Christmas and New Years in Santa Catalina Beach Panama

Looks like Santa Catalina is going to be busy as usual for Christmas and new years.If you are planning on making it down here for that time,let me tell you we are already full from the 29th trough the 1st January,only a few openings before the 29th, some availability still for January,book early and guarantee your holidays in paradise!!!Whale-sharks are here!!!!And if you are a surfer,off-shore season is starting!!!!Get on it!!!!

check our web page for more info

another beautiful day surfing and diving santa catalina

hey,everyone out there interested on what´s going on here at beautiful santa catalina in panama,

today was another lovely day,a bit of rain but mostly sunny,surf was overhead at the point,conditions perfect on the early morning.

the people that went scuba-diving to coiba came back happy and reporting lots of sharks as usual,turtles,frog-fish,big morey-eels and some big schools of barracuda,trevali-jack and others.They brought pictures and if they give me some will post them here.

hotel sol y mar and the whole village is asleep now,and its time I call it a night too,planning on another surf tomorrow!!!!

this are some photos from todays views from Hotel Sol y Mar in Santa Catalina Panama.A couple of views and one of a nice squirrel that I found eating a coconut right in front of the house,he has been there for hours and can still hear him chewing right now!!!

Beautiful sunny day with low winds,perfect for a diving trip to coiba or for surfing the point.

wish you were here?Book now and share a piece of Paradise!!!http://www.solymarpanama.com

hello everyone!!!as usual,my entries have been sporadic,with running the Hotel and restaurant,taking care of the family and trying to have some fun(my best idea of it is surfing the point,which I do as often as possible) looks like time is never enough.We do have internet,also free wi-fi for the hotel guests at restaurant area,but whenever I get the time to go online have plenty e-mails to answer,and never seem to take the time to come to the blog.Again will try to make more entries to this blog,lets see if this time i keep e1 updated on what happens in Santa Catalina Panama

so a quick update:after a slow September and October for everyone here in Santa Catalina,November has been busier,even if uts been raining,plenty people coming trough,some good waves for surfing,also the guests that have been going to Coiba for diving or snorkeling have been coming back happy with plenty shark,lots of fish,humpback and whale-shark sightings

at Hotel Sol y Mar we have had our fair share of guests even if there are now new places to stay and eat and competition is getting agressive especially on the web,but our reputation for service and comfort helps maintain a fair amount of reservations coming.We are working on several web pages to show people the activities in the area and help them plan and book this activities,7 new web pages are up and running,even as some lack more text,which I plan on adding next week.

for now let me invite you to visit the one about snorkeling www.snorkelingcoiba.com ,plenty beautiful photos of coiba ,info on the boats available,trips,etc.Hope you enjoy it!!Hope to have you visit us soon

yesterday and today surfed some good waves at the point in santa catalina.
today a bit bigger,mellow crowds and off-shores

faqs about santa catalina panama

some of the most common faqs about santa catalina panama are :are there shops to buy groceries in santa catalina?
also people want to know if there are fruits and vegetables in santa catalina to take on our trip to coiba or should we stock up in santiago?

These are all valid questions of practical,well traveled people that know that when traveling to remote places you have to be prepared ahead of time.And Santa Catalina was know as a place with few places to eat and seldom those few kept very unreliable opening times.
So if you are coming soon to Santa Catalina and wonder about food options let me tell you about the present situation:
The days of not finding a restaurant are over.as the village develops and new rooms and cabins have been built with more comforts,so does the village now counts with about a dozen restaurants,between the ones that stand on their own or the ones at several hotels(we at Sol y Mar Hotel included) and surfcamps that are also open to the general public.These restaurants serve a variety of food,from panamanian,italian,argentinian,portuguese,fish,seafood.Of this,a few are located in the village and others on the way to estero beach,so no matter where you are staying you will always have a few within short distance.That sorts the issue of eating out.
what about those that want to cook their own meals?
At Sol y Mar there are a couple of small basic kitchens shared by 6 rooms.Guests can use it at no extra charge.Each room also has a mini-fridge so you can keep some food.
Stocking up on food is a diferent matter.There are three tiny groceries that hold only a few basics,mostly canned altough they will also have things like eggs,cheese ham,maybe some frozen chicken.ocasionally one of the stores will have a few vegetables and fruits.But the best way to buy fruits and vegetables is to look or ask for the whereabouts of the fruit trucks that nowadays and especially in the dry season come on a regular basis to santa catalina.They travel at low speed,will stop if you wave them to along the main road and estero road and anounce their presence trough a loud speaker,telling you every kind of fruit and vegetable they carry on the back of the pick-up
for fish,the cantina at the entrance of town keeps fish packed in ice at the back or if you have the time speak to locals at santa catalina beach in the morning,find out who is out fishing what and wait patiently sometime around the time they are expected hoping to get the fresh catch of the day.thats what i do many times.
as for meat,our restaurant and several others in catalina serve fine meats but you cant buy it in catalina,only option Santiago,two hours away.In Santiago you have several big supermarkets where you find almost anything you may need.This is a good place to buy anything you think you might need on your way to santa catalina and its actually the place where all the restaurants and many locals go do their supermarket.
always good to know about the food,right?good surf,diving or dishing are not that good on an empty stomach.hope this helps

sunset today from terrace of hotel sol y mar in santa catalina panama.