fine dining by the sea in Panama

Al Fine knows a magic word: “jubilado”.

He gets special treatment when he uses this word. He never has to wait in line.

When Al says “jubilado” he pays less than everyone else for most things—including airfare, meals, healthcare…even movie tickets.

It’s not a trick…but an entitlement. You could be eligible to use this word, too.

“La cuenta por favor.”   It’s the phrase most tourists learn when visiting Latin America: “The check, please.” But Al Fine, who’s lived in Panama for over five years, says expats moving to Panama need to learn a small addition: “con descuento de jubilado.” Put it all together and you’re asking for the check, with the “jubilado”—or retiree—discount.

In Panama, as you may well know, Panamanians of retirement age are accorded all sorts of discounts. And those discounts extend to expats here on the retiree residency program known as the Pensionado Visa. Al Fine, 81, is perhaps the most enthusiastic advocate of this program that has attracted thousands of expats to Panama. He’s taken full advantage of the discounts since he moved here from Florida. And so should you, he says.

“Let me paint a picture for you: it’s a Sunday morning,” he begins. Al and his wife Carmen wake up in their posh three-bedroom condo in the ritzy Punta Pacifica sector of Panama City, right on the Panama Bay. (Al won’t say how much he paid for the apartment, but he says his monthly maintenance fee, which includes gas for his stove and water heaters, and 24-hour security, is a laughable $165 a month). “And it’s the Beverly Hills of Panama,” he says.

Al and his wife shower and get ready, “but we don’t have breakfast,” he says. They walk into a nearby clinic and get their cholesterol checked. The clinic offers same day results and the price for jubilados is $5.50. Says Al, “We get out in time for my wife to go to 11 o’clock mass. By 12.30, she’s still talking to the priest and I’m trying to get her to hurry because I’m starving,” he laughs.

From church, the Fines go to a five-star hotel for Sunday brunch. Al gets all dreamy-eyed as he describes the buffet. Mimosas, waffles, eggs, meats and cheeses…even a sushi station. There is a hot food buffet with chicken, filet mignon, and mahi-mahi in macadamia nuts. And there is the station where a chef is grilling up shrimp. “They’re so big, you could put a saddle on them,” he says.

“But be still my heart,” he says, launching into a mouth-watering description of the dessert station—clearly his favorite part. “When we’re done I say la cuenta por favor, con descuento de jubilado.” The check for two is about $40, but with the jubilado discount, Al pays some $10 less and is on his way.

From there he and his wife take a drive down to the causeway, a beautiful land bridge connecting three islands—water all around you. On a sunny day, says Al, it’s one of the best places to be. They get a table by the water, order cappuccinos or espressos, and pay a few dollars total. Then it’s back home to pay the maid a whopping $10 for a half-day’s work. After that, it’s to the car wash, where Al spends $3 for a full wash and interior vacuum…with his discount.

In the evening, they may go to Nikos, a local favorite for Greek Gyro sandwiches or a massive bowl of sancocho. How to describe sancocho, Al wonders. Drawing on his Jewish heritage, he says “It’s what we call Jewish penicillin soup,” he says. But instead of matzo balls, it comes with big hunks of ñame, a local root vegetable much like a potato. “We pay $5.50 for a bowl so big it could be a serving platter,” says Al. Again, that jubilado discount…

From there, the Fines may go to a nearby 14-screen movie theater. The tickets are $4 a piece, but with the jubilado discount, Al saves 50%. For a late night snack, it’s Manolo’s, a Spanish chain famous for its churros, long doughnuts with sweet fillings. There, fish in butter and garlic sauce with soup, salad, and fried plantains…and of course, a warm churro for dessert…costs Al $6.75 with his discount.

But what Al likes most about Panama isn’t just the money he saves. He says “Everywhere I go there is this amazing courtesy and consideration for jubilados.” On paydays the bank lines stretch on forever, but one teller is always set aside for jubilados, and Al walks right up to the front of the line…and no one gives him a dirty look. He gets the same treatment at the grocery store. “They know me by now, ask about the wife, that sort of thing.”

“There isn’t a single place I’ve been that people won’t help hold open the door or find me a chair if I need one,” he adds. Panamanians are kind and courteous, especially to its jubilados. “Except behind the wheel of a car,” he quips, referring to Panama City’s slightly anarchistic drivers. “Then, forget about it, all bets are off.”

Editor’s note: If you want to use the secret of “jubilado”, take a look at what we’re calling the Ultimate Overseas Retirement Plan. It’s the complete package for anyone interested in Panama, including the Panama Owner’s Manual…a special pensionado report detailing a step-by-step guide to The World’s Best Retirement Program…and a collection of recordings from the Live and Invest in Panama Seminar held last week.

Together, these materials are worth more than $170…but you can get it for just $79 if you sign up with this link before midnight tomorrow.