Treasure Island

There are holidays, there are adventures and then there’s the ultimate combination: an escape to your very own private island. It’s the fantasy trip that fills your memory stick forever.

But why settle for temporary ownership of just one island? Choose Islas Secas and you can claim possession of a pristine 14-island archipelago in the undiscovered Gulf of Chiriquí off Panama’s Pacific Coast. Thirteen are untouched and brilliantly biodiverse, while the fourteenth, your base, is the Crusoe-chic Isla Cavada. Apart from a small, pared-back resort discreetly dovetailed between a tangle of jungle and a turquoise sea, the entire archipelago covers 30 square miles of utterly magical and splendid isolation.

What adjective but magical describes the kind of experiences you can expect? The kids will squeal with delight when they meet the neighbours, tiny Disney-esque neon-coloured Halloween crabs. They’ll shriek in wonder when La Bufadora, the island’s blowhole, hisses mist 60 foot into the sky. And the whole gang is guaranteed to sigh happily when low tide reveals Isla Cavada’s secret beach, an isthmus of caramel sand, linking the mainland to a rocky promontory afloat in the Pacific.

Islas Secas’ lush tropical islands from above

And then there are the endless, carefree thrills in this natural playground, like swinging on Tarzan vines during treks, spotting humpback whales breaching in the bay and hunting for bento-box picnic lunches that the team has playfully “hidden” on the beach. With 100 staff for a maximum of 32 guests, there are always plenty of people to make any request a reality. In truth, though, you’re unlikely to have many demands because within hours the slow, seductive pace of island life will gently lull you into a state of contented calm. This is somewhere to disconnect with the outside world and reconnect with those closest to you, and the locals. They include 124 bird species — from hummingbirds to hawks — 750 fish species, everything from dolphins and whales to hammerhead sharks, and 12 mammals (11 of them bats).

Nature is so central to proceedings here that Islas Secas can at times feel like you’ve stepped into a David Attenborough documentary directed by Baz Luhrmann. You’ll paddleboard beside turtles, scuba dive with white-tipped reef sharks, kayak past flocks of red-throated frigate birds and make friends with curious dolphins eager for a game of chase as you glide by on eFoils and Seabobs.

The resort slots into this Jurassic Park perfectly, raw but refined. The Panamanian-chic, thatched-roofed Casitas are dressed in dark wood and coral stone, with breezy interiors that have high ceilings, huge windows and five-star prerequisites such as outdoor showers and deep soaking bath tubs and minibars, stocked with your favourite snacks and drinks, from homemade kombuchas to Veuve Clicquot Champagne. In the bathrooms are indulgent touches such as their covetable Secascent boxes. Each box has nine bottles of the purest local essential oils, from lemongrass to ylang ylang, that guests can mix and match to create bespoke body lotions and bath oils to suit their mood.

Casa Cavada is perched on the clifftop

The prize accommodation is the superb Casa Cavada, a next-generation residence that’s ten minutes’ walk from the main resort. It has four elegant bedrooms, with four-poster beds and private terraces, vast indoor and outdoor lounges, an al fresco bar, games area and a 25-metre infinity pool that makes a glamorous backdrop for a group gathering.

Vying for the island’s perfect party venue is Terrazzo, a swoon-worthy indoor-outdoor dining room with huge trunks of bamboo that soar to a vaulted ceiling. Chefs can serve you everything from sushi platters to Panamanian-inspired tasting menus with wine pairings from a cellar that’s as impressive as any in a Michelin-starred restaurant. Equally, dinner can be a casual beach barbecue of beer and mahi-mahi that you caught that morning, fishing from one of the island’s fleet of nine boats.

You will not want to leave but when you do, you’ll feel nourished inside and out.

Private island escapes worth their salt

Pelorus Private Island offers an exclusive deep dive into Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. A 1,000-acre hideaway for just 11 guests, there’s a jaw-dropping private beach and an array of motorised and paddle-powered aquatic toys for exploring the colourful house reef and beyond. For lotus-eating luxury, it’s difficult to beat Elang Private Residence in Indonesia. Nineteen of you will stay in six stilted cliffside lodges, with steps down to a sea as rich in marine life as the Maldives as well as anywhere-anytime dining and a pampering spa. If you want Africa via America, Thanda Island, a fabulous five-bedroom villa not far off the Tanzanian coast, was inspired by the Kennedy Compound at Hyannis Port, although its interiors are authentically African. For a showstopping get-together, Miavana by Time + Tide is a private island off the coast of Madagascar sleeping up to 42. It’s gloriously wild, with adventures on land, sea and air including the chance to spot lemurs in the forest. Closer to home, A Creba is a rugged dot off Galicia in Spain, topped with a nautically-themed villa for 12, where days are spent fishing and hiking, and nights feature seafood feasts overseen by a Michelin-starred chef. ′

Miavana is the perfect place for a celebration