Hotel Los Delfines (Calle 5 and Avenida G, tel. 757-9963, www.bocasdelfines.com, US$70 s, US$90 d, including breakfast), on the northern outskirts of town, is a clean place built circa 2001 that has 12 pleasant rooms with colorful Peruvian bedspreads, air-conditioning, hot water, cable TV, and wireless Internet. Some of the rooms are quite dark, and the ones on the top floor have low, slanting ceilings. There is a bar/dining area downstairs.

Hotel Lula’s Bed and Breakfast (Avenida Norte and Calle 6, tel. 757-9057, cell 6629-0836, information [at] lulabb [dot] com, www.lulabb.com, starts at US$55 s/d, including breakfast) is a pleasant, clean bed-and-breakfast that features lots of handsome wood and rooms with air-conditioning and attractive bathrooms. The place has two doubles with double beds (US$55 s/d) and four triples with a double bed, single bed, and fold-out chair bed (US$66 t, another US$11 for a fourth person). The nicest rooms are the two triples that overlook the balcony.

Hotel Bahía (south end of Calle 3, across from the ferry landing, tel. 757-9626, www.hotelbahia.biz, starts at US$80 s, US$88 d) is the grand old lady of Bocas. Built in 1905, it was once the headquarters building for the United Fruit Company. A renovation a few years ago preserved the building’s historical character (the fruit company’s massive old safe still sits in the office, for instance), while cheering up the place considerably. The 16 rooms are simple bordering on stark, with air-conditioning, lukewarm-water bathrooms, TV, and lots of attractive wood. However, it is not being terribly well-maintained or cleaned, though another renovation is under way. A basic breakfast is served on the terrace downstairs.

The hotel does have tons of character, and the owner, José (Tito) Thomas, is a good guy with a passion for the history of the building and Bocas generally. Be sure to have a chat with him. He tells a funny story, for instance, about that safe in the office: When the last guy who knew the combination died, workers had to drill into the safe to get at its contents. When they cracked it open, they found a piece of paper that had (you guessed it) the safe combination. A new hotel was nearing completion right next door in 2010, looming over its south side.

Cocomo-on-the-Sea (Avenida Norte between Calle 6 and Calle 7, tel./fax 757-9259, www.cocomoonthesea.com, US$88 s/d, including breakfast) now owned by guys from Cincinnati, Ohio, has long been a cozy place to stay in Bocas town. It’s right on the water, about a five-minute walk northwest of the town center, and offers four large, cheerful rooms in a wooden building designed with simple comfort in mind.

The two rooms in front, Calypso and La Palma, have an ocean view, but all four rooms have access to a comfortable veranda and sundeck, strung with hammocks, that juts into the water. A third person in any room is an additional US$11. Guests have free use of sea kayaks.

Hotel Laguna (Calle 3 about a block south of the park, tel. 757-9091, fax 757-9092, www.thehotellagunabocas.com, starts at US$85 s/d) offers 22 modern, clean, and air-conditioned rooms in the center of “downtown.” Rooms are dark but cheerful with wood paneling and colorful bedspreads. All have hot water, cable TV, firm beds, and telephones. The attractive “deluxe junior suite” (US$160) is simply a larger room with a balcony. Other suites of various size and furnishings are available. The attached indoor/outdoor restaurant is a nice place to watch the passing scene on Calle 3, and it’s the new home of El Pecado, long one of the best restaurants in Bocas.

The Bocas Inn (north end of Calle 3, Bocas tel./fax 757-9600, Panama City tel. 269-9415 and fax 264-3713, www.anconexpeditions.com, US$99 s/d, including breakfast) is an attractive, two-story wooden lodge set in a lush garden. It’s owned by Ancon Expeditions, which has its field office in the building. The place is meant primarily for visitors who’ve arranged package tours with Ancon Expeditions, but it’s also available for those who just want a room. The nicest rooms face the ocean. These open out on a terrace with hammocks (the terrace can be used by all guests). All the rooms are attractive and have air-conditioning and hot-water bathrooms.

On the ground floor is a breezy veranda/pier that has a dining room and bar right on the water and quiet jazz and modern lounge music playing on the stereo. It’s a good place to stop for a drink even if you’re not staying at the inn.

Guests generally book tours and lodging through Ancon Expeditions’ main office in Panama City, though it’s also possible to book a room directly through the lodge.

The Hotel Swan’s Cay (Calle 3 just north of Parque Bolívar, tel. 757-9316 or 757-9090, tel./fax 757-9027, www.swanscayhotel.com, start at US$72 s/US$85 d in the main building) was the first fancy hotel in Bocas, built, oddly enough, smack in the middle of town, instead of on the water. The whole place is thoroughly air-conditioned and features such city-style touches as a carpeted lobby with wood-paneled walls. Rooms have cable TV, telephones, and Italian furniture, but the smaller ones are cramped and the whole place is dark.

There are two swimming pools, one of which is a rather uninviting aboveground pool a few minutes’ walk from the main hotel. Many find the hotel staid and out of sync with the bohemian ambience of the rest of Bocas. Its formal, air-conditioned restaurant is usually empty.