For two weeks students conducted a series of snorkeling surveys that examined the sea stars size, abundance, feeding behavior, and movement.

Starfish beach has many visitors every year and many visitors to the islands are unaware that repeatedly picking up sea stars may harm these animals. Sea stars are covered in small gills, and so if they are lifted out of the water, they are unable to breathe.

In addition, they have a second stomach that they extrude and externally digest their food when sea stars are picked up, even under the water, they pull in this stomach and stop feeding.

Kovacs has created and added signs into restaurants in the hope of educating people about the dangers they pose to the sea stars when touching and moving them just in order to get their ‘sea star selfie’.

Many people have the ‘Its only one’ mentality but when hundreds of people have this mentality it is not ONLY ONE. Your Instagram is not worth a sea star death.

This project has been very close to Claudia and Marlins hearts for a long time and with plastic and waste pollution becoming an ever growing issue. This project hopes to make a impact on the waste management of this piece of paradise.

This organisation is run purely on the energy of volunteers and funded with personal investments from Tom Wright the founder of Wasteless World and donations from community.

The project which has only been going for a few weeks, has already made its mark on recycling here on Isla Colon and with organizing frequent beach clean ups for the surrounding islands its not just Isla Colon they are helping. Here are some alarming facts about waste pollution from their website:

• By 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the world’s oceans.
• At least 8 million tons of plastic enter the oceans each year. That’s similar to emptying a garbage truck of plastic into an ocean every minute.
• There is more microplastic in the ocean than there are stars in the Milky Way.
• The average person eats 74,000 microplastics each year, which polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from plastics are linked to harmful health effects, including various cancers, a weakened immune system, reproductive problems and more.
• The demand for plastic products is expected to grow up to 36% in the next 6 years.

The founder of Wasteless World Tom Wright, pondered on the question how he can influence the environmental world. He created Wasteless World with the long term objective of changing global policy, to lead to a more sustainable future.

His aim is to build plastic workshops run by members of the community which shred, melt and mould plastic bottles and containers into materials which can be used for building.

Both locations are an easy and fun kayak or paddle away and as we have snorkeling gear and life vests that you are welcome to use free of charge from our dock, allowing you to have a fun day out at no cost.

Snorkeling around the mangroves is unique in it’s corals and ocean life.  You’ll see a wonderful collection of smaller fish as they make the mangroves their nesting grounds along with starfish. 

For a collection of tropical fish head out towards the cement posts to see the colors of the corals and fish come to life.  If you like a little excitement, laying down on the beach just at the beginning of the runway when the planes come into land is a thrill not many get to experience.

We presently have multiple kayaks for our guests to use free of charge including 6 single and 1 tandem kayak.  We’ll help you get them into the water and show you where the Smithsonian Institute is located just around the corner. 

There are mangrove snorkeling spots along with some coral reefs which are great to kayak too, and if you are inclined, you can jump into the water and enjoy a little snorkeling too.  Ask us for snorkel gear if you don’t have any of your own.

All of our kayaks are very easy to use with few or no breaking parts, so no matter what level of experience you have, you’ll easily be able to enjoy the bay, even those going out for the very first time.

Dolphins have been seen in the bay on occasion, so come and enjoy our bay with us and make the most of being right on the water.

Call or WhatsApp us on (507) 64019021 or email us at overthewaterrentals@gmail.com

From the dock, it’s a 15 minute walk across through the jungle along a well set out footpath at the narrowest point of the island to the beach.

As this path runs through the national park and private property, there is a charge of $3 per person which helps to support the national park protection efforts. All too often you can see parrots, sloths and howler monkeys on the walk through to the beach.

Red Frog Beach itself is an almost 2 km long stretch of beautiful golden sand. The name of the beach is derived from the poison dart frogs that make the jungle their home.

At the beach, you will find a few restaurants along with beach chairs and covers. There are also secluded areas with natural shade that you can make use of.

To the right of the beach is a wonderful elevated outlook point, which is easy to reach and well worth a visit.

One of the most popular beaches on the Main island of Bocas del Toro. This wonderful beach is ideal for families due to the calm waters as it faces the mainland and not the open ocean. The water are calm for almost the entire year with the execption of during November and December when the waves can increase quite a bit.

Popular due to the selection of starfish that call this beach home, it’s important to remember not to pick the starfish out of the water as this kills them, so remember to take your snorkeling gear with you to really enjoy them in their own environment.

Getting There:

By Bus

To get to Starfish beach, you can collect the ‘Bocas del Drago’ bus from the park in town. The bus leaves town on the even hour, so 6,8,10,12,2,4,6 and returns on the odd hour with 5pm being the last bus back. Tickets on the bus are $5 return and the trip takes around 30-40 minutes.

By Taxi

You can also collect a taxi to the north end of the island which costs in the region of $30 for the taxi and can take up to 4 people.

By Water Taxi

Prefer a water taxi to take you all the way to the beach, consider making use of a private all day taxi. As our guests, we’d be happy to arrange one for you.

Once in Boca del Drago, it’s a short 10-15 minute walk along the beach to Starfish beach itself. Drago has a few quaint local restaurants where you can find some lunch or cold drinks.

Ready to fly through the tree tops with Red Frog Beach Canopy Tours?  This is by far the most thrilling adventure you can have with 7 ziplines including Tarzan Swings and Traversable Canopy Net.  For the more daring, there is also a Treetop Challenge Course.  

Ziplines are around 150 feet off the ground and you´ll be able to reach speeds of up to 42 miles an hour careening along the almost 1000 foot long lines.   See the rainforest as you have never seen it before.

Tours take place twice a day at 10am and 2pm leaving the Red Frog Beach Dock.  It is highly recommended to make a reservation and this can be done through their website at Red Frog Beach Canopy Tours.

When it comes to creativity, the island of Bastimentos is the front runner with some amazing artisans creating beautiful local arts and crafts.  

Up In The Hill run by Javie is a treasure trove of island knick knacks including mosiac mirrors, wooden and coconut  furniture as well as various organic products of which the most popular has to be the organic cocao made into the most delicious chocolate.

To find out more about the various cocao plants and how the chocolate is made, visit his website Up In The Hill  to book a tour and spend a great day out with him! Or…  Let us call him for you and arrange a tour time for you!

With “coral surfing” you can surf above the coral, see the wonders that our oceans have to offer, cover a large area effortlessly and have fun, just like the dolphins do… You will never forget it.

Holding the SUBWING table you will be immersed in an underwater paradise.  You can reach up to 8/10 meters in depth, pulled softly along by a towline attached securely to a boat.  Experience the sea as never before and have a blast with Coral Surfing!

Crystal clear water, amazing reefs, corals and giant fish, starfishes, sea urchins, all this and more in a day dedicated to the sea and all its inhabitants.

Isla Colon – Bocas del Toro – Rep. de Panama’
Mobile: +507-64812576 or +507-64573476
e-mail: info@coralsurfing.com – booking@coralsurfing.com

Or Visit Their Website at CoralSurfing.com

Bluff beach is one of the best beaches on the island and to get there you´ll want to take advantage of cycle power.  The ride to Bluff takes around 40 minutes an an hour and there are plenty of restaurants and bars along the way to stop enjoy the view, drink a beer or soda and just smell the flower. 

There are also some great little snorkeling spots to be found along that road, so if you want to get some snorkeling gear for your trip, just let us know.  For the more energetic of you who want to cycle to the north of the island, to Starfish beach, it will take around 1 and a half hours and does require bikes with gears as the road is hilly and a lot more strenuous. 

Take care on the roads to always keep to the right hand side and ride one behind the other so as not to encounter a taxi coming around a corner.

Riding at night is best done with reflective attire and lights.  There are a few spots on the island that can be dangerous due to lack of lighting, so ask before you take that night time ride.

Our guests at Over The Water Rentals can rent our bikes for:

• $3 per half day / $5 for full day – overnight

For customers who are staying in the Saigon Bay area or further away who wish to rent our bikes the cost are:

• $6 half day (1-4 hours)
• $8 full day (4-8 hours)  
• $10 overnight (24 hours)

We have a range of bikes including Cruisers with and without gears, tandem bikes as well as kid bikes.  

Call or Whatsapp us on (507) 64019021 or drop us an email at overthewaterrentals@gmail.com

In the event that we don’t have bikes available for you, our other great recommendation is Ixa Bike Rental.  $3 an hour, $10 a day and $50 a week. 

They are located in town on Ave H! Give them a call on 6747-3208 or find them on FB.