Pay to take boards to Central America or buy new ones?

[jimmyo]

Hey everyone one this is my first time so be gentle!

I've been living Bali for 3 months surfing and am flying out to Panama on the 30th of July and am going to make my way up to LA but I need some advice from experienced travellers.

Should I take my boards and pay the $400 usd to get them there, risk snapping them in the water, have to get new ones and then pay to get them home again or should I just buy 1 or 2 new sleds in Panama or Costa Rica which will cost me about the same plus more to get them home?

The only problem is I'm in love with the 2 boards I was going to bring!?
Any advice would be awesome, cheers

[Aqualife]

Hi,
Panama = it's notoriously hard to get surfboards. We got asked so many times to sell ours in the water, it wasn't funny. From Dec-April you would have a good chance to find some used boards in Bocas Del Toro (Caribbean Side) but the the Pacific Coast is mainly jungle and the infrastructure is quite bad. I have heard there might be a surfshop in Panama City but don't know for sure. It will cost you at least $400 for a used board though. The chances of finding a traveller just leaving that has a board you like and wants to sell are minimal. I only saw about 20 Western surfers on the Pacific Coast in Panama in 2 months all up and all in Santa Catalina. It's not a crowded place!
Costa Rica now - that is another story - boards galore on every corner - most US visitors ditch their boards on leaving, again it's a matter of luck but with tons of surfers there, you will get a board. The thing is the road up from Panama into Costa Rica goes via Pavones and some other remote places, you would need to get half way up into Costa Rica where most surfers are to get a board.
Other countries and boards: Nica - unavailable, El Salvador - unavailable or old beaters, Mexico - plenty of boards around.
So the short end of the stick is TAKE YOUR BOARDS, especially if you like them, pack them good (let the Indos help you if you are unsure, they are masters at that!) and also take spare leashes/fins/wax and all accessories you might need because you have just been spoiled with the best surf infrastructure on the planet, prepare now to rough it for a while until you get to Costa Rica and Mexico. Enjoy. It's a fun trip with long bus rides in between!

[jimmyo]

Thanks Aqualife. Considering everything u have said I will probably take my boards. But is it hard to travels with them on the buses?

[Aqualife]

All buses will take them, either in the luggage compartment underneath or on top of the buses (old American school buses, they go on top or through the back door). I would have a couple of straps handy just in case. In cities, you will have to find a taxi with a roof rack. Depending on the country, the bus driver might want some little extra cash. Never happened in Panama though. I would stand by and watch them load them, pays to know the Spanish words for careful (CUIDADO) please (POR FAVOR). And SMILE. They don't like gringos (US Americans and any other white folks) much in most places, so if you are extra nice, NOT arrogant and condescending or haggling, then they will treat you nice back. Otherwise your boards might end up on the bottom with all the other luggage on top. Happened to a rather obnoxious American travelling with us. Ours ended up on top. I guess we were nicer.... Good luck, some awesome waves in that part of the world.