What are the expats like in Volcan and Cerro Punta, Chiriqui Province, Panama?
Magda Crespo - Magda Crespo Insurance
Expats who live in Volcan area are usually nature lovers who feel very comfortable with themselves. They don't really miss the crowd, and they love very much open areas.
Expats who live in Volcan area are usually nature lovers who feel very comfortable with themselves. They don't really miss the crowd, and they love very much open areas.
Posted September 18, 2013
Tehany De La Guardia - Tehany Realty
The expats in Volcan and Cerro Punta are a friendly group, mainly from the US, Canada, UK, Holland and Germany. They get along together very well.
There is a weekly meeting at Manas Restaurants every Friday from 9 AM to 11 AM where you can buy all sorts of foods, souvenirs and other items. Also there are Spanish lessons available to help expats who want to learn to communicate and make friends with the Panamanians. (On a personal...
The expats in Volcan and Cerro Punta are a friendly group, mainly from the US, Canada, UK, Holland and Germany. They get along together very well.
There is a weekly meeting at Manas Restaurants every Friday from 9 AM to 11 AM where you can buy all sorts of foods, souvenirs and other items. Also there are Spanish lessons available to help expats who want to learn to communicate and make friends with the Panamanians. (On a personal note, my mother provides Spanish lessons.)
The expats here in in the Volcan area also have other group activities like hiking, concerts, exhibitions of different things they make, and there's even a recycling group and a pet rescue club.
In addition, the expats here have a very nice relationship with the locals, who are often invited to many of the expats' activities.
Posted June 24, 2014
John Gilbert - PanamaKeys
Expats in Volcán are not touristy. There are people coming in and going out of Panama all the time, and Volcán is not like that. I’ve lived here in Volcán for quite a while now, and I can’t remember any expats whom I know here in Volcán moving away. Volcán is a tight-knit community- a lot of us expats know each other. Expats who have been here longer know all of us. Our little circle of friends has 7 or 8 families...
Expats in Volcán are not touristy. There are people coming in and going out of Panama all the time, and Volcán is not like that. I’ve lived here in Volcán for quite a while now, and I can’t remember any expats whom I know here in Volcán moving away. Volcán is a tight-knit community- a lot of us expats know each other. Expats who have been here longer know all of us. Our little circle of friends has 7 or 8 families who get together routinely for holidays, sporting events, and getting together with our children and letting them play. We know each other quite well, and it’s a tight-knit community of expats here.
Expats in Volcán are mainly from the United States, but there are also expats here in Volcán whom we’re great friends with from Costa Rica, South Africa, and Canada.
What you find in the majority of the expats who live in Volcán is that they expect to strike up relationships faster. We all have that common dread of not being in our home country, and that’s an instant bonding relationship, so when someone tells me that they’re here from South Africa, for example, I immediately identify with that concept because I’m here from Kentucky.
While Kentucky and South Africa may not have anything in common, there’s a lot that we both have in common immediately, as in Spanish being a second language or no language at all, trying to fit in and blend in with a new culture, learning the little nuances that are different from our home countries, and exploring why they moved here from South Africa and allowing them to explore why we moved here from Kentucky.
There are instant things that we’re going to have a lot of commonalities about, not because of the country where we’re from, but simply because of the fact that we’re here from somewhere else.
[The Gilbert family (Dad is behind the lens), expats from Kentucky living in Volcan, Panama, pictured.]
Posted March 5, 2017
Jackie Lange - Panama Relocation Tours
The expats in Volcan are very different than the expats in Boquete. In Boquete it's all about the social activities - and there are many. There are 60+ restaurants, live music 3-4 nights a week at multiple locations, hiking groups, photography groups, many charities and volunteer activities. There are also activities like bridge, poker, other card games, karaoke, art shows, etc., etc., etc. And higher prices in Boquete. In Volcan there...
The expats in Volcan are very different than the expats in Boquete. In Boquete it's all about the social activities - and there are many. There are 60+ restaurants, live music 3-4 nights a week at multiple locations, hiking groups, photography groups, many charities and volunteer activities. There are also activities like bridge, poker, other card games, karaoke, art shows, etc., etc., etc. And higher prices in Boquete. In Volcan there are significantly fewer social activities and volunteer or charity activities. The expats in the Volcan area are perfectly happy with the slower pace of life and the much lower prices than Boquete. There is live music at one location once a week. There are fewer restaurants. Food prices are more affordable than Boquete probably because you are so close to the source in Cerro Punta.
Boquete has 25,000 to 30,000 people where Volcan has about 12,000 to 15,000, so it just feels less crowded in Volcan.
I would estimate that food and housing costs are about 20-30% less in Volcan compared to Boquete.
The expats in Volcan enjoy pot luck dinners and a Netflix movie with friends or meeting for lunch.
The expats in Volcan enjoy pot luck dinners and a Netflix movie with friends or meeting for lunch.
The views in Volcan are very different than Boquete. In Boquete, the town is in a valley with mountains surrounding you. Volcan is on a plateau with rolling vistas and mountains in the background. They are both exquisitely beautiful but in different ways.
There is something for everyone in Panama. No matter what lifestyle you prefer, or what budget you need, Panama has it!
(Volcan, Panama, pictured.)
Posted June 4, 2017