It’s the capital of Republic of Panama and also the largest city of the country. It is commonly known as the Dubai of the Americas. It is located between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic, and it borders with Costa Rica in the North and Colombia in the South.
Casco Viejo
There is a strong contrast between some of the skyscrapers in the center and San Felipe, the historic district of Panama City, also known as the Casco Viejo (Old Quarter). Most of the institutions are found in this part of the city.
The main attractions of this deteriorated district are its smells and sounds, which mainly come from typical homemade food street markets and especially the views from there to the other part of the city – and the abysmal change it represents.
The center was built walled after the destruction of the city in 1671, in order to protect its inhabitants against future attacks. As the expansion of Panama City was taking place, the old quarter started to deteriorate, although it’s still one of the main tourist attractions of Panama.
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean, crossing the American continent with a length of 77km. The first time the canal opened it was crossed by 1,000 ships, compared to the traffic of 4,702 vessels that was registered in 2008. Some people even consider the canal the eighth wonder of the world.
The Canal works 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, which explains why nowadays it counts on 10,000 employees. The total cost of the Panama Canal was around USD 375 million, while some experts state that a construction of the same dimensions today would cost USD 8 million.
It was constructed during a period of 10 years with the efforts of around 250,000 workers from all around the world. It was started in 1881 by France and the construction was not finished until 1914, under the control of the United States. The Canal wasn’t owned by Panama until the 31st of December, 1999.
A boat would need between 8 and 10 hours to cross the canal, while an alternative route to go from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, or vice versa, would take 10 more days and would be even more expensive. The average price for crossing the Canal is around 100.000€, but it’s still much cheaper than sailing around South America. Since 1914, over 1 million boats have crossed the canal and nowadays the annual traffic is over 14.000 vessels. There are 144 routes going through the canal, which ship stock to 161 different countries and reach more than 1700 ports.
Harbors
The country of Panama has more than 30 ports, although its most well-known harbors are located in Panama City and its surroundings: the Port of Cristobal (in Colón) and Port of Balboa, both part of the Canal Zone. The fact that Panama has so many maritime ports proves that is an important hub for trade, and also for immigration, which shapes the Panamanian mannerisms.
National Parks
Panama has 17 nature reserve or national parks which take as much as 1.440.823 hectares of its territory. Nearly half of the territory of the country is covered by jungles where some rare animals can be found, so Panama City is the perfect spot to visit natural places, such as Coiba National Marine Park, Metropolitan Nature Park or La Amistad.
Miraflores Visitors Center
Located in the Panama Canal, the Miraflores Visitors Center has 4 exhibition halls which offer excellent exhibits on the famous waterway: Canal History, Water the Source of Life, The Canal in Action and the Canal of the World. The exhibitions include historical objects of Canal operations, interactive modules, video presentations and models of the Panama Canal. Furthermore, there is also a top roof restaurant with stunning views of both the Canal-side and the city.
