Celebrity 2025 - Episode 5 Recap

The penultimate leg usually feels like a struggle for position, teams trying to get into a good spot for the final, while also often realising how little money they have remaining. This episode felt different, holding an often slower pace as the teams were stuck waiting for boats, and with surprisingly high budgets - at least at the start of the leg!

The teams were tasked with traversing the length of Panama, from Bocas del Toro to Medellín, Colombia covering the notorious Darien Gap. The dense and dangerous jungle blocked any land route south, so the teams were forced to take a series of boats, with strict instructions to travel only during daylight hours for safety - while picturesque, it’s one of the few times the show hasn’t made me want to visit somewhere.

Starting in pole position for the first time, Dylan & Jackie seemed to revert to their ‘team tortoise’ ways, stopping almost immediately to the surprise of the following teams.

Restricted a little by budget, they opted for a slower "package deal" to Boquete to save money, but that meant they seemed to be hanging around for the bus/boat for an incredibly long amount of time. They also took the time to chill out at the Joguata Waterfall continuing their rather relaxed attempt. While they remain rather bad at the race, it’s still hard not to love the duo. Jackie opened up about the tragic loss of her first husband and son was incredibly moving, while their later confusion about what country they were even in was probably the funniest moment in this series!

I think there’s probably more chance of them running out of money before the finish than them winning the race, but maybe they’ll pull something out of their hat.

In an opposite approach Roman & Harleymoon went in all guns blazing - not wanting to wait for the bus they spent 14% of their budget on a boat trip to get moving fast. Unimpressed with their bumpy ‘luxury cruise’ their real highlight was on Mandungua Island, where Roman seemed to bond with locals over football, and Harleymoon seemed to fall in love with a tiny pig called Oreo.

This time on the island also let Roman explore the remote jungle world and work out how to thank his sister for her support during a past mental health crisis. While they both seem so different at times it’s hard to see them as siblings, the bond and trust between them is so strong, and they’ve only gotten stronger as the race has progressed.

Their fast moving start however was strategically eclipsed by Molly & Tyler, who took an 11 hour bus to Panama city that the siblings turned down. While not a comfortable journey it meant the couple had caught up very fast, although they also had to spend a ‘fortune’ to cross the Guna Yala so budget wise I’m not sure how much it helped.

Like the others, they spent a lot of time in the leg relaxing on the Isla de Pinos. No big emotional breakthroughs for them, but Tyler found his inner provider in an impromptu ‘job’ catching five fish for their dinner.

Elsewhere Anita & Bal were sticking to their budget-conscious strategy, stopping to work at a women-run B&B in Boca Chica.

The setting gave Anita a chance to reflect on the changes in her life as a recently single South Asian woman in her 40s, but the always hard working team were quickly back on the cleaning and washing up to pay for their stay.

Like the others they ended up stopping on the island for the night, sleeping in hammocks with only the sounds of the sea and Bal's snoring. 

While again they remained competent, they also seemed to have the worst luck with their boat breaking down just minutes out of port, leaving them bobbing at sea.

But all the teams were hit with a major twist at the end - due to security alerts and strikes in the Antioquia region, the teams would have to fly the final stretch into Medellín.

This left us without much racing at the end (and explains the slower ‘lots of time on the islands’ pace of the episode) and leaves us entering the final with very little leaderboard to consult!

1st	Tyler & Molly	-
2nd	Roman & Harley

Molly & Tyler have regained their momentum, but with Roman and Harleymoon are (probably) rather hot on their heals. But the former leaders Dylan & Jackie are left stranded on an island with maybe rather little money, while Antia and Bal are a closer but still unknown time away.

Luckily the predictions this week are your tokens from over the course of the series so you might have tokens on everyone! But make sure you get todays token in on whoever your current guess is before the final episode airs!