Panama City

Besides being the central hub for tours going anywhere in the country, Panama City is a fascinating tourist destination in itself. It's a curious blend of old Spain, modern America and the bazaar atmosphere of the East. Best known for the Panama Canal, this lively Latin American even borders one of Central America’s richest rain forests.

Panama City is a city of easy cosmopolitan living, a combination of the historic and the ultra-modern. And it is also one of the safest cities in the Americas. There are three Panama Cities to be discovered: the historical ruins of the 16th century called Panama Viejo, the 17th century Spanish Colonial Casco Viejo part of the city and the modern skyscraper city with its prosperous business district and a city center full of live and cultural delights.

A visit to the Panama Canal is a unique experience, which can’t be reproduced anywhere else in the world. At the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks, you can spend hours watching cruise ships and freighters moving through the Panama Canal. Called “The Eighth Wonder of the World” it todays stands as a monument to mankind’s ingenuity and the power of conviction.

The Amador Causeway extends from the mainland to connect four small islands offshore. A palm-lined road runs the length of the causeway, with benches and a path for bicycling and jogging alongside. It is swept with sea breezes, boasts fine restaurants, the Smithsonian Institute of Tropical Research Aquarium, a new cruise port, yacht club, residential projects and souvenir shops.

Ecotourism begins right on the outskirts of Panama City with the large tropical rainforest reserve called Parque Metropolitano. Along the five trails of this enormous park you will find a diversity of tropical wildlife, including toucans, parakeets, orioles, trogons, sloth, agoutis and Titi monkeys.