Panama City

Worth seeing in and around Panama City

10 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.

1. 01
   Panamá Viejo

   Panamá Viejo, also known as Panamá la Vieja, is the remaining part of the original Panama City, the former capital of Panama, which was destroyed in 1671 by the Welsh privateer Henry Morgan. It is located in the suburbs of the current capital.

   6.7 km · archaeological site · Wikipedia
2. 02
   University of Panama

   The University of Panama is a public university in Panama City, Panama. It was founded on October 7, 1935.

   1.4 km · university in Panama · Wikipedia
3. 03
   Ancon Hill

   Ancón Hill is a 199 metres high hill that overlooks Panama City, Panama, adjacent to the township of Ancón. It was used for administration of the Panama Canal and was under U.S. jurisdiction as a part of the Panama Canal Zone until being returned to Panama in 1977.

   2.2 km · mountain in Panama · Wikipedia
4. 04
   Panama Canal Authority

   The Panama Canal Authority is the agency of the government of Panama responsible for the operation and management of the Panama Canal. The ACP took over the administration of the canal from the Panama Canal Commission, the joint US–Panama agency that managed the canal, on December 31, 1999, when the canal was handed over from the United States to Panama as per the Torrijos–Carter Treaties.

   2.6 km · group managing the Panama Canal · Wikipedia
5. 05
   Metropolitan Cathedral of Panama City

   The Metropolitan Archcathedral Basilica of Santa María la Antigua is a Catholic church located in the old town of Panama City in Panama. It was consecrated in 1796, although construction work began in 1688, 108 years earlier.

   2.1 km · cathedral in Panama City, Panama · Wikipedia
6. 06
   F&F Tower

   The F&F Tower is a 242.9-meter 52-story office skyscraper completed in 2011 in Panama City, Panama designed by Pinzon Lozano & Asociados Arquitectos. The tower is constructed of glass and reinforced concrete.

   2.2 km · building in Panama · Wikipedia
7. 07
   Martyrs' Day

   Martyrs' Day is a Panamanian day of national mourning which commemorates the January 9, 1964 protests over the sovereignty of the Panama Canal Zone. The protest started after a Panamanian flag was torn and students were killed during a conflict with Canal Zone Police officers and Canal Zone residents.

   2.8 km · public holiday in Panama commemorating people who died during the riots over sovereignty in the Canal Zone in 1964 · Wikipedia
8. 08
   Panama Canal expansion project

   The Panama Canal expansion project, also called the Third Set of Locks Project, doubled the capacity of the Panama Canal by adding a new traffic lane, enabling more ships to transit the waterway, and increasing the width and depth of the lanes and locks, allowing larger ships to pass. The new ships, called New Panamax, are about one and a half times larger than the previous Panamax size and can carry over twice as much cargo.

   6.2 km · 2007-16 construction of larger locks on Panama Canal · Wikipedia
9. 09
   Estadio Nacional de Panamá

   Rod Carew National Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Panama City, Panama. The stadium has a capacity of 27,000 and was built in 1999.

   7.9 km · stadium in Panama · Wikipedia
10. 10
    Vitri Tower

    Torre Vitri or Vitri Tower is a 74-storey residential building located in Costa del Este, Panama City. Completed in 2012, the building is 260 metres tall and is the sixth-tallest building in Panama City and the 11th tallest building in Latin America.

    8.9 km · skyscraper in Costa del Este, Panama City · Wikipedia

Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.

What Wikivoyage says to see

Panama Canal. Not only one of the world's most important shipping connections, but also the very reason for which the modern country of Panama was created, the canal is probably the single most iconic thing to visit in Panama. There are different ways to explore the canal: the easiest but pricey way from Panama City is to visit the Miraflores Visitor Center/Miraflores Locks.

1. 01
   Miraflores Visitor Center/Miraflores Locks

   The most visited place along the canal is the Miraflores Visitor Center at the Miraflores Locks.

2. 02
   Casco Viejo

   Casco Viejo is the historic part of town, where you will find many colonial style government buildings, cathedrals and museums including a Canal Museum or a small Panama History Museum.

3. 03
   Canal Museum

   Plaza de la Independencia, San Felipe (between Calles 5a and 6a).

4. 04
   Panama History Museum

   Avenida 6a Central, Plaza Catedral, San Felipe,.

5. 05
   Panama Viejo

   The archaeological site of the ruins of the original city of Panama that was sacked by the pirate Henry Morgan in the 1600s.

6. 06
   Amador Causeway

   The Amador Causeway connects four little islands (Naos, Culebra, Perico and Flamenco) to the mainland.

From Wikivoyage: Panama City, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Things to do

Help a sailboat to cross the canal. All sailboats that want to cross the Panama Canal needs by law 5 crew members when crossing the locks due to the complexity of handling these boats in these narrow locks and tieing and untieing it to the walls, other boats etc. The job called "linehandler". The owners of the boats can either hire local help or look for volunteers in exchange for the experience, food and drinks.

1. 01
   Metropolitan Natural Park

From Wikivoyage: Panama City, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Where to eat

Check out Panama Restaurant Week, which doesn't happen every year, but when it does it is a fantastic option to try great restaurants at good prices. Despite its name, it lasts 15 days, with dozens of participating restaurants offering special participating menus at fixed, lower than normal prices. There's several cafes along Via Argentina. The Spanish sandwich shops offer excellent sandwiches, coffee, and churros.

1. 01
   Capital Bistró Panamá

   Chillout music and large sofas on the upper terrace.

From Wikivoyage: Panama City, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Getting to Panama City

Airports

Tocumen (PTY), 20 km

Stations

Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport, 2.3 km · Panamá Pacífico International Airport, 9.5 km · Albrook (Panama Metro), 1.6 km · Lotería (Panama Metro), 400 m · Howard Air Force Base, 9.5 km

• San Andrés → Panama City

  464 km · quickest by air, 5h 24m · COL$336,890–520,670
  GuideToday
• Cartagena → Panama City

  468 km · quickest by air, 5h 23m · COL$338,720–525,090
  GuideToday
• San José (Alajuela) → Panama City

  652 km · quickest by air, 8h 27m · $370–550
  GuideToday
• From anywhere

  The planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
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Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.

No local-transport research exists yet for Panama City

Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Panama City. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.

If you know how people move in Panama City – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.