From the colonial streets of Casco Viejo and the world's most famous waterway to a private Guna island, volcanic cloud forests and the Caribbean coast, this definitive Panama journey from the experts at Viaventure covers every corner of this spectacular country.

What's in this Article

We explore why Panama is one of Central America's most varied and surprising destinations, and why experiencing it fully requires the kind of local knowledge that only Viaventure can provide.
We discover Panama City with Viaventure, from the layered colonial history of Casco Viejo and a hands-on encounter with the Embera people of Chagres National Park to a partial transit of the Panama Canal aboard the Pacific Queen.
We experience the San Blas archipelago as it should be - on a private Guna-owned island, with snorkelling, a rainforest waterfall hike and an intimate insight into Guna Yala culture and daily life.
We explore the Bay of Chiriqui’s Pacific wilderness from the stunning Isla Palenque Resort, including an island-hopping excursion to the remote Islas Secas archipelago.
We discover Boquete's cloud forest and coffee heritage, including a private hands-on tour of one of Panama's most celebrated coffee estates and a hike through Boquete's highland cloud forest on the spectacular Pipeline Trail.
And we close in Bocas del Toro with Nayara Resort, where overwater villas, award-winning locally sourced cuisine and trained naturalists bring the Caribbean to life on its own extraordinary terms.

The Full Panama Picture…

Look at a map of Panama and its appeal for the curious traveller is clear - a narrow land bridge and one of the world’s greatest engineering feats stitching two colossal continents, with two great oceans pressing against either side.

What the map doesn’t prepare you for though is the sheer variety of experiences that this slender corridor holds; a spectacular mix of history, indigenous culture, rainforest biodiversity, volcanic highlands and Caribbean island life that most visitors never come close to experiencing in full.

To do it justice requires a DMC that knows it intimately, not as a product but as a real, lived place - and Viaventure, with over two decades of Central American expertise and the deep local relationships to match, are exactly that.

Here, the all-of-Panama itinerary we’re about to dive into is one of the most complete introductions to the country around, moving between each of Panama’s very different worlds with a fluency that only comes from truly knowing the terrain.

Let’s explore…

Panama City: Where Three Eras Meet

The journey begins in Casco Viejo, the historic quarter of Panama City - a UNESCO-listed neighbourhood of colonial facades, bougainvillea-draped balconies and churches dating to the 17th century.

The base here is Hotel La Compania, a beautifully restored Hyatt property whose three wings span three distinct architectural eras: Spanish Colonial, French Colonial and American Beaux-Arts, all built on the site where the Jesuit order settled after the destruction of the original Panama City in 1671.

From Casco Viejo, the city - and the country - opens up.

A partial transit of the Panama Canal, boarding the Pacific Queen at Gamboa and sailing southbound through the famous Gaillard Cut carved through the Continental Divide, is a fascinating experience: combining the fascination of the locks, the magic of giant ships sailing through the spine of the Continental Divide and scenery that ranges from rainforest to city skyline.

And before the journey moves away from the capital, there’s plenty of time both for a guided walk through the ruins of Panama Viejo - the original city founded by the Spanish in 1519 and sacked by Henry Morgan's pirates in 1671 - and a day deep in Chagres National Park with the Embera people: a motorised piragua journey that takes your guests along the Chagres River into 320,000 acres of rainforest, arriving at a village for traditional song and dance, basket weaving, jagua body painting and a riverside picnic.

Glamping on San Blas: The Heart of the Journey

The tone of the journey shifts entirely as we head out to San Blas.

Sitting off Panama's Caribbean coast, the San Blas archipelago is made up of around 365 islands and cays and governed entirely by the people of the Guna Yala tribe under laws, customs and traditions that have remained largely unchanged for centuries - just like the scenery.

This is a place of desert island dreams, all unspoiled white sands, swaying palms and turquoise as far as the eye can see, and the experience on offer here through Viaventure is as far removed from a standard resort as it’s possible to get.

Here, guests are hosted by Puma and Yani, a Guna family who own the island, in one of just three deluxe tents, each of which comes with a king-size bed, private bathroom and the particular luxury of absolute seclusion.

Meals are prepared in Guna style from locally sourced ingredients, days move between snorkelling the surrounding reefs, kayaking, paddleboarding and fishing the teeming waters, and guided visits to a Guna village offer a respectful, fascinating and genuinely rare insight into a community that has kept the modern world at arm's length.

But the most spectacular adventure of the San Blas experience?

Imagine a boat ride to a point on the mainland where the forest swallows the path almost immediately, the starting place for a two-hour guided trail hike that wends its way through lush tropical rainforest and crosses shallow rivers perfect for a quick dip.

This is a day that saves its best for last, with adventurers walking to the place where the vegetation parts to reveal two waterfalls plunging into a crystal-clear natural pool ringed by smooth rocks, an idyllic spot for a remote rainforest swim before a delicious and healthy lunch.

Isla Palenque: Pacific Wilderness

From San Blas, the journey crosses to the Bay of Chiriqui, a vast Pacific expanse of remote, emerald-fringed islands protected within national marine parks, teeming with colour and life and home to one of the largest coral reefs in the Pacific.

Isla Palenque Resort, just fifteen minutes by boat from the mainland, occupies 400 private acres of primary forest and seven secluded beaches, with just eight beachfront casitas for guests.

Here, as a member of the Cayuga Collection of Sustainable Luxury Hotels, the approach to the sacred landscape around is as considered as the accommodation - a rare, remote untouched tropical island experience that comes layered with barefoot luxe; all fabulous accommodations, locally sourced dining and a fantasy island magic that’s impossible to recreate.

Our favourite excursion on Isla Palenque?

How about an island-hopping and snorkelling excursion to the remote Islas Secas archipelago, passing rocky isles and sailing through waters where there’s an excellent opportunity to spot jumping fish, rays, sea birds and sometimes dolphins too.

Boquete: Cloud Forest and Coffee

The transition to Boquete, in Panama's Chiriqui highlands, is one of this itinerary's absolute best perspective shifts, taking guests from Pacific island to cloud forest in the space of a single morning's drive.

Its streets lined with flowering gardens and its air cool and scented with coffee, Boquete sits in the shadow of Baru Volcano, its misty mountain air a fabulous counterpoint to what’s come before on this trip.

Your guests’ base here is Finca Lerida Coffee Estate, the historic birthplace of Panama's coffee legacy and another member of the Cayuga Collection of Sustainable Luxury Hotels, where the rooms are named after local birds and the trails lead directly into La Amistad National Park.

A private, hands-on coffee plantation tour takes guests through the full process, from hand-picking ripe red cherries to roasting and tasting, with particular attention to the prized Geisha variety that commands some of the highest prices in the world of specialty coffee.

Here too, a hike along the Pipeline Trail in the Bajo Mono region follows an old overgrown water pipeline through dense, moss-covered cloud forest, crossing wooden bridges and climbing steadily into cooler air, passing a 1,000-year-old tree and offering potential glimpses of the famous quetzal bird as it moves through the canopy above.

And for those seeking something with a touch of culture, a walking tour through Boquete's colourful highland streets is just the thing, crossing the main bridge above the rushing Caldera River and heading to the Central Market, where local produce, fresh coffee and handmade crafts make for a fitting end to a day spent at altitude.

Bocas del Toro: The Caribbean Close

The journey ends in Bocas del Toro in the northwest of Panama - a very different kind of beauty to the Bay of Chiriqui that’s often called the Galapagos of the Caribbean.

This nine-island archipelago carries over 95% of Caribbean coral species, its waters home to sea turtles, sloths and extraordinary marine life.

The stunning Nayara Resort is the perfect handpicked stay - its overwater pool villas with glass floor inlays offering views of the sea beneath and its kitchen, led by award-winning Panamanian chef Jorge Jurado, serving up award-winning cuisine that draws on local and seasonal ingredients.

And here, the resort's private boat captains are trained naturalists, taking guests dolphin-watching at sunset, snorkelling coral reefs and island-hopping through the archipelago - creating a truly idyllic and unhurried close to a journey that has showcased Panama at its best at every turn.

Love to explore Panama for your clients?

There’s no shortcut to an itinerary of this depth and variety - they’re built on relationships, local knowledge and the kind of on-the-ground expertise that Viaventure have spent over two decades developing across Central America.

So if you’re looking to offer your guests something genuinely exceptional that delivers the complete country, from canal to Caribbean, get in touch today and we’ll introduce you to the team.

The Complete Panama: From Canal to Caribbean with Viaventure