With a group of travel professionals I went exploring tropical Panamalast week. We were surprised by a versatile, welcoming and safe destination with a unique combination of nature, city, beach and indigenous culture.
A world of contrasts
Panama City seems like a world of contrasts – the old colonial Casco Viejo with its rough edge is reminiscent of the nostalgic Havana or Cartagena of the past. The authentic and unpolished centre has a number of charming hotels including the beautiful La Concordia – but on weekends the city goes wild and it’s too noisy to stay here.
I recommend staying in modern Panama with a fantastic skyline, for example in the charming Bristol hotel. What is also special is that the city is surrounded by nature such as the rainforest at Gamboa where you can also stay if you don’t like the city at all.
Attraction of Panama
In the middle of the tropical forest runs the famous Panama Canal. The English Channel can be experienced in many ways: Miraflores – and the new Agua Clara locks have visitor centres with terraces from which you can see the giant ships, take a ride in the Panama Canal train to Colon or book a (partial) passage by boat. Please note that the Canal is the tourist attraction of Panama and that you are certainly not alone.
Mix of culture, nature and design
How different and ‘Untamed’ is the African-American Portobelo and the unique El Otro Lado retreat on the Caribbean, just an hour and a half from the city and international airport. I think this is really jumping out. It is a mixture of local culture and art, beautiful nature of mangroves, rainforest, beach and design.
Coffee plantations, cloud forest and humpback whales
We fly to the north of the country and visit the coffee area of Panama around Boquete – beautiful cloud forest and a beautiful destination to be active: hikes, canopy, rafting. Boquete combines well with the famous archipelago of Bocas del Toro on the Caribbean with beautiful beaches, or on the other side with the less visited wild nature paradise Chiriqui on the Pacific.
We choose the latter and stay on the private island of Palenque with exclusive resort with beautiful design villas on the beach and a very good ‘open air’ kitchen.
It is an excellent place to explore the waters and islets with jungles with monkeys, various species of turtles, many bird species, iguanas, tropical fish, dolphins and the most idyllic beaches. Not to mention the humpback whales (from mid-July to October) calves also in this area; We were lucky enough to see the last mother with calf.
Particularly versatile and beach galore
I find Panama particularly versatile and suitable for the traveller who wants to combine city and beach, but also for nature lover and sports enthusiast. Because KLM flies directly, the destination is also very suitable for a shorter journey of, for example, ten days.
Selfdrive is definitely a good option if you want to explore the country at your own pace. For a unique cultural experience, a visit to the San Blas Islands is highly recommended, this is the territory of the Kuna Yula Indians – we also offer wonderful sailing tours in this unique area. Beach is abundant, such as on the Pearl Islands or on the lake touristy Bocas del Toro. But also at the Chiriqui National Park and the African-American Portobelo in the Caribbean you will find beautiful beaches.
