There is an established and growing expatriate community spread throughout the islands of Bocas del Toro.  A couple of years ago I went to a Fourth of July party in the Darklands (a bay behind San Cristobal) and assumed that I would know most everyone there, I was shocked that I really only knew a small percentage of the Americans at the party.  There was a whole community of neighbors from that area and the more eastern islands of Bocas del Toro that I had never run into.  What I realized is that Bocas can offer a wide range of retirement situations.  The islands and province are big enough to allow private retirees to remain self-sufficient and to themselves, there are areas where Americans and foreign retirees have created almost independent sorts of neighborhoods, and there is the area in Bocas town and nearby for those that want to be more included directly in the town life.  All of these lifestyle options are available here. 

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