From Roatan
to Bocas: Why we moved from Honduras’ Bay Islands to Caribbean Panama
by Frank Canale
In 1994,
my wife Holly and I decided we wanted to raise our children in a culture
outside the United States. We focused mainly on Central America, because
we saw there a respect for traditional family values and we longed for
a slower lifestyle. Through International Living, we discovered the island
of Roatan off the coast of Honduras.
Our move there
proved to be the adventure of a lifetime for the entire family. The children
(Tony then 6 and Carmen 4) adapted to the island lifestyle easily and learned
to speak Spanish.
We purchased
property on Roatan and started a development called Sundancer Cabanas.
Over the next four years, we built and sold some 20 houses on Roatan and
helped many other newcomers to purchase and develop their little pieces
of paradise. In early1999, as the completion of Sundancer drew near, we
started to look for the next family adventure. Once again through International
Living, we found yet another Caribbean frontier on the threshold of discovery:
Bocas del Toro (Mouth of the Bull), Panama.
An Old World
feel
Each time
we fly into Bocas, we strain in our seats to see out the windows on
both sides of the plane. Below, hundreds of little islands jet out of the
sea. I long for a houseboat on which to cruise the calm waters, pull up
to a spot and explore the unknown. That’s when it’s easy to find sloths
hanging upside down from Hammond trees, red frogs hopping along the floor
of the rain forest, and parrots and other exotic birds making strange sounds
from high in the treetops. In the waters, dolphins and manatees swim freely
in their natural habitat. And this is one of the last spots on earth where
you can observe traditional Indian life undisturbed by modern civilization.
Bocas has
proved a wonderland for our family. Since it’s smaller than Roatan,
there is little need for an automobile here. We travel by bicycle and on
foot. There are a few taxis, and a driver will take you just about anywhere
for 50 cents. Bocas’ main street is lined with small hotels, restaurants,
and shops situated along the water’s edge. The buildings and houses are
all painted in the traditional Caribbean colors. Pedestrians really own
the paved streets.
At night, Bocas
resembles a carnival, with sidewalk cafes, lit streets full of visitors,
and locals strolling in and out of shops—making it difficult for the occasional
car to pass.
The park along
the main street is full of children playing, adults sitting on park benches
deep in conversation, and venders displaying their wares.
These evenings
in Bocas call to mind those of my youth, when I safely peddled my bike
through the streets on summer nights with neighborhood friends. It’s an
experience I didn’t think possible for my children anywhere in the world
today.
Why Bocas
makes sense
The Smithsonian
Institute has a station here and has also purchased property to construct
a field university. Our son Tony, now eleven, is a volunteer with the Institute’s
sea-turtle project. Each night from May to September, with fellow volunteers
and staff, he takes tourists to watch the turtles come up on the beach,
lay their eggs in the sand, and return to the sea.
This archipelago
has a different feel than the Bay Islands. It’s perfect for someone who
has children, doesn’t require any nightlife, and doesn’t mind getting around
by boat. The weather is wonderful on both Bocas and Roatan, but I
find Bocas a little milder, usually in the mid-80s (Fahrenheit). A testament
to its slightly more temperate climate: Bocas has no history of tropical
storms in the 140 years official records have been kept.
Roatan is
a world-class scuba-diving destination, and the development there has very
much focused around that industry. In Bocas, however, more attention is
being paid to a wider variety of offerings: You can dive, to be sure, but
also surf, fish, water ski, and sail. Bocas, like Roatan, has a new airport,
with daily flights from Panama City and San Jose, Costa Rica. We have a
hospital, parks, schools, and banks. An organized local municipality means
we benefit from a central sewage system and a water-treatment plant. Food
is less expensive on Bocas. A seafood dinner costs less than $5; on Roatan,
where there are many more expatriates and visitors, the same meal would
cost twice that. Fresh fruits and vegetables seem a little more abundant
on Bocas.
Panama vs.
Honduras
Bocas is years
behind Roatan in terms of development.
From an investor’s
point of view, it makes a lot of sense to buy here right now, while it’s
still very early. Panama has a lot to recommend it:
1. Though Roatan
is a much more established destination for expatriate living and tourism,
business structures are, in fact, more advanced in Panama than in Honduras—particularly
in the banking and tourism industries.
2. Panama
is home to the world’s second-largest port, and that means that more goods
are available here than on Roatan, at prices closer to what you’ll pay
in the States.
3. Roatan
has little infrastructure, making it more difficult and expensive for a
developer. At Sundancer in Roatan, we spent thousands of dollars installing
electricity, wells, and sewage- and water-treatment facilities. At Sundancer
in Bocas, however, we were able to hook up to most of these services. It
saved us, and ultimately the consumer, a lot of money. Once word gets out
about this place, development will come quickly—and easily.
The coming
boom
Prices in Bocas
right now are below what we found in Roatan when we arrived there
in 1994. It’s a smart time to buy. We were lucky enough to have been in
Roatan for the boom there and see the same dynamic is at work here in Bocas.
I think that if you invest now, you will likely double or triple your investment
before prices hit the wall and stop going up. It seems that when the third
generation of buyers comes in, prices usually level and in some cases drop
5 percent to 10 percent before they start to rise once again. But Bocas
is still at the very earliest stage of development. Now is the time to
get in early.
As for my family, we have started
another Sundancer project, but this one with only six waterfront cabanas,
a swimming pool, and a dock. We will also offer Sundancer owners the opportunity
to trade time between the properties on Bocas and Roatan. For the most
part, however, we are busy purchasing properties for ourselves and assisting
other investors in acquiring properties for future development or speculation
while the prices are still low.
We have purchased a 30-acre island
where we are planning 20 home sites. Each home site will also be deeded
a 30-foot boat slip in the marina and a golf cart for island transportation.
We are currently offering the complete package for $39,000. (A comparable
package on a private island elsewhere in the Caribbean would cost well
over $150,000.)
We would be happy to assist you if
you’d like to come down. In fact, we’ll be here in March to talk with the
IL Discovery Tour group and would be happy to meet with you then. If you
have any questions, please feel free to get in touch with us directly by
E-mail at: fcanale@aol.com.
Barbara Perriello in our tour office
is just now finalizing the itinerary for that March expedition, planning
to travel not only to Bocas but also to Panama City and to the interior
highlands around Boquete—two other areas where we’ve identified opportunities
we think will interest you. For more information, please contact Barbara
at tel. (800)926-6575 or (561)243-6276, E-mail: tours@gate.net,
Web site: ildiscoverytours.com.
Making money in marinas
I think there is a great opportunity
in the development of marinas here. Right now, there is only one that is
finished. It is expanding, however, and there is a second on which construction
has just begun. Still, I would argue that there is room for several more.
The need for marinas is due in part to insurance requirements that
yacht owners move their boats out of the hurricane belt during hurricane
season. Bocas is outside the belt…and provides the first safe marinas before
those farther south in Venezuela. There is also a need for a haul-out for
boats and even a dry-storage facility. If you’re interested in this, get
in touch with me directly by E-mail at: fcanale@aol.com.
--Frank Canale
Bocas is still at the very earliest
stage of development…if you invest now, you will likely double or triple
your investment.
No tropical storm has hit here in
the 140 years official records have been kept.
