A checklist to get a boat in Panama ready for the rainy season, roughly May to November, and to hand the weekly checks to someone else. Work through it in March or April. Have the marina's rules, your insurance policy and the name of the person who will check the boat to hand.
Fill in the fields below, then print the worksheet or download your entries as a text file. Entries stay on this page until you leave unless you download them. Don’t enter passport, card or medical details; keep copies of those separately.
How to fill it in
Do lines 4 to 14 in one visit in April, before the first heavy rain. Then give the sheet, with the weekly log, to the person checking the boat. Ask them to send a photo of the bilge and the battery voltage after every big storm.
Why Panama needs this list, not a hurricane plan
Panama has had no hurricane landfalls. The risk is rain, squalls, lightning and humidity almost every day for months. September and October are usually the wettest. The start moves from year to year: for 2026, IMHPA forecast a start two to three weeks later than usual, as reported by La Prensa. On the Caribbean side, in Bocas del Toro, Colón and Guna Yala, it rains often for much of the year, so keep the weekly check going there.
Who to watch
- IMHPA (Instituto de Meteorología e Hidrología de Panamá) issues the forecasts.
- SINAPROC issues the public warnings (avisos de prevención). Marinas may hold small craft in port when one is out.
- The AMP can restrict departures. In November 2024 it suspended departures for small boats and pleasure yachts for 48 hours in five provinces and a comarca after a SINAPROC red alert. If you plan a trip, check AMP notices too.
- The US National Hurricane Center outlooks are still worth a look from June to November, especially on the Caribbean side.
Panama tips
- Bilge power. A tropical downpour can drop more water into an open boat than a small pump can move. The pump is only as good as the battery behind it. See bilge pumps and rain.
- Tides at fixed piers. On the Pacific side, lines must allow for a 4–6 m tide. Check them on a spring tide, not only after a storm.
- Lightning. The detail is in lightning protection. After a close strike, write down the date and what stopped working.
- Air conditioning. Ask the marina in writing before leaving a dehumidifier or AC running on an empty boat.
- Debris. Heavy rain flushes logs out of the rivers. After a big storm, check intakes and strainers and run slowly until you have seen the water.
Read the companion guide
Before using this resource, read Rainy-season boat prep in Panama (May–Nov).
Use it alongside these guides
Rainy-season boat prep in Panama (May–Nov)
Panama needs a rainy-season plan, not a hurricane plan: covers that shed water, clear drains, strong bilge pumps, mould control and lightning habits.
Bilge pumps and rainy-season flooding in Panama
Panama's May–Nov downpours sink boats at the dock. Clear drains, fit two pumps on a good battery, test float switches and check the boat after storms.
Lightning protection for boats in Panama
Panama averages about 500 lightning strikes a day. How a boat protection system works, how to shield the electronics, and what to check after a strike.
Panama boating seasons: dry vs rainy, swell, hurricanes
Panama's dry season (mid-Dec–Apr) brings northerly trades and Caribbean swell; the rainy season (May–Nov) squalls and lightning. Hurricanes are rare.
Boat maintenance log for Panama's tropics
Printable boat maintenance log with tropical intervals for Panama: diver cleans, zincs, strainers, bilge pumps, batteries, haul-outs and AMP papers.