands!

I went without excursion and I tell you what I could appreciate; 1- go in a 4x4 in my case I rented in Trifhty a Suzuki Jimny is economical, the renter a success. 2- when you arrive at the border of the locals you must pay 20 dollars per person and 10 for the car 3 -the road is spotless 4 - there is cell signal even on the islands 5 - I hired the boat there I did not book