Panama’s Premier Retirement Haven

The mountain town of Boquete has a lot going for it…

It’s well located—around a 45-minute drive from David, Panama’s second-largest city. David, for its part, is less than an hour’s flight from Panama City.

A 50-minute drive from Boquete will bring you to Panama’s Pacific coast and its beaches. The town is also a great jumping off point for adventures farther afield… the Gulf of Chiriquí National Marine Park, Bocas del Toro, and even Costa Rica are within easy reach.

It’s also the only destination in Panama where you can thrive with no Spanish. Almost everyone working in the service industry—in hotels, restaurants, tour agencies, grocery stores, etc.—speaks English proficiently.

The weather is another big draw. Perched at an altitude of about 3,900 feet, the town enjoys a mild, spring-like climate year-round. Daily temperatures range from 65°F to 75°F making it a haven for those looking to escape extreme heat or bitter cold.

For health care needs, local clinics are reliable for regular check-ups and minor emergencies. For specialized care, David offers larger facilities. Boquete also has public and private dentists. General appointments at the doctor or dentist start from around $20.

Panama’s highlands are a nature-lover’s dream and an outdoorsman’s playground. You could spend your days hiking the lush highlands, rafting on the river, spotting wildlife, playing golf, fishing…

When night falls, the town comes alive as restaurants of nearly every nationality welcome in diners and live music drifts out onto the streets from buzzing bars.

With a thriving expat community there’s clubs of all kinds, as well as massage studios, beauty salons, gyms, grocery stores stocking international brands, even a country club.

We’ve been extolling Boquete’s many attractions for decades… but there was one element long missing from this mountain town escape…

Quality housing has been very hard to come by and luxury housing has been almost non-existent.

Happily, that’s changed thanks to a good friend of mine who happens to be one of Panama’s most prolific real estate developers.

The project they’re working on here is a private community in a prime location with the feel of a high-end European, Alpine resort. On its doorstep will be a social area for meeting friends and neighbors… including restaurants, a reading and coffee room, terraces, a firepit area, pools, and lookout decks. Plans also call for an on-site medical center.

This cozy resort is across from the equestrian center and health spa… and just 10 minutes from lively Boquete town. It will serve the demand for the booming eco-tourism market in Panama and, of course, all of the retirees flocking to Boquete.

And it’s well under way. With the first phase sold out, the second has been released. If you’re interested, take a look here.

With all its other attractions long-standing and this new development in the works Boquete is more attractive than ever before. Indeed, for all these reasons and more we’ve just named it the number one place in the world for an overseas retirement this year in our Overseas Retirement Index.

Despite global headwinds and a maturing local market, for my money, Panama remains one of the most strategically important real estate markets for global investors this 2026. It’s also a great place to live.

Stay diversified,

Lief Simon
Editor, Offshore Living Letter