Playa Bluff Lodge

Food was not good

If you go to Playa Bluff hotel, think about an adventure. No air conditioning anywhere. The restaurant has new chef from Italy. We only had breakfast there, (was ok) never ate dinner. We had dinner every night at Hummingbird hotel, amazing food, great ambience. Walking distance. The pool did not opened until the day we left. They had lost electricity and it was disgusting, so took time to clean. The staff is extremely friendly and helpful, the room is nice, doesn't have a fitted sheet, so is a little uncomfortable to sleep with a sheet that moves all around. No Mattress cover, the room could be cleaned better, need to move furniture and clean behind and under, since its a tropical place, spiders are everywhere. There is a big community kitchen that is fully equipped and you can buy food and make whatever you want. Unfortunately there are no markets close by, you have to take the shuttle that comes every hour in front of hotel for $3 or a taxi $20 into town ( around 30 minute ride one way) to buy food. Unfortunately the ocean was extremely rough, so we were not able to swim in the ocean, but if you walk the trail for about an hour or bike (they have bikes for rent) you reach beautiful natural pools. Take a book and plan to relax, eat and enjoy the weather, and go into town and take tours to the islands. You can arrange all tours with the hotel. The hotel is building a new spa, and tour thru their jungle and waterfalls.

Great location-only a few steps from BomBom Beach, bar and restaurant-our favorite place to hang out in Bocas. Rooms are newly renovated and lovely. Very nice complimentary breakfast (nice bar, reception and dining area). Private beach with sunrise yoga avaiable. Awesome management under Manuel and his wife. Highly recommend and looking forward to returning.

We did not stay at the hotel but during our 6 night stay nearby at Playa Bluff, we ate here three times after we discovered the restaurant: Sabor En Bocas. It is an Italian restaurant with the two owners: Jose and Francesco both originally from Italy. The pleasant open air restaurant has a proper floor or if you prefer, they will set you up on the beach opposite with the sand between your toes and watching the waves. The small lunch and dinner menu featured a tuna tartar , ceviche, curry chicken, hamburger, fries, shrimp and different pastas. We tried the tartar, hamburger, shrimp and pastas and everything was delicious. As for the hotel, we toured the gardens which is a wildlife wonderland some days and saw the rooms from the outside which looked nice. There was a partly above ground pool as well. I can’t say anymore regarding the hotel but the restaurant is a must.

We traveled and explored Panama for a month. Starting on the pacific and eventually crossing the mountains and finally onto the archipelago of Bocas del Toro.. Playa Bluff hotel was the highlight of our travels. Imagine taking a 4x4 pickup taxi along a dirt road / the beach to arrive at a spectacular off grid paradise with the most spectacular beach covered with palmt trees and hammocks, the largest waves on the Caribbean....we layed in the hammocks and watched professional surfers ride tube after tube. Then a dip in the pool, a walk in there gardens followed by a dinner at there outdoor restaurant..... OK my wife is Italian/Hungarian...yes a lethal combination but the women knows Italian cuisine...the chef Franchesco has 20 year of cooking in "Sicily " the giant shrimp...the seafood pasta aldente ..the " ceviche ". ...wow... the best Italian cuisine Angela and I have ever had. "Jocelyn " also Italian served us with a smile and style & elegance and grace. The rooms were comfortable and one of the only hotels in our travels with hot water ( Great surprise). Anthony the concierge was incredible even the maintenance manager" Darren" became our friend and we hired him to watch and do work on our sailboat. All in all a 5 star experience. Now Remember this is a remote eco lodge, isolated and quiet...not an all inclusive . Plays Bluff is for the traveller's who want to escape and spend quiet time in an isolated Paradise and eat amazing Italian.

This was the most expensive place that we stayed at in Panama and was the worst by a landslide. The patio door was just a screen that anyone could have broken into. We were woken up by loud people 3 of the 6 nights we stayed there and management pretty much said it was out of their control! Not impressed!!!! Our room was only “cleaned” twice, check in did not include instructions on where to get drinkable water, nor was there a glass in the room. The electrical outlets would not hold a plug for my charger. The sheets are too small for the bed and their are no mattress covers, yuck!!!! The curtains did not fully cover the windows. The patio door locks are broken, so a small padlock with a key is used. There are no lights on the patio, so sitting out and reading at night is not possible and there are wires hanging where lights should be. There was no hot water in the showers even after they were “fixed”. If you are there for surfing this is a great place to be, if that is not your intent then do not stay here, it is a long way from town and the shuttle only comes every 2 hours and a taxi will cost you $15-$20 one way. The breakfast is the same every day, eggs, pancake and toast with a few pieces of fruit. When we raised concerns it fell on deaf ears, the owner/manager thought that our concerns were trivial. She certainly does not belong in the hospitality business. This place has the potential to be quite lovely, but falls very short of its potential.

The experience was out of this world. Walk across the road straight onto the beach where the friendly staff served us with food and drink with a great smile on their faces. The food was superb and the rooms very comfortable. The best of all was the hot showers. The hotel grounds are teaming with wild nature and I happened to film a mom and baby sloth moving over the path way to my unit. There is no money that can give you this type of experience, which I was in awe over. You are truly in paradise. The staff are friendly and helpful, the rooms neat and clean with fresh smelling linen. I will most definitely stay here again.

We stayed in bluff for 2 nights. Not at this location. We are at their restaurant. Great staff. The pina colada was ok. However the lobster dish for 2 was fantastic. Fried rice with lobster. The sauce was delicious as well.