Travel

Visiting The San Blas Islands as a Day Trip from Panama City, Panama

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Are you considering visiting Panama’s San Blas Islands, possibly as a day trip from Panama City?  This article explains the details of a day vist to the San Blas Islands, provides tips for visiting the San Blas Islands, and why I probably wouldn’t do it again, ha. And, by way of background, Dan and I visited the San Blas Islands as a day trip from our nearly week-long stay in Panama City, Panama in early April. I selected the San Blas Islands over other popular island destinations, such as Bocas del Toro due to the fact that you can drive from Panama City.

A Panama beer at the San Blas Islands.

The San Blas Islands

And what are the San Blas Islands you may ask? The San Blas Islands are a group of approximately 300 autonomous Panamanian islands off the northern coast of Panama in the Caribbean Sea.  Panama’s indigenous Guna (a/k/a Kuna) population reside in the San Blas Islands, which are famous for their Mola fabrics. Today, the Guna people earn nearly all of their money from tourism and selling handicrafts.

The San Blas Islands undoubtedly have some beautiful areas.

The San Blas Islands are currently popular with tourists for their crystal clear blue waters, as well as ecotourism. We found the San Blas Islands to be quite pretty, but pretty rustic and not easy to navigate for a typical tourist without some sort of guide. Indeed, you can’t even access them without taking a boat from the mainland. The Guna people have their own language and heritage, which is really interesting if you have time to read up on them. There is also a (free!) Mola Museum in Panama City that provides a solid background before visiting.

Mola fabric from the Mola Museum in Panama City.

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Lunching at the Fabulous Prada Caffè in Harrods!

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Prada, yes the Italian fashion company, opened a “temporary” restaurant and pastry shop inside Harrods department store in London in 2023. As I found myself in London to celebrate my birthday in January (2025), and as I LOVE Prada (I know, so basic), I had to make a lunch reservation during my stay. This post reviews my lunch at the Prada Caffè, including how to make a reservation, cost and food quality,

How to Find the Prada Caffè in Harrods

Prada Caffè is technically located “inside” Harrods main department store in Knightsbridge, London, but the restaurant actually has its own fabulous entrance that is street level. And while you can access the cafe from inside Harrods, entering via the street is more exciting, at least for the photos, LOL. There is no security or anything of the like, so you can just walk in, even to take a photograph.

Welcome to the “pop up” Prada Caffè!

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Executive Lounge Review: JW Marriott Panama City (Panama)

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I spent five days at the JW Marriott Panama City in April 2025. This post reviews the JW Marriott’s M Club Lounge. Before getting into the M Club Lounge review, the JW Marriott Panama City is a nice hotel located in a high rise building, with most (if not all) rooms having views of the Pacific Ocean. The hotel also has a beautiful pool area, complete with two infinity pools and a heated regular pool. Like many JW Marriotts, this one boasts a M Club Lounge for visitors with certain Marriott status and those staying in certain room categories. I have Platinum Status with Marriott, so I received access to the Club M Lounge for me and one guest during my stay. This post reviews the M Club Lounge at the JW Marriott in Panama City.

Room views from the JW Marriott Panama City.

The M Club Lounge

As you likely know if you are reading this article, M Club Lounges are lounges at certain Marriott properties that certain guests can access, including those with certain status and others staying in certain room categories. While club lounges vary widely in terms of quality and offerings, Marriott club lounges often feature complimentary food, complimentary drinks (sometimes including alcohol during limited hours), and a quite place to spend time away from your room. I generally enjoy a club lounge and find such lounges to be a nice perk at hotels.

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5 Days in Panama City, Panama – An Itinerary

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This year’s spring vacation took us to Panama for a week, spending the majority of our time in the capital, Panama City, with a day trip to the San Blas Islands, and a few days in Buenaventura on the Pacific Coast. Panama was beautiful and we had a relaxing time, but Panama was more expensive and more Americanized than other Central American countries that we have visited. We definitely need to return and spend time in other parts of Panama to get a better feel for it. Panama City, however, makes a wonderful winter/early spring getaway for those coming from the NYC area and looking for something different yet not too “foreign.”  This post details what we did during our time in Panama City over 5 days and how you can recreate this trip for yourself!

Panama City at sunset. The rooftop sunsets were fantastic.

OUR 5-DAY ITINERARY IN PANAMA CITY

DAY 1: THE PANAMA CANAL & A DELICIOUS MEAL IN CASCO VIEJO

United flies direct from Newark to Panama City overnight, so we took that flight, leaving around midnight NYC time and arriving around 4:00 AM the following morning in Panama. We booked our hotel, the JW Marriott Panama City, for the night prior, so we were able to checkin immediately on arrival despite the early hour (you should absolutely do this if you can swing it; well worth the money). We slept for a couple hours before having breakfast in the JW Marriott’s Lounge and using its stunning pool area (featuring TWO infinity pools and a separate heated pool – it is rumored to be one of the nicest in the area!).

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Restaurant Review: The Floridian, St. Augustine, Florida

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I spent 24 hours in St. Augustine a couple weeks ago, in April 2025, after attend a family wedding in the area. I wrote a post about St. Augustine as a whole here. While touristy, St. Augustine offers some decent places to eat, and I really enjoyed my lunch at The Floridian – a true Florida restaurant owned by Floridians and using local ingredients. This post details my lunch at the Floridian, which I very much recommend visiting if in St. Augustine.

Welcome to the Floridian! A adorable old-Florida sign.

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