Dear Luke and Leia,
We are surviving in the Pearl Islands these next few days…. Surviving? This is where the some episodes of the hit television series “Survivor” was located. So naturally with your dad visiting, we had to see what it was all about. We had heard that Isla Contadora is beautiful.
Isla Contadora in the Pearl Islands
Planning the trip and seeing the options available we decided to use both forms of transportation to Contadora, by boat and by plane.
Getting to Contadora by boat
The boat leaves from the dock on Amador and is a large catamaran with indoor and outdoor seating. The ride was smooth and rather fast as boat travel goes, taking about 2 hours. We made a short stop at Saboga, a neighboring island, and then continued on to Contadora where tenders took us ashore.
Loading the tenders at Saboga
Tender heading to the island of Saboga in the Pearl Islands, Panama
The harbor at Isla Contadora.
Pelicans in formation over Contadora.
Our hotel in the Pearl Islands
We were met by the hotel staff and taken directly from the airport to our hotel. The hotel, Villa Romantica, is located on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Palm trees and a rocky cliff off to our right added to the island’s mystery.
Villa Romantica from the beach below.
We spent the rest of the day exploring the hotel grounds and beach area near Villa Romantica. I loved the rocky jetty and the cave the pounding surf created in the cliffside. We saw numerous crabs of all different colors grasping the rocks for dear life and the sea pummeled them.
Happy Hour view from Villa Romantica’s al fresco dining area.
Surf’s up on the beach.
Hanging on as the surf pounds the rocks.
With the sun setting on the beach, locals secure the boats for the night.
Touring Contadora
The next day we rented a modified golf cart and drove all over to check out the island. The island is not too big, but it took us all day because we wanted to see everything that Contadora had to show us.
Four-wheelers are available for a decent price to take you all over the island.
Rocks mingle with beach on Contadora
Lush greenery surrounds your view from the top of a bluff.
Another of the wonderful beaches available on Contadora.
Pearl Islands to Panama by plane
After a restful morning, we were shuttled to the island’s small airport for our short 20 minute flight home. The small plane was loaded and off we went. The views from the plane were wonderful, both seeing other small islands of the Pearl Islands and finally the city of Panama.
Our ride back to the mainland has arrived.
Tight squeeze adds to the fun of a small plane ride.
Off we go looking under the wing. This will give a much better view to the ground below.
View down to another Pearl Island.
Back to Panama City in only 20 minutes.
We had a great time. Is that something you might enjoy sometime? What part would you enjoy the most?
We really miss you guys. Hope you are doing well in school.
Love,
Nana and Pap
P.S. – Here’s a great video of our hotel.
♥
P.P.S. – If you have Pinterest you can click the top left of any photos in our story to add them to your Pinterest boards. We would actually like that a whole lot. Here are more pictures you might like to pin as well, including one of bananas. They grow all over Contadora and reminded us of Leia, because we know they are her favorite.
A plane loaded with visitors prepares to land at the beautiful island of Contadora.
To join #TheWeeklyPostcard linkup, paste the code (in the gray box below) into the text editor of your travel-related post or sidebar and then add your link by pressing the blue button below.
