Bambuda Lodge

We loved it! The view, the pool, the food&drinks, the surrounding jungle, our room, the staff - we enjoyed it a lot, it is a great place!

There is no hot water in the shower (which is not such a big deal given the hot climate! So nothing really to complain)

We had a great time in Bambuda. Nice room, good vibes, friendly staff and amazing food.

They never had mint to prepare mojitos during our 6 day stay.

We got an upgrade and stayed in a jungle bungalow. It was fantastic! Great bathroom with hot shower, big and comfy bed with lots of pillows, all spacious, airy and clean with awesome jungle views. In the restaurant there are excellent variations for breakfast, lunch and dinner and delicious drinks. The staff was exceptionally nice and attentive, very helpful and humorous. We had a great time!

views & rainforest

facilities & cost

Very pretty gardens, vegetarian food options.

Lazy and rude staff (except for the lovely woman working the restaurant in the evenings). The boat taxi driver that works for the hotel didn't want to leave at the time we booked the previous day. He was waiting for more passengers as fuel is expensive.. The man working the front desk in the evenings was non responsive and rude. He was on WhatsApp while we were speaking to him. Extremely poor quality of food for the price. For example, we paid $9 for a vegetarian breakfast burrito that said it included mushrooms, rice or cabbage, guacamole and refried beans, only had rice and one mushroom. Ordered the side salad and came out with no dressing, had to ask for oil and vinegar, the starter of hummus and baba ganoush ($8) came with one pita bread and the dips served in less than a McDonald's ketchup portion. The room was fine, we had a couple of roaches and woodworm...but it is an eco lodge. Also there was a used bandaid stuck to the top of the bedside table. Most of the outlets didn't work and on the last morning there was not enough water pressure to shower.

very nice staff, amazing atmosphere, great location

Price, missing bathrooms

Very nice rooms where you could actually sleep at night because there was no noice. Really nice shared bathrooms and amazing view.

You’re 4/5 dollars away from the main island which they know so they do take advantage of that in their food charges. Food was a bit expensive for a hostel but if you wanted something cheaper you had to go to another island which also costed at least 4 dollars (and also 4 to get back so 8 in total).

Very kind and helpful staff. The jungle and noises around the place are fantastic. The view from the balconies is far and calming. The place is well spred out and has different facilities. Food is good, music around pool is just right. The wooden buildings and the stone bathrooms fit wonderfully into the surroundings. Nice book about the place and excellent documentation giving more information!

There is no beach - but that is well documented, no surprise. There could be some ashtrays around for the smokers (not that I am one)

Very helpful and kind Staff Location Relax and chill Feeling Waterslide :D

Very good view from the pool- and dining area to the water, nice people, directly in the nature.

as we were there during the raining season and there was no glass in the windows (only mosquito-nets) so everything was moist/wet. because there was no glass, you could here all the animals. can be idyllic, can be annoying when you’re not feeling so good…

very cool location. great place to chill. great place to meet people if you’re in to that.

you have to take a taxi boat anytime you want to leave the accommodation. can get pretty costly.

very clean, nice and comfortable rooms

food is okay but it’s very overpriced. good location, secluded and chill, but keep in mind that there’s no beach nearby or a nice place to swim in the sea

very beautiful location, the staff was very friendly and the beds were very comfortable (I slept in the dorms)

It is more a luxury hotel/hostel, so not your typical backpackers hostel. What bothered me mostly was the overpriced food. You can’t go anywhere else to eat and there is no communal kitchen, so your stuck with ordering at the restaurant. This ended up costing me a lot of money… And for the dinner there are very little options, especially for vegetarians/vegans

very beautiful! great to relax. friendly staff, dorm was quite small but decent enough with large bathroom, family dinner- although expensive

nice hostel for relaxation, expect pricey meals and no kitchen. also you have to get water taxis everywhere so it’s best if you just want to stay and relax but if going out regularly to bocas town, add 10 dollars for return water taxi

unique and beautiful place, the nature around is amazing and the staff is super friendly.

it’s far away from everything, you need to take a taxi boat to get to any town or main attraction. It is a shame there is no kitchen at the hostel so you can cook yourself. The stay quickly becomes very expensive as you have to buy all meals from their restaurant.

U have a huge slide down to the water with an amazing view! Would recommend ppl to come here to chill on the island for a couple days They have a restaurant here on the island with all the meals needed.

The food was ok but not amazing, il take the whole package again anyday

This was one of the nicest hostels Ive ever stayed. Good vibe, clean, cool stuff, swimming pool, the best terrace view ever, waterslide, just simply awesome

The 4bed dorm is very tiny, a shelf at least could have been handy to at least unpack one thing from a backpack. Ohh, and the humidifier in the rooms smell like toilette cleaners:):) Everything else is really really nice here!

This was an amazing place almost like paradise. Their garden is so perfect and beautiful and well kept. They have great food for all the meals and the bangalos are very cozy. They have a self sustaining water (from rain) and electricity (from solar panel) system which is very impressive and environment friendly.

nothing

This place is paradise and the staff is just amazing!

Everything was perfect

This is one of my favorite hotels/hostels I've ever stayed at. The vibe was perfect for my taste. The new-arrivals drinks and the family-style dinner instantly promote connections with the other guests. I was traveling with my girlfriend, and we quickly made friends with other couples, one of whom we met up with later in Panama City to continue hanging out. But it's definitely not a party hostel, with activities peaking at 8-9pm and pretty much over by 11. The whole place is also beautiful and beautifully landscaped--because of the view and the design, doing nothing on the deck all day is a treat. The staff are incredibly friendly and the food is great.

As you'll know if you've read other reviews, this is not a great choice for the penny-pinching budget backpackers, as the resort-style, add-it-to-my-tab approach to food and drink and limited alternatives for meals can add up. You also spend minimum $10 round trip to water taxi just about anywhere, and the hostel is isolated, so you can't walk anywhere. Bambuda was perfect for us, but it's not perfect for everyone. It depends on what you're looking for.

This is a place with ver nice Vibes! You can meet here a lot of nice backpackers all over the world. Also the staff was very nice and helpfully.

The prices what you pay per night can vary extremely! I paid 36$/night (for a dorm with 6 beds!) Others paid half of the price.

This hostel is amazingly beautiful. Food and drinks are pretty good! The staff is great 👍

They have a very cool slide which isn’t for weak nerves tho. The pool area is very nice and you have a fantastic view over the ocean. You can lay down in nets and hammocks as well as normal pool chairs.

The whole stay was magnificent and all the staff were very helpful. Moreover, the place is situated on the best possible location on earth and the views are absolutely fascinating. The fact that the place is self-sustainable makes it even more amazing than it already is. Special shoutout to Andrea, Alexis and Sebastian, as they made my stay unforgettable. Moreover, one of the best things is the community dinner, as it brings people together and really makes new friendships. Additionally, the water slide is an absolute treat and I absolutely loved it. All in all, one of the best 3 days/nights in my life.

The view, the pool, free upgrade of rooms due to urine smell in initial room

Food prices, communication with staff, apparent laziness of the staff, smell in the room, no check in at 15:00

The views from the common areas toward the pool and the sea were magnificent! The food was delicious - especially their bread I also loved all the activities they have in the island - you can hike to a spot to snorkel, there’s kayak, stand up paddle, and a slide

It’s better to pay in cash, as credit cards get a 3% charge. Internet connection is not great, wouldn’t recommend to try to work there. This place is better to disconnect and enjoy for a couple of days.

The staff were great! Very friendly and attentive. The landscaping was beautiful, like a botanical garden, with a view across the water. Amazing variety of birds. Snorkeling at Hospital Point was only an hour away by Jungle Hike or $4 return trip by Hostel boat. Great place to chill by the pool and forget what day it is. Great daily happy hours.

The food was very good, but you have to adjust to the schedule. The kitchen is closed after breakfast and lunch. Dinner at 7.20pm is a limited menu posted daily, order by 5.30pm. I would have liked a more cafeteria style, chose one protein, one starch, two veggies. Something like that instead of just a big bowl of only pasta. There was always one option with grilled veggies but you had to like the meat/fish option.

The staff was super friendly and very helpful. The lodge has a beautiful location and is very clean. It is not on the main island but very easy to reach by water taxi (~10 USD for a single passenger, ~5 USD p.p. for 2+ passengers). In the bay, just in front of the hotel, we saw bioluminescence plankton every night, which was really beautiful. You can see it best if you shortly turn off the lights and then quickly light with a flashlight into the water. The food is good, with reasonable prices.

The staff was great. Very nice pool. Beautiful view.

Constant loud techno music in common area. If you're looking for peace and quiet do not stay here.

The staff was amazing. You felt like you were at a resort. They treated you as family.

The boat taxi was too expensive. Considering they have their own boat you would think you'd get a better discount. They staff told us about reggae nights so a group of about 10 of us went with them. It was 5 dollars on the way there and after we got back the boat driver told us we now had to pay 7. No reason for the increase. They have it posted what trips will cost and they didn't go by those prices. Know that you are going to blow through your cash of you decided to go anywhere from this place.

The staff was amazing! The jungle bungalows were a nice little oasis and the food was great.

The staff, the pool and the deck definitely the best!

In our room there wasn’t any glass on the windows so it was super noisy.