Because a lot of the population speaks English there’s no need to fret about learning the language. It’s encouraged however and to be honest you’ll probably pick up a lot of it just by being immersed in it. The infrastructure and health care are close to those in the United States and the process of getting a permanent visa is fairly easy.

The one thing that might make Panama retirement more difficult is the finding of those small tastes of home. Fortunately for retirees, the famous Panama Canal make shipping so easy and affordable that it’s possible to find everything from Aunt Jemima pancake mix to Ben and Jerry’s ice cream in the grocery stores! You won’t miss the taste of your favorite treats and you’ll be able to find clothes, hardware, and other household items that are the brands you’ve known and trusted for years!

Retiring overseas sounds hard, retiring in Panama is easy as apple pie!

Using this as a baseline, you can parse out what you will be spending your money on and learn how you can stay within your budget and still enjoy your retirement. So what can you do with your twelve hundred dollars? Well, most of it is going to go to your housing, either your mortgage or your rent. Living in or near a large city area will cause the amount you spend on housing to go up. Living outside the city will greatly decrease this number.

You should also learn to live like a local. Buying food from local markets and locally grown and made products will save you a great deal of money as opposed to purchasing imported items which will be much more expensive.

Don’t forget to take full advantage of all of the discounts you can get as a retiree. These were covered in a previous blog post.

To get a visa to retire in this fantastic country you need to have a guaranteed income of five hundred dollars per person. This means that a couple in Panama will have an income of at least a thousand dollars in their household. If you were living in the United States this might not be enough to make ends meet but in Panama this is more than enough to live on!

For example, a one bedroom apartment in the city center is around five hundred dollars. Your utilities are a little over a hundred dollars per month. This leaves you about four hundred dollars to buy groceries and have any other fun that you might want to have.

Imagine going to the grocery store and paying a dollar for milk. How about going to the bar and paying under a dollar for a beer? Best of all, imagine going to the pump and paying $.93 for a liter of gasoline! Those prices are enough to intrigue any of us to retire in Panama.

To apply for a retirement visa in Panama all you need is proof that you have a monthly income of at least $1,000 (plus an additional bit of income for any dependents you might have living with you), a health certificate, and a police report. It’s that simple!

Then, when you get there, you get phenomenal benefits that all retirees can receive. This includes 50% off of all entertainment like movies, concerts, and going to the theatre. In Panama, a ticket to the movies costs you four dollars. Retirees only pay two. Some of the other perks include:

• 25% off restaurants
• 50% off hotel accommodations from Monday-Thursday
• 30% off bus, boat and train fares
• 25% off domestic and international airline tickets
• 10% off prescription medicines
• 15% off dental and eye exams
• 50% off closing costs for home loans

With all of these amazing perks, why wouldn’t you want to retire in a country like Panama?

Here are a few tips for surfing for first timers. First, pick the right board for you. The surfing elite will tell you that the board is really what does the most work and to pick the correct one will take a keen eye. If you’re renting for the day, trust the people that work in the rental shop. They’ll be able to choose a board that’s correct for your size and shape.

Secondly, don’t try too much too soon. First, try laying on your stomach and paddling while you’re still on the sand. When you paddle, use a crawl stroke to control your speed. After you get the hang of how it feels, you can try to get into the water. Don’t get discouraged if you can’t do it right away. You’ve got to crawl before you can surf! After laying, try sitting. After sitting, try standing. Then you’re ready to catch your first wave!

Gorgeous beaches and vast ocean lies before you. There will be plenty of days spent on the beach or poolside, without a care in the world. Maybe you’ll have friends over to be “lazy” with, sipping cocktails by the water. It’s peaceful; it’s relaxing; it can be your new way of life. But when the mood strikes you for adventure, Panama is full of outdoor, and indoor, activities. From surfing to hiking to animal watching, there is something fun for everyone, something new to do each day.

Moving to Panama will quickly prove to be the best decision you’ve ever made. It’s a chance to start a new life in a brand new country with wonderful opportunities. Whether you choose to spend it soaking up the sun or catching a few waves, it’ll be an amazing experience.

If you have bought or are planning to buy yourself some Panama real estate, keep in mind the fact that you WILL have visitors. You’ll have family, friends, and loved ones all traipsing down to visit you in your new found home. Now, many retirees are unwilling to purchase a large home because they don’t want to take care of it. This is perfectly understandable. Who wants to live in a big, empty house?

The solution in Pedasi is the myriad of places for loved ones to stay that are nearby. Really,everything is nearby in Pedasi. The Hostals and other places in town will not only comfortably and affordably hold your family members that won’t fit into your home or condo, but they will be experiencing Panama first hand. And really, isn’t that the reason that people come to see this beautiful land anyway?

This prime piece of Panama real estate has two beautiful beachfront bars and restaurants that are right on the dunes of the beautiful beach. This beach is populated mostly by surfers and has a definite laid back atmosphere. This is a place of pastoral and wonderful silence as there is absolutely ZERO cell phone coverage here, and people like it that way. You don’t need cell phones when you have snorkling, protected swimming, surfing, and napping to do.

The beach is surrounded by the remnants of a dry tropical forest that still home to local deer, iguanas, gato solos, and even howler monkeys! If you want to see some of the other amazing unspoiled beaches and relaxing atmosphere in the area, try renting a horse from a local farmer and set out on horseback.

If you just want to nap, no one will blame you, but make sure you visit one of the great nonchalant surfer bars before you leave.

Isla Iguana is home to some amazingly rare birds, purple and red crabs, and giant lizards. It’s also the only white sand beach on the peninsula. This means that it’s a great attraction for those who are looking for some of that crystal blue water feel of a great resort but want to be outside and doing things. Because of the massive amounts of rare birds, this is a protected landscape. You can, however, go to the island to hike, bird watch, and take photographs of the amazing plants that live on the island. You’ll definitely want to capture the beauty of this place. It’s the largest coral reef in the Gulf of Panama and houses over 350 tropical varieties of fish.

Did you know that Panama literally means “abundance of fish”? It certainly is abundant with fish. There are so many different types of fish here including yellowfin tuna, big eye tuna, mahi-mahi, and wahoo. These are the fish that can be caught seasonally, usually from November to April each year. The fish that you can catch all year round include amberjack, sailfish, snapper, roosterfish, and grouper.

Those who are looking for a hobby when they’re moving to Panama for retirement have hit the jackpot. Pedasi holds the world record in fishing in over 40 categories and over 24 junior world records.

It’s so easy to go out for a day trip because the water reaches depths of 600 – 1000 feet at only a few miles off shore. This means that fishing charters are a popular attraction to those who flock to the overabundant waters of Panama for fishing. You might find marlin and swordfish closer to shore than anywhere else in the world.

This is most definitely the place to go for world class fishing in Panama!