Top Hotels in Isla San Cristobal
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The 6 best hotels in Isla San Cristobal, Panama
Discover the best hotels in Isla San Cristobal, Bocas del Toro Province including CocoVivo Retreat, El CARIBEO, Dolphin Blue Paradise, Nathylodge, El Clandestino, Dolphin Bay Hideaway.
1. CocoVivo Retreat
Overall Ratings
5 based on 51 reviews
Join us at CocoVivo for the experience of a lifetime, stay at a tropical island paradise. Surround yourself with the tranquility of island life, while enjoying all the comforts and adventures our rustic retreat has to offer. Dive into emerald green waters, snorkel among the colorful coral reef, crack open a coconut to quench your thirst, and simply relax in a hammock to read or stay in touch online. Enjoy water sports of sorts: wakeboard, kayak, paddle-board, and scuba dive. Don't forget to hike CocoVivo's wild backyard jungle, while searching for delicious plantains that make for excellent "batidos" or smoothies. You will almost certainly encounter a sloth! CocoVivo is truly for the adventurous soul, but the team does their best to make off-the-grid living as comfortable as possible. From free Wifi and exceptional restaurant service, to personal and group tours to visit main tourist attractions that the archipelago's other islands have to offer (Islas Zapatillas, Red Frog Beach, Bocas Town, the Cacao Farm, and more), rest assured that you will be well taken care of.
An amazing place to spend your time!
Reviewed By chrislQ3682RBThis was a amazing place to stay. We awoke every day in a beautiful place with great weather. Traveling with young children and a large would be a challenge for most places but Cocovivo was up to the challenge. With the oldest in our group of 19 being in there 60's and the youngest being 2, this was a tall order and they exceeded expectations. The staff assiated in booking tours that were specific to our interest, along with getting all 19 of us across to other islands. The food was above and beyond our expectations. Hooray for the chefs!! The dogs would walk us to our cabins at night. Which was really cool when you have children. Honestly I could write pages on our experience here. If clear water with reefs and beautiful jungle are your thing, and if its not it should be. Check it out, you won't be disappointed. The staff will make you feel like family!!
2. El CARIBEO
Overall Ratings
5 based on 29 reviews
Offering a waterfront pool and a panoramic terrasse over the archipelago of Bocas del Toro. El Caribeo is situated on Isla San Cristobal - 10 min boat ride from Bocas Town. Lodges with seaview, private bathroom, hot water and private terrace. Guests can enjoy a meal or a drink at the on-site restaurant & bar. A number of activities are proposed such as snorkeling, kayak, SuP, jungle trail...
Just Perfect
Reviewed By NapatacWe just finished a stay at this hidden gem, and our only regret was not stayiong longer. El Caribeo and the Owners Romano, Clement and Camille provide an experience that strikes the perfect balance between staying with dear friends and a luxury eco-resort. A ten minute boat ride (easily arranged for you by the staff) from the busy and noisy Bocas Town, El Caribeo is a waterfront paradise on secluded Isla Cristobol. This is a place to relax, unwind and put yourselves in the hands of your hosts who live onsite and rent only two small cabanas two those wishing to share their little corner of paradise. Let Camille cook all your meals, she is a fabulous chef and the food is amazing! Your hosts will share a drink and some very entertaining and informative conversation with you while you enjoy appetizers by the pool, after which you will be served your entrees and dessert at a table on the covered deck overlooking the Caribbean Sea. After dinner play some darts and enjoy a drink while listening to some great music from Roman's eclectic collection. Make sure to let your hosts arrange a tour of their gardens, the source of ingredients for your meals, infused soaps and oils and even some local spirits. Clement and Roman took us for an outing by boat to a nearby bay to view dolphins, which is not to be missed, and later we were invited back on the boat for an impromptu night time look at the bioluminescent creatures that inhabit the bay just off the dock. Another day, simply stepping off the private dock gave us access to a wonderful snorkeling reef full of sea life just steps from our little cabana. We just can't say enough about El Caribeo. Keep in mind, this property is off grid and very eco-friendly. Don't plan on bringing your hairdryer and curling iron, but do plan on having an experience that you will remember for a lifetime, and making some wonderful new friends as well.
3. Dolphin Blue Paradise
Overall Ratings
5 based on 2 reviews
In the heart of Dolphin Bay, The Dolphin Blue Paradise offers 3 lodges as well as a family house. The restaurant propose local and Franco-belgian food and works as much as possible with fruit and vegetables from the garden.
Jardín botánico frente al mar
Reviewed By Superraton007Delicioso hotel muy bien llevado por Julie, que además es una cocinera excepcional y por Lorenzo, todo un gentleman. Es un auténtico jardín botánico, frente al mar, el mar en esa zona es un espejo por lo que es un espectáculo de sitio. Al estar flanqueado por islas , el agua está muy tranquila y se ven muy a menudo delfines, puedes pasearte con un kayak o tabla de paddle , de forma gratuita , por el mar y si tienes suerte , ver delfines a tu lado.
4. Nathylodge
Overall Ratings
5 based on 16 reviews
Perfect place to enjoy Isla Cristobal
Reviewed By emanurobWe were tripping for photography reasons and this place was just perfect to chill after a long day on the boat and into the other islands’ forests. The pool is clean and usable, the owner is a French family and very nice and welcoming. The only “cons” is the price of breakfast and what they serve for that price. But overall it’s really a superb location and I’ll definitely go back there in the future trips.
5. El Clandestino
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 3 reviews
Awesome place to relax. Good food, coral for snorkeling straight from your room.
Reviewed By jouk125A lovely little place on an island. Owned by an France men, Sebastián. He is a man of little words, but made our stay very nice. The room we got was very clean and modern, with a big sliding door. Not too big but that's no problem. You can borrow a wooden Cano for free, but its realy difficult. Behind the hotel is jungle. So you can't really go of the place. Keep that in mind. But at the same time there is a lovely deck with hammocks from where you can snorkel and even fish (caught one!) We saw a couple of dolphins from the deck. Sebastián cooks the food in his restaurant style kitchen. Good food and great portions. Example for dinner; 15 dollars for fish fillets, with a nice sauce. With salad and boiled potatoes. There was a perfect passion fruit cheese cake as dessert. Breakfast is big and included, only thing was that the bread was made without yeast. For lunch you can talk to Sebastián. He made us some nice seafood pasta for 12 dollars. He can make you what you like. So whe enjoyed it a lot. But keep in mind that it's no party place or hiking spot. Go there to snorkel, relax, eat good food etc.
6. Dolphin Bay Hideaway
Overall Ratings
5 based on 512 reviews
Here on the calmest Caribbean water, at our off-Grid Eco-lodge, our team strives to provide the absolute best travel experience. We know you work hard to earn your vacation and we want you to relax so your focus can be on all Bocas has to offer. We do our best to combine environmental sustainability and the highest levels of guest comfort.
Awesome experience
Reviewed By fehrs005I stayed at Dolphin Bay Hideaway for two weeks and had an incredible experience. There is something for everyone here. Whether it's lounging in the hammocks on the patio or going for a jungle hike. The snorkeling is awesome too. During kayaking, I was able to find two places that were full of colorful corral, some starfish, and smaller fish. I even got lucky and saw a large ray passing by. There are also two smaller mangrove islands that are known to have good snorkeling within a reasonable paddle if you don't want to go searching for a place. Although it is possible to travel there by kayak, I went there by boat. The reefs there have incredible colors and similar creatures to what I mentioned before. If you're patient, you can notice some very cool stuff. The jungle hike around the property was also a great experience. There was a walking path that Brian guided me along so we weren't fighting through vegetation. He gave me an overview of their conservation efforts there on the island and answered all of the questions I had about the different trees and fauna. It was something I'd never experienced before and I learned a lot. We even glanced a sloth up in the branches of a tree. My room and bathroom were clean and comfortable. There were sufficient fans so I stayed cool. For someone not used to the high humidity of Panama, I can say my room was great. The food was also incredible. The variety of dishes was great and as soon as I arrived, I was asked if there was any food/ingredient I didn't like or was allergic to. The quality of the food was awesome and it really felt like I was at a restaurant (in a good way). The wifi was always reliable. Although I didn't use it too often, I was able to make an hour long video call without any issues. And using my phone to call/text and use social media worked great. The pool was great for relaxing and cooling off in. Perfect for having drinks and talking. Although if you bring kids you'll want to have them save their cannonballs for off the end of the dock. Overall my experience at Dolphin Bay hideaway was unmatched. It lit a desire in me to travel more and experience places I'd only seen in National Geographic, that for so long seemed so far off. I can't wait to return, this time with friends to share the experience with.
