The Floating Bar logo — the mermaid stamp The Floating Bar Est. 2017 · Bocas del Toro
Guests with drinks on the swim deck at The Floating Bar — two decks and the mermaid sign anchored in turquoise water off Isla Colón, Panama
The Original · Est. 2017 · Bocas del Toro

Not just a floating bar.
The Floating Bar.

Two stories of open-air bar anchored in the warm Caribbean off Isla Colón, Panama — swim-up drinks, fresh food from the galley, live music at golden hour. Open seven days a week, and there's only one.

Plan your visit Shop the merch
FlagshipBocas del Toro, Panama
Open7 days a week · Noon to sunset
Happy HourEvery day · 12–3 PM
Getting there$3 water taxi from Bocas Town
SinceGetting you wet since 2017
Take the mermaid home. Official Floating Bar tees, tanks & gear — made to order, ships worldwide. Shop now

The Brand Story

There's a difference between a floating bar and The Floating Bar.

In 2017, a two-story platform dropped anchor in the sheltered turquoise off the south side of Isla Colón, just outside Bocas Marina — and Bocas del Toro got its first floating bar. No road, no parking lot, no land lease. Just a boat ride, a swim deck, and a bar that rises and falls with the Caribbean.

It worked because it was never just a bar. Guests arrive by water taxi and dinghy, swim between drinks, paddleboard at noon, and dance on deck as the sun drops behind the mangroves. Live Music Mondays, Margarita Wednesdays, Glow Worm Nights under the bioluminescence — a weekly rhythm that turned a platform in the sea into one of the most photographed stops in Bocas.

Plenty of bars have floated since. Only one is The Floating Bar — the original, still anchored off Isla Colón. The bar changed hands in 2024, when its third owner took the helm; the crew who built her have sailed on to other waters. What hasn't changed is the ritual — and the mermaid on the sign, the same one on the shirts in our shop. She's become a bit of a lifestyle: swim first, sip second, sunset always. Bocas del Toro is home port — Location No. 1.

Plan a visit Shop the merch
Friends waving from the top deck behind The Floating Bar's mermaid sign
2017Founded — the original floating bar of Bocas del Toro
2 decksSwim deck below, sunset deck above
7 daysOpen every day of the week, noon to sunset
5.6kInstagram followers at @the.floating.bar

The Difference

Four things make a floating bar into The Floating Bar

Anyone can float a bar. These are the things that make this one the one — arrive by water, swim with your drink, watch the sun go down, repeat tomorrow.

01

Arrive by water

Every visit starts with a boat ride — a $3 water taxi or your own dinghy at our dock. The journey is part of the ritual, and it filters for people ready to have a good day.

02

Swim, sip, repeat

A swim deck at water level, floaties in the lagoon, paddleboards and kayaks, and a shipwreck to snorkel next door. The ocean is the dance floor's cooler neighbour.

03

Programmed every day

Live Music Mondays at 4:20, Margarita Wednesday, Tequila Thursday, Friday Locals' Night, Sangria Sunday. A weekly calendar gives guests a reason to come back — and bring friends.

04

Sunset is the headliner

Open noon to sunset, so every day ends with the main event: golden hour on the top deck. No late-night overhead — the sun writes the schedule.

Location No. 1 · Flagship

Bocas del Toro, Panama

Anchored in the Caribbean off the south side of Isla Colón, just outside Bocas Marina. Two open-air decks, a swim platform at water level, and a dinghy dock for the boating crowd.

  • Hours Open 7 days a week, noon to sunset
  • Happy Hour Every day, 12–3 PM
  • Getting there $3 water taxi from Bocas Town, or tie up at the dinghy dock
  • On site Swimming & floaties · paddleboards · kayaks · snorkeling at the Southern Wind shipwreck
  • The crew A small local team runs the decks, the galley, and the dinghy dock
Plan your visit
Guests filling both decks at the flagship Floating Bar for Live Music Mondays, seen from the water

At the Flagship

A week at The Floating Bar

Seven days a week, every day has its own ritual. Happy hour runs 12–3 PM daily.

Live duo performing on deck at sunset — guitar and vocals for Live Music Mondays

Mondays · Music from 4:20 PM

Live Music Mondays

Rotating local bands on deck as the light turns gold — JAM/JAM'N, Chicha Fuerte, RITMO BOMBOLAYE, IN GROOVE, Los Que La Forman, and Brella & The Island Sloths.

Two snorkelers in masks under The Floating Bar sign, ready to explore the wreck next door

Tuesdays

Slow Tuesday

No theme, no rush — happy hour runs 12–3 as always, the swim deck is yours, and the Southern Wind wreck next door is waiting for snorkelers.

Guests toasting with colourful cocktails on deck for Margarita Wednesday

Wednesdays

Margarita Wednesday

Wednesdays belong to the margarita — the Queen Bee, with tequila, honey-ginger syrup and lime, and the classic right beside it on the board.

Bartender pouring a long lineup of shots along the bar for Tequila Thursday

Thursdays

Tequila Thursday

Tequila shots from $3 and the margaritas flowing — the almost-weekend, launched properly.

Locals gathered on the top deck at sunset for Friday Locals' Night

Fridays

Friday Locals' Night

Friday belongs to the locals — the Bocas crowd that keeps this bar afloat all year. Same happy hour, same sunset, and the Bloody Good Caesar on the board for the home team.

Guests dancing on deck in the late Saturday sun

Saturdays

Sunny Saturday

The big deck day — swim, sip, and settle in. The full Floating Bar, at full tilt, from noon to sunset.

Friends floating on pool noodles in the sea, raising glasses of sangria

Sundays

Sangria Sunday

Sangria by the glass for $5, pitchers for $22 — best enjoyed from a pool noodle.

Fire performers spinning flames on the deck at night during Glow Worm Night

Signature Event

Glow Worm Night

Our bioluminescence dinner: an evening that starts with sunset drinks and ends with a swim in water that lights up around you. Bring a swimsuit — you'll want in.

  1. 6:00 PM Drinks on the top deck
  2. 6:15 PM First tastes from the galley
  3. 6:45 PM Fire show on deck
  4. 7:00 PM Dinner is served
  5. ~7:30 PM Lights out — swim in the bioluminescence
  6. 8:00 PM Water taxis back to Bocas Town

Franchise

Own a Floating Bar

For partners who want to bring the concept to their own waterfront: no land lease (the platform is the real estate), a destination guests plan their day around, and the flagship's brand, platform know-how, and events playbook behind you. It works anywhere with calm, warm, swimmable water and a sunset worth gathering for — Caribbean harbours, the Gulf, Baja, the Mediterranean, island lagoons. Territories are awarded selectively: one Floating Bar per harbour.

Start the conversation

Tell us about your waterfront and where you'd drop anchor. Franchise inquiries go straight to the brand team — or write to us at info@bocasfloatingbar.com.

Locations

One bar. One home port.

There is exactly one Floating Bar, and it lives in Bocas. New anchorages may come — first word always lands on our socials.

Guests on the decks and dock at the flagship Floating Bar on a sunny day
Now Open · Flagship

No. 1 — Bocas del Toro, Panama

The original, est. 2017. Isla Colón, Caribbean Sea. Open 7 days a week, noon to sunset.

Aerial view of the floating platform
Someday

No. 2 — To be announced

Every great waterfront deserves one. When the next anchorage is confirmed, you'll hear it here first.

A couple dancing on the deck at the flagship
Follow Along

The next anchorages

Follow @the.floating.bar for first word on new locations — and daily proof of life from No. 1.

Visit the Flagship

Getting to a bar with no address

Part of the fun: you can't walk here. Here's how a day at Location No. 1 works.

$3

Water taxi from Bocas Town

Tell any water taxi driver "The Floating Bar" — they know. A few minutes across the bay, $3 a ride, and they'll come back for you at sunset.

Noon–sunset

Hours, written by the sun

Open 7 days a week, noon to sunset. Happy hour 12–3 PM every day — arrive by boat, leave by sunset.

Bring a swimsuit

Come ready to get wet

Swimming and floaties off the deck, paddleboards and kayaks, snorkeling by the Southern Wind shipwreck. Coming by boat? Tie up at the dinghy dock.

The Floating Bar logo — mermaid and trident stamp, World Famous, Bocas del Toro

The Merch Shop

Don't float home without it.

The mermaid travels well. The official shop carries the gear with the mark — tees, tanks, hats, and more, featuring the new mermaid stamp logo and the doubloon artwork. Made to order, with free shipping, delivery in 3–7 days, and 30-day returns.

Been to the bar? Wear the proof. Haven't yet? Wear the plan.

Shop the collection bocasfloatingbar.com/shop
The Floating Bar gold doubloon — mermaid and trident coin The Floating Bar silver doubloon

The doubloon. Our coin of the realm — the mermaid and her trident, struck in gold and silver. It turns up on the gear, the tokens, and the good stories.

The Floating Bar mermaid — the mark that travels on the merch