I've been lucky enough to snorkel some of the world's most beautiful spots. From the colourful reefs of southern Thailand, to the exquisite wildlife off the coast of Oman, the surreal landscapes of the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador and the dolphins of New Zealand, to shipwrecks in Fiji and manta rays in Indonesia, I've enjoyed some of my most memorable experiences while under the surface.
While backpacking through Panama, I really wanted to spot the whale sharks that travel through Coiba National Park during their migratory route. It wasn't meant to be on this trip; our guide said that, while were there during the right season, we were just a few weeks too early.
However, we still had a fantastic day out in the waters of Coiba National Park, just off the southern coast of Panama. From the town of Santa Catalina, boats ferry their eager passengers out to some of the 38 islands of Coiba to indulge in the wildlife that calls this home or passes through on their journeys.
→ Check out my complete guide to visiting Santa Catalina!
My Central America trip covered five countries in five weeks; the first three (Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua) with my partner Tobi and the last two (Guatemala, Belize) with Ina, one of my best friends from Salzburg. After landing in Panama City, the furthest east would be, we made our way by public bus across Panama to Santa Catalina.
Although it was a lot of work, I made daily vlogs on Instagram reels of every single day of my Central America trip which I branded "the backpacking series".
→ Check out my episode of the Backpacking Series from snorkeling in Coiba National Park!
Here is my complete guide to enjoying a day of snorkeling in Coiba National Park:
Isla Coiba, the largest of the 38 that make up Coiba National Park, operated as a prison from 1919 all the way up until quite recently in 2004. As an isolated, hard-to-reach prison, it remained very undeveloped beyond the prison camps.
Coiba National Park was established in 1991, years before the prison closed, and then later in 2005, the year after the prison closed down, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thanks to its relatively quiet recent history, Coiba National Park is an exceptional ecosystem home to glorious biodiversity, often nicknamed the "Galápagos of Panama".
→ Check out my complete guide to visiting the real Galápagos Islands of Ecuador!
Isla Coiba
The town of Santa Catalina on the southern coast of Panama is the base hub for visiting the nearby Coiba National Park.
→ Find out how to get to Santa Catalina in my complete guide!
By boat tour: Coiba National Park can only be visited as part of an authorised boat tour. The overwhelming majority of tours depart from Santa Catalina. You can book a tour in advance or you can wander through town and speak to the different tour offices before you make your choice; the main reason tourists visit Santa Catalina is to explore Coiba National Park and you are guaranteed to find a spot on a tour with relatively short notice (we booked ours the day before).
To visit Coiba National Park, you need to pay a fee of USD $20 ($5 for Panamaians) per day. Our tour included this cost in their ticket price but some don't; be sure to check in advance!
We booked our snorkeling trip to Coiba National Park through our hostel, the Bodhi Hostel. The tour operator of our trip was Unlimited Adventures, located very near to Playa Santa Catalina. You can also book directly with them.
→ Book your Coiba National Park snorkeling trip with Unlimited Adventures.
For our one-day snorkeling tour we paid $85 USD per person. This eight-hour tour (8am-4pm) included:
- the boat ride each way from Santa Catalina (about one hour and 15 minutes and quite bumpy at times!)
- three snorkel stops within the park
- snorkels, de-fogging spray and fins
- lunch (with veg options available) on Isla Coiba
- freshly cut pineapple on Isla Ranchería
- a great tour guide who snorkeled with us each time
→ Check out my episode of the Backpacking Series from snorkeling in Coiba National Park!
Playa Santa Catalina, where tours depart from
Coiba National Park can only be visited as part of an authorised boat tour. Our eight-hour tour was from 8am-4pm with Unlimited Adventures and included the boat ride each way from Santa Catalina, three snorkel stops, lunch on Isla Coiba and a short beach stop on Isla Ranchería.
7:50am - Meet at Unlimited Adventures
Our meeting time was 7:50am at the Unlimited Adventures office. Before, we grabbed a delicious smoothie bowl for breakfast from the nearby Café Panachocolat.
At the tour office, we met up with the rest of our group (12 of us in total), received our snorkeling gear and had a short briefing about what to expect from our day on the water.
8:00am - Board our boat
From the office, we walked a few hundred metres down to Playa Santa Catalina where we met with our boat and captain for the day. Remember to pack water shoes as you'll do a lot of wading in and out of the water to board the boat.
Our snorkel group walking down Playa Santa Catalina
8:15-9:30am - Boat trip out to Coiba National Park
The boat ride from Santa Catalina takes about an hour and 15 minutes past gorgeous coastlines, lush palm trees and ever-bluer waters. The boat ride can get a bit bumpy at times. We were also lucky enough to spot dolphins in one of the bays!
10:00am - First snorkel
Our first snorkel spot was just off the coast of Isla del Canal de Afuera. The water was so beautifully clear and we saw beautiful corals and colourful fish.
11:00am - Second snorkel
Our second snorkel spot was just off the coast of Isla Coibita. The water was so blue here and we got really lucky with spotting turtles at this spot!
12:00pm - Third snorkel
Our final snorkel spot was just off the north coast of Isla Coiba, the main island. We managed to spot a few cheeky reef sharks here which was extra special.
→ Check out my reel from snorkeling in Coiba National Park!
Quite honestly, I would have preferred one more snorkel stop in the tour and had a bit more time underwater during the day. I has also hoped to spot the whale sharks that travel through Coiba National Park during their migratory route but it wasn't meant to be on this trip; our guide said that, while were there during the right season, we were just a few weeks too early.
1:00pm - Lunch on Isla Coiba
We stopped for lunch on Isla Coiba where it seems that all tour groups come through. The beach here is simply stunning, with white sand and warm blue waters. Lunch was included in the trip, with vegetarian options available, as well as drinks. We then had a quick look in the small museum on the island which shares more about the history of the prison as well as all the biodiversity that can be found in the park.
2:00pm - Fresh pineapple on Isla Ranchería
This was definitely the prettiest stop on the trip with lush palm trees lining the perfect white sand beach as we approached. The main reason to visit this island was just to relax and take nice photos at the end of the day, plus eat some yummy fresh pineapple sliced up by our guide.
Approaching the island
2:45pm - Boat ride back to Santa Catalina
And that was the end of our day in gorgeous Coiba National Park, finished with an hour and 15-minute very bumpy boat ride back to the mainland. We were dropped off on the beach, returned our rented gear and headed straight for Café Panachocolat for a chai latte and smoothie bowl!
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Hi! I’m Jana, a Dutch-German-British-Canadian with a dream of seeing every country in the world. I am a storyteller, photographer and adventurer passionate about documenting and sharing my travels.
