Panamanian Paradise Tour

Day one is a free day to allow you time to arrive and relax after your flight, we’ll be waiting for you at the airport holding a board with your name on and a comfortable air conditioned vehicle in which to take your to your hotel and answer any questions you might have en route. On the morning of day two we’ll start our tour visiting the old and picturesque historic centre of Panama City, known as ‘Casco Viejo’, where you’ll enjoy walking through cobbled streets and alleyways, surrounded by grand colonial buildings, museums and centuries old churches in this historic district where three distinct traditional styles of colonial era construction are found alongside each other: Spanish, French and Italian. To finish off the morning, just before we head for lunch at a traditional Panamanian restaurant, we’ll visit the folk art market in the old YMCA building to work up an appetite.

After lunch we’ll visit the Miraflores Visitor Center next to the Panama Canal, where visitors have the opportunity to observe transiting vessels from a distance of only a few meters and learn first hand about the various operations of the Panama Canal, the history of its construction, its participation in the world markets, and the importance of its watershed. Trips on the canal itself can also be arranged – ask our Travel Team for available dates.

Your Panama City tour highlights include: Casco Viejo, Panama Canal Visitor Center, modern Panama City, folk art market
Lunch is included

Today we’ll pick you up early for your flight to the laid back Caribbean region of Bocas Del Toro in the North East of Panama, close to the border with Costa Rica. Bocas del Toro is one of Panama’s top tourist attractions for good reason, a place where you can find beautiful beaches, a town rich with history, lively nightlife and friendly, laid back islanders.

During your time at Bocas Del Toro you’ll most likely want as much free time to explore as possible – you can hire bicycles or scooters to explore the main island of Colon, or take one of the regular local boat services to a nearby island, for example – but we also have some great tours planned for you, and first up is a visit to ‘Dolphin Bay’ where you’ll get chance to see… that’s right… dolphins! And lots of them, since this is the home of a very large population of these fascinatingly intelligent and entertaining sea mammals. You’ll then have the afternoon to enjoy beautiful beaches with crystal clear waters and vibrant coral reefs within easy snorkeling access of the beach.

For your second tour you’ll be visiting Swan’s Cay – a small rocky formation just off the coast of Colon island – which is the only known nesting ground in Panama for the beautiful Red-billed Tropicbirds, who nest alongside Brown boobies. Afterwards you’ll visit Boca del Drago in the even more chilled out north of Colon island to relax on the tropical paradise beaches and go searching for the amazing giant starfish founded along the shores.

On your last day we’ll take you to the airport, preferably on the latest flight to give you another half day in paradise, before collecting you from the airport in Panama City to take you back to your hotel.

You’ll have an early start today for your transfer to El Corotu on the shores of Madden Lake, the main reservoir of drinking water for the cities of Panama and Colon, as well as a supplier of 40% of the water required for the operation of the Panama Canal. Here, we’ll board a motorized piragua (dugout canoe) and travel up the Chagres River to an Embera indigenous village. The boat journey takes us through the rainforest of the 320,000-acre Chagres National Park, which is the largest of the National Parks protecting the Panama Canal Watershed. Once we arrive at the indigenous community, we’ll learn about Embera customs and their close relationship with nature. There will be locally produced handcrafts in display and we’ll have a chance to be painted with the traditional jagua, a natural dye the Indians use to adorn their bodies.

After a delicious traditional lunch (fish & fried green plantain) prepared by the Emberans we’ll visit a nearby waterfall where we can take a dip in the crystal-clear waters of the Chagres River. Be sure to bring: a camera, cap or hat, sunscreen, insect repellent, light clothing (an extra t-shirt and shorts), a light raincoat, strong footwear, bathing clothes and a towel.

Note: Cash in small denominations is recommended if you are interested in purchasing handicrafts.
Lunch is included

Today we’ll spend the day with the famous Panamanian indigenous people known as Gunas who live in the autonomous indigenous province of Guna Yala which contains 51 distinct communities living mainly on the various islands of the San Blas Archipelago. We’ll enjoy excellent white sand beaches and clear water, as well as have the opportunity to learn about the unique Guna culture and way of life.

This full day adventure starts at 5am with our departure in 4WD vehicles to the San Blas Islands. It’ll be a 2 hour drive and then we’ll continue on a dugout canoe for 15 minutes. Interestingly, these communities have only been accessible by road since 2008 – previously the only way to travel here was by helicopter or light aircraft. This relative isolation has helped them retain their unique customs and cultural identity over the centuries – which they proudly maintain and celebrate to this day, with the support of the Panamanian government. Lunch is included

Located just two hours from the modern metropolis of Panama City, via the Pan-American Highway, Anton Valley rises 600 meters above sea level, giving it a fresh and agreeable climate.

The town of El Valle de Anton is located in an ancient caldera of an extinct volcano which last erupted 300,00 years ago, and whose slopes are covered with dense tropical cloud forests traversed by rivers and stunning waterfalls – the most beautiful of these being the ‘Chorro El Macho’, which you will visit after a short hike through dense rain forest, whilst enjoying the lush and abundant flora and fauna – including unique species of orchids, an abundance of birds, butterflies, amphibians and many other species of animals that live in this protected area of Panama.

During your full day visiting this unique natural gem you’ll also get to see petroglyphs, thermal srpings, the El Nispero plant nursery and zoo, and the excellent town craft market. This relaxing and energising day out is a great way to finish your grand tour of Panama. Lunch is included

Today you have a free day to allow you the flexibility of taking whichever flight home works for you, your private air-conditioned airport transfer is included – naturally – and will be programmed at whatever time of the day needed to get you to Panama City’s large, modern and efficient airport. Choosing a later flight will give you some free time in Panama City before you leave, but this doesn’t need to be the end of your trip… what about extending your adventure? Panama has much, much more to offer – or you may want to consider the short flight across to Colombia to take in the sights and sounds of magnificent Cartagena, or how about a trip to tropical Costa Rica, just over the border? Panama City, through it’s Copa Airline, is an extremely convenient hub from which to explore all the incredible locations that Central and South America has to offer – ask your very own personal Sightseeing Sensei (one of our team!) to find out what’s possible with your time and budget.