A Costa Rica Alternative: Panamá

Why Panama?

Panama is a great destination for all types of travelers! For those that love adventure travel, maybe have been to Costa Rica already and loved it and want something new, or looking for a similar experience but in a more unique destination. For those who maybe don't speak Spanish, but wanting to start exploring Central America, Panama is also a great first country to visit. We found that many Panamanians speak English, although knowing some basic phrases in Spanish is always helpful and appreciated! If you're coming from the US, Panama is also super convenient because the official currency of Panama is the US dollar so no need to convert cash or think about exchange rates. And Panama is located in the Eastern time zone, so minimal to no time zone change for most Americans. 

Day One

Visitors arrive to Panama from all over the world, but nearly everyone starts by flying into Panama City's Tocumen Airport (PTY). The airport is fairly small, with just two terminals. Most international airlines arrive to terminal 1. From there it's easy to get an uber, taxi, or shuttle to your hotel. We stayed at the JW Marriott our first night in Panama City and took an uber, which cost about $15. Our last night in Panama, we stayed at the Crowne Plaza Hotel near the airport and took the free hotel shuttle. 

Before we left the US, I recommend downloading Airalo and buying an eSIM. I got one specific to Panama since that was the only country we visited on this trip, but there are other options if you'll be traveling to multiple countries in the region. I spent $18 for 3GB of data. As soon as we landed in Panama, it was super easy to turn off my US SIM card so that I didn't get any international charges, and turn on my new Panamanian eSIM card. I had great 4G data throughout most of the trip, which was super convenient for calling Ubers, looking up reservation details, and navigating walks through the city.

Day Two

Although we were tired from traveling the whole day before, I recommend booking a tour for the first full day in country. The tour we booked through Viator picked us up at the hotel at 7:30am, which meant we got to see a beautiful sunrise during breakfast at the hotel and made sure we didn't waste any bit of the day! We love boats and were excited to be out on the water in the man-made Gatun Lake. The tour guides were very knowledgeable about the three species of monkeys found in this area, we even had a monkey whisperer on board with us!