No grand multiday tours or anything like that. Just finding smaller hidden treasures that we can fit into our day before the afternoon rainy season downpours begin.
This is easier than you might think since so many things to do are so close!
One of our most recent adventures involved taking a day trip to Pozos Termales (= thermal wells), a cluster of hot springs tucked away in the mountainous rainforests southeast of Boquete.
And we figured out how to do this without a car, for a total cost of $6 USD total per person, including transportation!
It was a lovely experience.
Let us show you what we did and how we did it!
What Are Pozos Termales?
The short answer is that they are volcanic hot springs found on private property in the Caldera region, about 45 minutes southeast of Boquete.
For many years the family has allowed public access to these hot springs, for a $3 USD per person entrance fee.
Very reasonable!
Just keep in mind that there are no bathrooms there. Nor are there any sort of food or drinks for sale.
So you will need to pack a lunch and bring drinks if you are planning on spending the day. Especially water, as it is a ~4-mile round-trip hike to Pozos Termales. You’ll be thirsty!
But there is an abandoned shack that you can use as a changing room if needed.
So really, Pozos Termales is the perfect place to spend an hour or two relaxing in the hot springs and have a picnic lunch!
Getting to Pozos Termales
You can theoretically drive to Pozos Termales by car.
But it is best to take a collectivo plus take an additional ~4-mile round trip hike.
We STRONGLY recommend the collectivo + hike option.
Here is the map showing the route to the Caldera Hot Springsbus stop, from where collectivos are picked up in Boquete (Parada de buses pequenos). Zoom in to see map details.
And here is a map from the Caldera Hot Springs bus stop to the thermals themselves.
It is a 3.83-mile (~6.16 km) round-trip hike (or drive) to Pozos Termales and back to the bus stop.
How to get there by collectivo (+ hike):
Simple.
Get aboard a collectivo that goes to Caldera in Boquete, or pick one up somewhere along their route going south.
If you can’t find the exact bus, ask any collectivo driver where the buses to Caldera are (= Donde estan los buses a Caldera?). They will point you in the proper direction.
You will know you found the right collectivo because the word “Caldera” is printed on the front and back windshields. When you get on the bus just tell the driver you want to go to “Pozos Termales”, and they will drop you off at the right place.
The cost per person will be $1 – $2 USD one way, depending on the driver.
For our ride to the Pozos Termalesbus stop on a minibus, the fee was $1 USD. But when we picked up a collectivo van to take us back to Boquete, the charge was $2 USD.
The collectivos run about every 30 minutes, more or less on-the-hour and half-hour. And the ride takes about 45 minutes each way.
Just make sure you get back to the Caldera Hot Springs bus stop to pick up a collectivo back to Boquete before 3 pm! That is supposedly when the last collectivo to Boquete leaves.
If you choose to drive:
Keep in mind you will need a car with the ability to deal with sketchy terrain.
The dirt road that leads from the Caldera Hot Springs bus stop to the Pozos Termales is really rough for the last 2/3rds of a mile, with some steep sections.
A 2WD vehicle could definitely have problems under the wrong conditions.
Not to mention that the long section of paved road that leads from Highway 41 to Caldera (Route 10) is loaded with extremely deep potholes. If you drive, you’ll be running a continuous obstacle course for that length of road.
And if that is not enough, the second bridge you cross after the bus stop will make you question if it can take the weight (or the width) of a car.
This bridge MIGHT accommodate a mid-sized passenger car. Or it might not. I wouldn’t risk it.
As we said, we recommend you just take a collectivo and hike the rest of the way.
It is a beautiful hike!
Two Travel Turtles Visit Pozos Termales!
For us, we didn’t need to go into Boquete proper to get a collectivo.
Caldera collectivos drive right by Plaza San Fransisco south of Boquete, which is close to where our Airbnb is located. So we just walked to the Plaza bus stop and picked one up!
As always, we were the only non-Latinos on the collectivo. But we made sure to tell the driver where we wanted to go so there were no worries.
This collectivo was bigger than usual.
Rhonda even had a nice conversation with a local who gave her some basic information about the hot springs
The ride to the Caldera Hot Springs bus stop was very pretty. Beautiful countryside and mountain views!
Shot taken through the window of a speeding bus.
But the road was absolutely TERRIBLE when we got off Highway 41. Glad someone else was driving!
After about 45 minutes, we were dropped off at a bus stop shelter, where a Pozos Termales sign was prominent.
We got off the bus here.
We just followed the blue signs during our hike, and they led us right to the hot springs without issue.
Just follow the signs!
Along the way, there were some really beautiful landscapes and interesting bridges to cross.
The road wasn’t too bad initially.
The views got better as we walked.
But the road got worse and worse.
The first of two bridges, crossing a channel that redirects river overflow.
The overflow channel.
The second bridge is super sketchy for a car. If you insist on driving, remember I warned you!
Lovely view from the second bridge! The recent rains made the river very turbid.
We kept following the signs and eventually, the road led to a small parking area.
The road to the parking area. The blue signs always point the way!
There was a small white car there, so it must have made it across the bridge!
From the parking area, a trail led through the woods, along a stream, until we reached the entrance to Pozos Termales!
Through the rainforest.
The official entrance to the Pozos Termales property.
At this checkpoint, the owners who live on the other side of this bridge from the entrance will greet you upon arrival.
It took about 25 minutes for us to hike to the hot springs entrance.
We were met by a man who (presumably) lived on the property and collected the $3 USD entrance fee to get in.
He then explained that there were 3 thermal wells of different temperatures scattered throughout the grounds. There was also a stream-fed pool where you could bathe, as an alternative to the nearby river that was dirty from the recent rains.
Unfortunately, the property lacked directional signage, so we just headed off in the general direction toward the pools and made the best of it.
Following the stream path to the thermal wells.
They had a lot of ducks here!
We first found an abandoned shack that you can change in if needed.
And we continued along the path until we found our first thermal well, supposedly at around 40 degrees Celsius.
Thermal “wells” are an appropriate moniker here.
Bubbles from the underground hot spring.
The temperature was perfect. So relaxing!
After some time we decided to switch pools. But the only other one we could easily find was the hottest pool on the property, supposedly at around 45 degrees Celsius.
Again very relaxing, but a little too hot for a long soak!
We looked around for the cold water pool and we think we may have found it, close to the local river. But we decided to not take a dip since the pool was fed by stream runoff from the surrounding area.
In many situations, this wouldn’t be an issue, but the Pozos Termales property housed a small farm of sorts, so we didn’t want to take a chance picking up Giardia or E. coli.
We spent about two hours in total at Pozos Termales, and it was a really relaxing time! We’re glad we made the trip.
When we were done we just got dressed and hiked back the way we came to the Caldera Hot Springs bus stop.
And after a 10-minute wait, a smaller collectivo van going back to Boquete took us home for $2 USD per person.
By the time we got to Plaza San Francisco, this collectivo was packed!
Closing Thoughts on Pozos Termales
For $6 USD total per person, our Pozos Termales day trip was an absolute bargain.
And as an added bonus, the hike to the property was gorgeous and not too strenuous.
We would definitely recommend that anyone interested get an early start, hop on a collectivo, and take a relaxing soak at Pozos Termales!
Until next time…
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2 thoughts on “Our Cheap Day Trip to Pozos Termales In Boquete, Panama”
Your day trip to Pozos Termales was great!! What’s next?
Doing the pipeline trail hike today. Should be fun! The weather has been pretty good lately.