Contadora Island Hotel

When excited shoppers come across a great real estate bargain, they can’t wait to tell their friends and co-workers. Such was the case way back in 1513, when Vasco Nunez de Balboa learned about a string of islands off the coast of what would become modern day Panama.

Balboa immediately wrote to the King of Spain to share his excitement over his new real estate find : “There are many islands in this sea. They tell me that there are pearls in abundance, of great size, and that the natives possess baskets filled with them.” Turns out, the natives were right.

When Balboa sailed out to the islands, he discovered a paradise. In the years following, the Spanish harvested tons of pearls from the waters around the Las Perlas archipelago that has come to be known as the Pearl Islands.

The early days of the pearl business were harsh ones. The Spanish did away with the native peoples living on the island and brought in African slaves to work the pearl trade. Their vast harvest of oyster born gems had to be inventoried immediately upon harvest to insure the interests of the crown. Thus, pearls were sent to an island now called “Contadora” for registration. Contadora in English means, ‘The Counting House”.

Contadora became the focus of settlement living in the islands. When the Spanish returned home, they left their slaves behind. The ancestors of these slaves composed the sparse population of Contadora until the mid 20th century. In 1960, the island was purchased by a Panamanian named Gabriel Lewis Galindo in one of the great real estate deals in this nation’s history.

Galindo immediately set to work on developing the infrastructure needed for habitation of the island. He was the first to open a resort on Contadora, a small complex of 60 bungalows. This was followed by the construction of the original Hotel Contadora, a gleaming classic of the early era of Pearl Island tourism.

Today, Contadora is one of the larger and better developed of the Pearl Islands. It is home to several world class resorts, featuring every modern amenity. Excellent restaurants and a wide range of shopping can be found on Contadora.

Real Estate is still affordable on Contadora and many other of the Pearl Islands. If you like the private life, you can still buy entire islands and make your own island history.

To book hotel reservations or for more information about real estate on Contadora contact us today.

i...@panamatravelgroup.com

+507-202-1111 (Panama) | 1-786-539-4731 (USA)