Panama - Sea to Sky

Airport transfer with private vehicle, and English speaking professional driver.

Fly from Panama City to David.

Transfer to Cerro Punta by private vehicle and professional driver.

The International National Park La Amistad extends into Costa Rica. It covers approximately 2000 square kilometers of mountainous terrain in the Cordillera de Talamanca mountain range. The park is famous for its cloud forests, where the trees form a canopy that creates a cool, misty atmosphere on the forest floor. On your tour through this park you will enjoy more than 80 different bird species such as Reinita, the Zorzal, Ruiseñor, Jilguero, Tapaculo among others. Spend the whole day with an experienced guide from the area looking for the many species of birds and other animals.

Duration: 6 hours Includes: Transportation from Volcan or Cerro Punta, English speaking driver/guide, entrance fees, picnic lunch
Bring: Hiking shoes, long pants, rainjacket, sunscreen, sunglasses, binoculars, camera, water.

Your guide knows the very best spots in and around Volcan and Cerro Punta to see many different highland species of birds. Among them the Resplendent Quetzal, the Collared Trogon, Orange-bellied Trogon, Bellbirds, Dark Pewee, Silvery-throated Tanager, Sulphur-winged Parakeet, Black Guan, Violet Saberwing, Stripe-tailed Hummingbird, White-tailed Emerald and many more.

Duration: 6 hours Includes: Transportation from Volcan or Cerro Punta, English speaking driver/guide, entrance fees, lunch
Bring: Hiking shoes, long pants, rainjacket, sunscreen, sunglasses, binoculars, camera, water.

Travel by private vehicle and driver to Almirante.

Transfer by boat to Isla Colon in Bocas del Toro (this boat ride may be shared)

Today's adventure begins in Bocas del Toro center with a short boat ride to Dolphin Bay to observe dolphins playing in their natural habitat. The mainland coast and the mountain regions of Panama serve as an exquisite background for photo opportunities. Then you venture to Coral Key for snorkeling (2 locations) and time for lunch at an ""over-the-water"" restaurant providing beautiful views of the archipelago islands of Bocas del Toro (lunch not included). Early afternoon you will be taken on a jungle tour at Punta Solarte - an exclusive location. You will have the opportunity to visit a rain forest canopy and a chance to see parrots, orange frogs, armadillos, rare birds and other wild life. Punta Solarte provides a large dock for sunbathing and swimming. Try snorkeling the mangroves along the Bahia Honda waterway where Isla Solarte is the closest point to the Bastimentos National Marine Park. The afternoon will be spent at Red Frog Beach one of the premier beaches of the region. Spend a few hours at this oceanfront beach with waves, sand and sun. In the late afternoon your adventure returns to Bocas Town.

Airstrip transfer to/from hotel.

Fly from Bocas del Toro to Panama City

Airport transfer with private vehicle, and English speaking professional driver.

Your English speaking guide will pick you up at your hotel and take you on a private tour to Panama City and the Miraflores Locks. You will start the tour with a 30 minutes drive to Miraflores to see the huge vessels passing the Panama Canal. The busiest hours are from 9am to 10am and from 2pm to 5pm, so you will be able to see many ships getting lifted or lowered 16 meters in two distinct steps. You will enjoy the view on the Locks from a sheltered terrace and listen to the explanations of your guide. To complete the visit of the Canal you will visit the Museum and Visitor Center at Miraflores which gives you a good idea on the construction of the Canal – a masterpiece of engineering. You will also learn about the history of the canal and its significance for Panama and the entire world trade as well as on the current expansion project. After the visit to the Canal you continue with your guide to the Amador Causeway, a road that connects three Islands in the Pacific Ocean and offers magnificent views on the Canal on one side and on the skyline of Panama City on the other side. The tour continues to the Casco Viejo, Panama City’s colonial quarter. At the Casco Viejo you feel set back in time as you admire the lovely colonial houses, the narrow roads and the impressive churches. You will get a good idea about Panama’s history by driving or walking through the main attractions of this quarter.

Pick up at your hotel private transfer for 45 minute to the town of Gamboa where the Panama Canal Dredging Division is located. Once in Gamboa, you will aboard the cruise ship to start the water portion of the tour (shared boat). You will enter the canal at the north end of the Gaillard Cut, where the Chagres River flows into the canal. The Gaillard Cut (also known as Culebra Cut because its curves resemble a snake) is one of the main points of interest for visitors because it was carved through the Continental Divide and this section of the Canal is full of history and geological value. Your boat will travel the Cut's 13.7 kilometers on the way to Pedro Miguel Locks. As you transit the Cut you will be able to appreciate the continuous maintenance that this area requires, because it is very susceptible to landslides. In this area you will also be able to observe the work in process for the Panama Canal expansion project. Before reaching the Pedro Miguel Locks at the southern end of the Cut, you will be able to view the new Centennial Bridge which crosses over the Canal. Next, your ship will enter Pedro Miguel Locks, which is one of the two sets of locks on the Pacific side, and here the vessel is lowered 9 meters in one step. You will then enter Miraflores Lake, which is a small artificial body of fresh water that separates Pedro Miguel from Miraflores Locks, the latter being the final set of locks before reaching the Pacific Ocean. At Miraflores Locks the vessel is lowered 16 meters in two distinct steps. Once in the Pacific Ocean the vessel will sail to the beautiful Flamenco Marina where passengers disembark. On the way to Flamenco, you will pass under the Bridge of the Americas, and later, you will be able to admire the Bay of Panama and Panama City's splendorous skyline. Upon arrival at Flamenco you will be transferred back to your city hotel.

Duration: 6 hours Includes: Transportation from and to Panama City Hotel, English speaking guide, lunch, soft drinks and water
Bring: Comfortable clothes and shoes, camera, hat, sunscreen, sunglasses

NOTE: depending on dates transit could be northbound or southbound

Airport transfer with private vehicle, and English speaking professional driver.