Shallow, calm waters at Isla Diablo—perfect for traveling with children without missing out on the paradise of San Blas.
Isla Diablo has a shallow, calm shoreline, ideal for younger children to play and swim without worry while the adults enjoy the same white-sand beach. We close the day in the Natural Pool, a sandbank where the water doesn't go past your waist either.
With children, what decides a day is logistics rather than scenery: here the entry into the water is gradual, there is palm shade, and the boat hops between stops are short. The guide knows this and sets the pace accordingly. Arrival around 8:30, island lunch at 12:30 and the Natural Pool at 15:30.
Pickup from 5:00 am at your hotel, door-to-door 4x4 and about two and a half hours of winding road — the stretch children handle worst, so a light breakfast and travel-sickness medicine are worth it if they're prone. Includes boat with life jackets, lunch and a local guide. The comarca fee is separate, paid the same day, in cash or by card to the driver.
Great if you are travelling with children and need shallow shoreline and little boat time.
Maybe not your tour if there are no children with you and you want snorkelling or adventure: there are better routes for that.
4x4 tour departing from Panama City.
A beach with calm, shallow waters, ideal for children.
Fresh food on the island.
One last swim at the sandbar, then back to the city.
There are no shops in the archipelago, and whatever is missing waits until you are back on the mainland. See the full list →
Free cancellation up to 72 hours before; after that the deposit is held, because your place is already blocked. Cancellation policy →
$135 per traveller. That covers transport from Panama City, the sailing, the meals of the format and the guide. Outside it sits the comarca entry, $22 for foreigners and $7 for residents, paid in cash on the way in.
This route names 1: Isla Diablo. Some formats sell an area rather than a single island, because in the remote cays you anchor where the sea allows that day.
Departure is always before dawn, around 5:00, because the mountain pass and the tide impose it. The return depends on the format: single-day trips come back that afternoon, multi-night ones on the last day.
The entry into the water, which slopes gently and lets them play without scares, the palm shade a few steps away and the short boat legs. With kids, what ruins a day is not the scenery: it is the logistics, and here they are already solved.
That is the hard part. It is around two and a half hours of mountain curves before you see the sea, at dawn and on an empty stomach. A light breakfast, a motion-sickness tablet if they are prone to it and a bag within reach prevent almost every upset.
The return leaves at 15:30 and the same curves as the outbound leg are still ahead, so you get back after dark. With children it pays to plan for that: eating out that evening usually goes badly, and the realistic plan is a shower and bed on arrival.
The rest — document, comarca fee, route changes — is answered separately. Go to the frequently asked questions →
