Panama's Caribbean 

Puerto Obaldia is a beautiful coastal village in the eastern part of the Republic of Panama, near the border with Colombia.With just 450 friendly and welcoming inhabitants it is truly one of the undiscovered paradises remaining in Panama. In the village you will find a few simple hotels, typical Panamanian restaurants, public telephones, and an internet cafe connected by satellite internet.  One of the village's more famous residents is Italian expat Maurizio Giglioli who some years ago went right around the world on a motorbike. After everything he saw, he decided on Puerto Obaldia as his retirement haven - the perfect place to live close to nature while enjoying the financial and tax haven benefits that Panama has to offer.  Compared to busy and noisy Panama city, Giglioli loves the peace and quiet Puerto Obaldia has to offer. In Panama City, apartments cost as much as 250 euros per square metre, and finding small studios  with ocean view is almost impossible. On the other hand, in Puerto Obaldia the prices are, says Giglioli, "banana prices."  Just minutes by boat are the San Blas islands - a chain of 366 islands, with white beaches sand beaches fringed with coconut palms. The water here is crystal clear, and temperate all year round.   Puerto Obaldia is served by short and inexpensive (about $125 round trip) direct flights from Panama City on Aeroperlas, a Panamanian regional airline.  Despite its proximity to Colombia, Puerto Obaldia is quite safe. Anything you may have heard about insecurity on the Colombia-Panama border applies to the inland jungle areas, not to the coastal areas. From Puerto Obaldia you can take a water taxi to Colombia, and the official border crossing point is always open to coincide with flights from Panama City to Puerto Obaldia. In fact, just across the border there are excellent opportunities to buy and invest in Real Estate in Colombia too - but those are the subject of separate articles forthcoming in our Colombia section.  In terms of real estate, there are some real bargains here. Everything is very natural and eco-friendly. For example we saw the piece of land pictured below, which is currently on the market and is suitable either for subdivision or for development of a boutique eco-resort. To give you an idea of the asking price: it's around 20,000 Euro. For details of the land for sale in the pictures below, please contact info@offshoreworld.org