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A Panama itinerary for a Week – Island Hopping
A Pure Dose of Panama
- By Michael Lakus
- Read Time: 12min
Arriving in Panama was next on the list, following last month’s travels all around Portugal. And along with a new continent and country comes new culture and territory. During our week stay in Panama, we had the opportunity to experience both the Caribbean and Pacific islands, visit historic districts, hike in the jungle and more. Buckle up!
I was asked by family what I thought of Panama; mainly compared to other more popular travel destinations. The way I see it, expectations must be tempered. But this in no way means it is not a country to check out! Panama presented itself fairly black and white – you have the secluded luxury island experience, or the pure dose of Panamanian style. Obviously, I chose the latter. And this is presented fully in the video.
I switched up my video editing style to include some lite vlogging and less music to capture certain moments better. This also lightened the load for editing, so I think I might keep this new format. The videos will be longer, but hopefully allow the viewer to feel what is happening more so than a video edit.
Logistics for a Week in Panama
Panama was actually on my list for some time, but getting a decently-priced flight with a major airline had proven difficult. However, thanks to Scotty boy at Scott’s Cheap Flights, a Delta flight finally came through for under $300. A week was not ideal, but the price was right. There were quite a few Airbnb options with all the high-rises in Panama City, so we gave that a shot. Aside from getting there, we booked a few tours, which I’ll explain why later on.
Travel Logistics
Delta RT flights for $270, Airbnb for $370, Tours for $230, Ubers negligible. Rough total of $870 before food and miscellaneous.
Learning what we did from our Portugal trip, the COVID-19 logistics were much easier this time around. At the time of travel, Panama did not need testing for entry if the person was fully vaccinated. However, the U.S. still wanted a negative test to reenter. Therefore, we only had a few steps to complete.
- Bring vaccination cards
- Pack a few travel test kits (for return)
- Fill out the Panamanian affidavit form
Delta made it super easy, too. Their online checklist clearly stated what we needed to complete, and when. Bada bing, bada boom.
The map may look scarce, but keep in mind, we normally spent a full day, if not multiple at some locations.
Panama City and Casco Viejo
Our Airbnb was located on the 36th floor right in between “downtown” Panama City and Casco Viejo, or Old Quarter. So it’s safe to say we spent a lot of time overlooking Cinta Costera from our balcony and walking the districts. I was amazed at how much the tide changed throughout the day; literally leaving the harbor below us empty of water!
Panama City was walkable and it’s probably the only place where Uber is abundant and actually works well. It’s an interesting city, because flying in, there are immediate Miami vibes. But once we were on the ground, I began noticing the differences architecturally and economically. Kiosk-type building are jammed in with new construction, presenting sharp contrasts. The one thing that took me by surprise was how many buildings and shops were built with no tenants or businesses occupying them. I’m talking about malls and shopping strips more than 50% empty.
Going to Casco Viejo, the scenic Cinta Costera was the coastal walkway which we took almost everyday to go to and from. I think we both enjoyed this district more than where we were located. And good new is, there are plenty of Airbnbs there, too! Casco Viejo didn’t take more than a few hours to go through, but it’s the classic “old town” and catered more for tourists with shops and restaurants. The obvious highlight was the friendly street cats who wanted nothing more than some pets… and food.
San Blas Islands
At the beginning of the post I mentioned the luxury Panamanian experience. I think San Blas is one of the capable areas, if coming from a private charter or personal yacht. Unfortunately, I did not have this transportation at my expense.. this time 🙂
This was our first of two tours, and I promised an explanation of why we went this route. The answer is simple. Getting to this place would have been next to impossible otherwise, as the preparation and route there were absurd. I would not have trusted myself renting a car or running into trouble along the way. Hell, renting a car in the Dominican Republic was way easier. Anywho, our tour driver went straight rally car style on the way to the port, where we were promptly loaded on some transport boats with two tickets to paradise. Thanks Eddie Money.
Now it was time to be super lazy. The clouds cleared up and the water revealed its many shades of translucent blue. We had about an hour on each on the 3-4 islands we visited which, was plenty of time to walk the complete shoreline, drink some beer and stare up at the wind-blown palms.
Prepare for a wild ride!
San Blas tours from Panama City are going to be a about a 3 hour drive on some hella bumpy roads with one stop. Prepare yourself for a spinal tap.
Taboga Island... Twice!
Taboga Island was not what I expected, but in a good way. On the San Blas island tour, I met a fellow traveler who told me about an old WWII bunker atop Toboga island. Even though we had a catamaran tour planned here, it gave me an excuse to go on a solo excursion via ferry the day before 🙂
The island was fairly small and not super populated, other than the tourist drop-off point. Most of the infrastructure was right in front of me after leaving the docks, which consisted of a line of kiosk drink stands. Taboga does a modest job at promoting tourism mainly through chartered tours, but suffered from the same trash problems as San Blas. But for me, it wasn’t really an issue since I was hiking through the island’s interior.
The hike was a hot one! The majority of the trail was lightly used and I never saw a single soul the entire round trip. But all in all, the bunker was the best thing to do on this island. The view was almost a 360 degree panorama, and an excellent spot to have lunch with the Pacific breeze. On the way back down, I took a different route, where the trail opened up to a secluded stone-covered beach, much better than the one advertised on tours.
The second time, we both took a catamaran there via Red Cat Tours. I won’t lie, I didn’t leave the boat that time but it was hard to when snacks and an open bar were included! This was a good experience for the money and they had personable and professional staff.
Panama Canal and Terrifying Monkeys
I feel like it would be a sin to go to Panama and not see the Panama Canal. So don’t worry, we set aside time to witness this monumental feat of mankind. I think Miraflores was the only lock really set up for tourism, as it had a seating area and gave a great view to watch the ships pass through. We were lucky enough to see a decent-sized cargo ship shimmy on down and observe the locks in action.
Learning more about the canal, Panama took over operations in 1999. We figured out about 30-40 big boats pass through daily with a toll of $200-$300K each. Doing some quick math, that’s potentially over $3 billion! So I gotta ask, what are they doing with this revenue?! Panama has plenty of opportunities for improvements!
Panama Canal Fun Fact
Aside from disease, the French failed the first attempt at building the canal since they did not incorporate locks. A sea-level canal was way too much excavation!
One of the last things we encountered in Panama were the terrifying, yet timid howler monkeys of Parque Nacional Camino de Cruces. Our visit to the park was somewhat impromptu, but made for a nice little walk through the jungle to meet our monkey friends. From afar and without line of sight on them, we could only hear their little monster screams. It was quite something, especially when we didn’t know what was making the sounds at first. Slightly scary! The video shows the encounter quite well.
A Look Back
So there it is, all laid out. Panama was a mixed-bag. Foregoing the resort or luxury style, I think there is something to be said for a more down-to-earth take of the country. I think that’s what the “pure” dose has always been about. And even at that, this trip could have been completely different by staying in a smaller city or town such as Santiago, David or the Bocas del Toro Province. Whatever the case, we made the experience what it was, without compromise or comparison.
Overall, our week in Panama was filled with island hopping, sight-seeing, cuisine-eating, culture-seeking and monkey-screaming fun. From Portugal to Panama, let’s see what’s next for 2022.
-ML
Recap of Places
Check out the MAP for links!
- Panama City
- Casco Viejo
- San Blas Islands
- Taboga Island
- Miraflores Locks (Panama Canal)
- Parque Nacional Camino de Cruces
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Michael Lakus
IT professional, athlete, musician, ponderer of many things... Born and raised in Florida, I began traveling internationally after college. I created this site primarily to remind myself of where I've been and to share my experiences on traveling with a quirky, stress-free, travel attitude.
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