Panama City, Panama Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cuidaddepanama1.jpg Author: Desi burgos
Panama City is the capital and biggest city in Panama. It covers 275 sq km (106.2 sq mi) and has a population of 881,000 people (2011 estimate), within a metropolitan area of 1.3 million people. Located on the southern entrance to the Panama Canal facing the Pacific Ocean, it is the political, administrative and transportation hub of the country.
Panama City was established in 1519 by Spanish conquistador Pedro Arias Dávila as the base for expeditions to conquer the Inca Empire. It grew as a crossroad for trade routes. It was through here that the gold and silver the Spanish took passed through.
The original city was ransacked by English pirate Henry Morgan in 1671, and a new city was built in its place in 1673. It is located 8 km from the original site, which became known as Panama Viejo.
Today Panama City has grown to become one of the most modern in Central America. Its skyline is a dense concentration of skyscrapers, many of which being condominiums owned by European and American retirees making the city their second home. The city is in the 39th position for total highrise buildings in the world.
The Panama City bus, often called Diablos Rojos, meaning Red Devils Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Buses_Diablos_Rojos.jpg Author: Rob Tiggelman
Golden altar of San José Church, Panama City Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Altar_de_oro_Panama.jpg Author: Editorpana
Visiting Panama City
The Tocumen International Airport (PTY) is the largest and busiest airport in Central America. There are flights from Amsterdam, Aruba, Atlanta, Barranquilla, Belo Horizonte, Bogotá, Brasilia, Buenos Aires, Cali, Cancún, Caracas, Cartagena, Chicago, Córdoba, Curaçao, Frankfurt, Guadalajara, Guatemala City, Guayaquil, Havana, Kingston, Lima, Los Angeles, Madrid, Managua, Manaus, Maracaibo, Medellín, Mexico City, Miami, Montego Bay, Monterrey, Montevideo, Nassau, New York-JFK, Newark, Orlando, Port-au-Prince, Port of Spain, Porto Alegre, Punca Cana, Quito, Rio de Janeiro, San José de Costa Rica, San Juan, San Pedro Sula, San Salvador, Santiago de Chile, Santiago de los Caballeros, Santo Domingo de Guzmán, São Paulo, St Marteen, Tegucigalpa, Toronto, Valencia and Washington DC, among others.
The most practical way to move about in Panama City is to take a taxi. Although the taxis do not carry a meter, the fares are strictly regulated. The driver should have a chart with map which shows how much the fare should be.
Aerial view of Panama City Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Panama_city_skyline.jpg Author: dsasso
Places of Interest in Panama City
Amador Causeway Causeway connecting three islands to the mainland. It provides a splendid view of the Panama City skyline.
Casco Viejo The historic neighborhood of Panama City, with colonial-style civic buildings, churches and museums.
Mi Pueblitos An ethnographic museum documenting the various ethnic groups in Panama.
Panama Canal The most important sight in the city. Most visitors go to Miraflores locks to watch the ocean liners entering the canal. It has a visitor center and museum, along with an upscale restaurant in case you wish to lunch there.
Panama Viejo Ruins of the original Panama city which was ransacked by pirate Henry Morgan in 1671.
Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.
While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.