Red Frog Beach Island Resort

While the island and beach are beautiful the use of the word “resort” is a stretch. One open restaurant, a minimally stocked grocery, insufficient transportation, broken and few lounge chairs, the sewage aroma at the pool/restaurant, not enough towels, poor communications and a hefty price tag created a stressful and disappointing vacation spot. It feels like a private gated community that doesn’t invest in guest services. Even the excursion options were a mystery. If you can’t walk up hills for miles- don’t choose this location.

We were so disappointed with this trip. The previous glowing reviews did not remotely reflect our experience. The more recent ones were spot on. Firstly, be aware this is not a “resort”. It is a development with multiple villas. These are privately owned and rented out. It’s much more like staying in an AirBnB rental than at a resort. Ours was nearly a half hour walk from the reception along a road that got extremely muddy when it rained and was very dark at night. Others were far further. We didn’t have a golf cart. We couldn’t get one and apparently other guests who had pre-ordered one arrived to find their orders were not honoured. We had a wait of over an hour on arrival (after a pick up they had organised) to get to our villa and only got there after it they finally found a golf cart, which it transpires belonged to another guest. Other people had been waiting for over an hour for transport and were complaining. In fairness, this did improve over our few days there. There was never anyone at the concierge desk to help with activities and we met more than one other guest who had turned up for activities to find out they were not booked in or nobody turned up to take them. The main restaurant was ok. Service in general on the resort was often not great. In addition to our transport issues and towels (see below), there were frequent mistakes with our food and drinks orders. Only the main restaurant was open, even though it was peak season, the other one was closed. The main pool didn’t open until 10am and there were no towels and apparently we weren’t supposed to use the beach until 10am. There were not enough sun loungers at the pool or beach and they were basic (with no cushions) and often broken. There were also terrible smells at times in the beach area. The main pool could do with some maintenance. On the plus side, it is surrounded by rainforest and we did get to see sloths. Our private pool was tiny and enclosed. The villa had absolutely zero view. Our villa was huge but very dated. This was not a cheap holiday! It was over $1000 a night. I’ve been to 2 and 3 star hotels that were better. Had this been a cheap 5* then I’d have adjusted my expectations but this was not remotely cheap, especially for Panama, and was not as advertised.

Poor management , not enough to do on this Island the concierge barely existing. Booked a lunch at the beach club pizza never came after waiting over an hour they said to many orders . Tried to schedule a massage they said will call us in 10 min never did . Lounge chairs at the beech broken we asked for 5 towels for our family they said they run out and will be available in few hrs

So, many parts of this resort are lovely. Our 2-BR villa was very nice. A small private pool, and great views. However, the lack of transportation is a deal breaker. The resort is very spread out and walking around is difficult (and impossible with a family). The resort offers an option to reserve a golf cart, which we did when we booked. When we arrived however, they told us that they didn’t have any carts available. Instead they told us they would pick us up when we called in a “bus.” The bus was really a very old and dirty truck, which stunk of gas fumes. We waited more than 30 mins after lunch for our ride to arrive. It’s an incredibly frustrating experience. If they just had each villa have a golf cart the problem would be solved. Unfortunately, I have to recommend you find somewhere else to stay when you visit Bocas del toro.

Our first trip to Bocas del Toro was made even better by staying at Red Frog, which proved to be a fantastic choice. The property is well-maintained, with beautiful grounds and clean pools. We stayed in a Jungle Lodge, which was cozy and comfortable. It had a small but fully equipped kitchen, a comfortable bed, a TV with Netflix (including English options), and a lovely patio where we enjoyed listening to the afternoon rainstorms. The bathroom was spotless, with great water pressure. The only minor downside was that it stayed a little warm at night, even with the AC on, but that’s to be expected in this region. I’m glad we reserved a golf cart in advance, as getting around the large and hilly property would have been difficult without one, especially in the rain or at night. Just be aware that while the cart is advertised at $65 per day, our final bill came to $100 per day due to taxes and fees. One tip: stop by a market after landing in Bocas Town to stock up on groceries. We had planned to eat at the two on-site restaurants, but The Point Pizza Bar, which is still listed on the website, had closed months before our visit. The other option, La Rosa Beach Club, is advertised as being open daily from 8 AM to 10 PM, but one night it was closed by 7 PM. Fortunately, we had picked up some wraps and deli meat from The Red Frog Market on arrival, so we were able to make dinner back in our lodge. However, the market was unexpectedly closed two out of the three days we stayed, so don't rely on it for all your needs. It had basic items like beer, liquor, deli meats, and pantry staples, but the deli counter was closed during our visit. The beaches were stunning, quiet, and easy to access. At most, there were a handful of other people around, and we loved spotting the tiny crabs that popped out of the sand at Red Frog Beach. For a fun day trip, I highly recommend booking a boat tour with Crossing by Sugar. He took us on an incredible island-hopping adventure at a great price, picking us up and dropping us off right at the Red Frog dock. It was a highlight of our stay!

Stayed in a villa with an ocean view. Everything worked except the jacuzzi. The television was great as well as the beds and bathrooms. Looks like new owners at Redfrog. Lots of gossip in the grocery store. I hope they are people of character. I enjoyed the experience.