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For travelers to Panama there is a lot to see and do. Here is the short list of places to visit and things to do during a week in Panama City. Think shopping, visits to tourist sites, and a day on the beach for a short to visit to Panama.

Shopping Areas to Visit in Panama City

A favorite shopping spot for many Latin Americans is Panama City. Panama’s prices are lower than in many Latin American cities and lower than in North America. Panama City has a number of upscale malls such as Punta Pacifica, El Dorado and Albrook. All of these are reachable by taxi from your hotel. The layouts are familiar as are many of the brand names.

For the more adventuresome, a trip, again by taxi, to Avenida Central lets you visit many more shops with a much greater Latin flavor. Visit a couple of side streets where they sell fresh vegetables, used books, eye glass frames and anything else you might want or need. Many well to do Panamanians dress up to shop the malls and dress down to shop Avenida Central.

Visit one of the sidewalk cafes in Avenida Central where they have inexpensive soups (sancocho) as well as lots of meat, chicken, and rice.

For the even more adventuresome consider a visit to Calidonia. A walk back towards downtown Panama City (El Centro) going against traffic on Via España through Calidonia takes you to sidewalk vendors and department stores (almarcenes) with deals a North American or European will find hard to believe.

Historic Sites to Visit in Panama City

Three interesting historic sites to visit in and around Panama City are Panama Viejo, San Felipe, and the museum at the Miraflores Locks on the Panama Canal.

The ruins of Old Panama, Panama Viejo, are an interesting couple of hour visit including an artisan’s shop with local arts and crafts. This is a quite get away from the hustle and bustle, and horn honking, of downtown Panama City. A visit to the artisan shop may fulfill your shopping requirements for gifts for folks from back home as everything you buy at the Panama artisans shop is authentic Panamanian.

San Felipe, the Spanish Colonial descendant of old Panama, has interesting Spanish Colonial era buildings mixed with modern reconstruction in the colonial style. This can easily be a day and evening visit including the Canal Museum, cathedral, and time spent in the mid day shade of one the parks followed by dinner at one of the excellent local restaurants.

The Miraflores Locks are a day visit by taxi or tour. The museum and movie are very interesting as the construction of the Panama Canal is still considered a modern engineering marvel. There are bleachers where you can watch the giant container ships as well as smaller vessels pass through the locks on their eight hour trip either to or from the Atlantic.

A Day’s Visit to the Beach off the Coast from Panama City

A great place to visit for the day is Isla Taboga, Taboga Island. This island is twelve miles off Panama’s Pacific Coast in crystal clear waters. A boat ride from the pier behind the restaurants at Naos on Amador Causeway takes 45 minutes each way. Boats leave as early as 8 am and return from Taboga as late as 5 pm.

The seafood on Taboga is great and cheap. For a few dollars you can rent a beach umbrella, chairs, or a mat to lie on. Do not forget to buy suntan lotion at one of those shops on Via España before you visit Taboga. Despite the nice, cooling breeze off the ocean this is the tropics.

If you fall in love with Taboga you can stay overnight at one of the hotels or rent a room in a home for the night and take the ferry back the next morning.

If, after your visit to Panama, you are interested in living or investing here contact us at ABPanama. We do business throughout the country and would love to help you find a home and/or invest in paradise.