Bastimentos National Marine Park
Panama's first marine national park — pristine Caribbean coral reefs, sea turtle nesting beaches and howler monkey-filled jungle on Bastimentos Island.
BOC · MPBO · Panama
Bocas del Toro Airport
Bocas del Toro — Bocas del Toro Archipelago. 5 min to Bocas Town by water taxi.
Runway
1410m
Surface
Asphalt
Elevation
10m
Hours
6am-6pm
Book your private flight to Bocas del Toro
Airport at a glance
Bocas del Toro — Panama
The runway at Bocas ends about four blocks from the water taxi dock. That single fact explains why the archipelago works the way it does: you land, you walk or take a five-dollar taxi, you get in a boat, and within twenty minutes of the aircraft you are on a different island entirely.
Bocas del Toro is a cluster of six main islands and several hundred smaller ones on Panama's Caribbean coast, close to the Costa Rican border. Wooden buildings on stilts over the water, Afro-Caribbean creole alongside Spanish and Guna, coral reef, mangrove and the kind of loose, unhurried atmosphere that has drawn a particular international crowd since the 1990s.
Runway 1,500 metres by 26 metres, asphalt, at approximately 3 metres elevation. ICAO: MPBO. The field sits inside Bocas Town on Isla Colón, with the approach over water. Daytime operations, broadly 06:00 to 18:00. It carries international designation and handles cross-border traffic to and from Costa Rica.
Fifteen hundred metres at sea level is generous for an island field and gives BOC real flexibility — it accepts larger aircraft than most Caribbean-side airports in the region and imposes far fewer baggage constraints than the Costa Rican beach strips.
In 2025, construction began on a new airport on Isla Colón, a roughly $50 million government-funded project intended to replace the existing facility with a longer runway capable of taking larger aircraft. It is the most significant piece of aviation infrastructure under development on either Caribbean coast in this region, and it is worth tracking for anyone planning beyond the near term.
Getting there
Bocas del Toro Airport — Getting there
Bocas is one of the few places in Central America where a cross-border charter is obviously the right answer rather than a luxury.
From San José, the flight is about 56 minutes. Overland it means the drive to the Sixaola border, a crossing, a transfer, and a boat — a full day, minimum, and one that goes badly if the border is slow.
From Panama City (PAC), the flight is about 60 minutes against an overnight bus plus a boat.
From Limón on Costa Rica's Caribbean coast, it is a short hop — which makes a combined Caribbean itinerary across the two countries genuinely practical: Cahuita and Puerto Viejo, then Bocas, without either leg involving a border queue.
BOC is a port of entry, which is what makes all of this work.
| Panama City | ~60 min | overnight bus plus boat |
| San José | ~56 min | a day via Sixaola |
Nearby
Things to do near Bocas del Toro
Isla Colón holds Bocas Town, the airport and most of the infrastructure. Starfish Beach and Boca del Drago sit at the northern end; Playa Bluff, on the exposed eastern side, has the best surf and the worst swimming.
Isla Bastimentos holds the Bastimentos Island National Marine Park, Panama's first marine park, protecting reef, mangrove and the nesting beaches of Playa Larga. Red Frog Beach takes its name from the strawberry poison-dart frog, which occurs here in colour morphs found nowhere else — Bastimentos alone hosts several distinct variants across a few kilometres.
Cayos Zapatillas, two uninhabited islands at the park's outer edge, have the clearest water and the best snorkelling in the archipelago. Isla Carenero and Isla Solarte are minutes from town by boat and hold most of the over-water accommodation.
Diving & Snorkeling — Bocas del Toro
Bocas del Toro's coral gardens host vibrant Caribbean marine life — nurse sharks, eagle rays, sea turtles and octopuses in shallow, clear waters.
Sportfishing — Bocas del Toro
Private sportfishing charters from Bocas del Toro — tarpon, snook and jack in the Caribbean lagoons, or offshore for mahi-mahi and tuna.
Surf — Playa Bluff Bocas del Toro
Playa Bluff is the most powerful wave in Panama — a heavy, hollow beach break that handles serious swell on the Caribbean side of Bocas. Private transport, surf guide and videography session on one of Central America's most dramatic surfing beaches.
Shark Dive Expedition — Bocas del Toro
Advanced reef dive at the outer Bocas atolls targeting nurse sharks, Caribbean reef sharks and the occasional bull shark. Private boat, technical dive guide and exclusive sites far from the tourist diving areas.
Open Ocean Kayak — Bocas Caribbean
Multi-day sea kayak expedition from Bocas Town to the outer islands — camping on uninhabited cayes, night paddling in bioluminescent water and open-ocean crossings to the most remote parts of the Bocas del Toro Archipelago.
Helicopter — Bocas Archipelago Aerial
Private helicopter tour of the entire Bocas del Toro Archipelago — nine jungle islands from above, the extraordinary lagoon system, Bastimentos National Marine Park and the Caribbean horizon stretching to the Nicaraguan border.
Offshore Fishing — Caribbean Bocas
Offshore sport fishing from Bocas del Toro — targeting tarpon in the river mouths, snook in the lagoons and Pacific blue water species in the deep Caribbean beyond the atoll rim.
Where to stay
Hotels near Bocas del Toro
When to fly
When to fly
Bocas runs on the Caribbean pattern, which is not the Panamanian Pacific pattern. Rain is possible year-round. The most reliable windows are September and October and a shorter one around February and March; the wettest stretches are typically November to January and around July.
Surf season on the exposed side runs roughly December to March. Calm water for snorkelling and diving is more consistent in the September–October window.
Because BOC is a daylight field with a water approach, morning operations remain the standard, though the 1,500 m instrument-capable runway makes it considerably more robust than the small strips elsewhere in the region.
FAQ
Bocas del Toro Airport — Frequently asked questions
What is the runway length at Bocas del Toro (BOC)?
1,500 metres by 26 metres of asphalt, at approximately 3 m elevation. ICAO: MPBO.
How long is the flight from San José to Bocas del Toro?
About 56 minutes by charter, against a full day overland including the Sixaola border crossing and a boat transfer.
How long is the flight from Panama City?
Roughly 60 minutes from Albrook (PAC).
Is Bocas del Toro a port of entry?
Yes, which is what makes direct cross-border charters from Costa Rica practical.
Is a new airport being built at Bocas?
Yes. Construction of a new roughly $50 million facility on Isla Colón, with a longer runway for larger aircraft, began in 2025.
When is the best time to visit Bocas del Toro?
September–October and February–March are the more reliable windows. Surf on the exposed coast is best roughly December to March.