Panama City
As an international crossroads for more than a century, Panama City has an easy cosmopolitan feel complete with skyscrapers and a thriving business district. The town also has a vibrant nightlife, with options ranging from the charming to the sophisticated.
| Readers’ Choice Panama Marriott. Rising up from the financial district like a modern castle, this reliable business hotel has all the amenities. Ask for the higher floors if you’re staying over a weekend to avoid party noise from below. Rooms start at $170. http://www.marriott.com/ |
Sleeping
The Bristol. This elegant small hotel is a fine place to sip an evening cocktail and sample the relaxed side of Panama, and its bar is a favorite watering hole for the city’s “in” crowd. Rooms start at $210.
www.thebristol.com
InterContinental Miramar Panama. This twin-tower high-rise offers striking views of Panama Bay. Rooms start at $160.
www.ichotelsgroup.com
Radisson Decápolis. With a footbridge connecting it to the Majestic Casino and Multicentro shopping mall – two of Panama City’s top tourist draws – this hotel offers visitors quick access to the pulse of the city. Rooms start at $150.
www.radisson.com
Relaxing
Punta Caracol Acqua Lodge. Puddle jump from Panama City to this jewel just off Isla Colón, where you can gaze through crystalline waters at the reef-life below five thatched roof cabanas on stilts. Enjoy the sound of lapping water from the king-sized canopy bed, or jump off the private deck for a swim. Get some scuba time in with the angelfish, and then scarf down seafood delivered daily by local fishermen and served up by candlelight. Cabanas start at $240.
www.puntacaracol.com
Eating
Manolo Caracol. One of the new restaurants that have reinvigorated the city’s Casco Viejo colonial section, this imaginative place offers an ever-changing tapas menu with a heavy emphasis on seafood (Avenida Central and Calle Tercera, Casco Viejo, Tel: 507 228 4640).
La Posta. A long mahogany bar and ceiling fans add a touch of 1950s Havana to this stylish restaurant, which debuted last year in a restored turn-of-the-century house. The seafood is as fresh as it gets, and reservations are essential (Calle 49 and Calle Uruguay, Bella Vista,
Tel: 507 269 1076).
Limoncillo. Critically acclaimed chef Clara Icaza crafts eclectic “new-American” dishes for the stylish crowd that continues to flock to this urban eatery (Calle 47 and Calle Uruguay, Marbella, Tel: 507 263 5350).
Drinking
Start the evening off with the young professional set at the upscale Wine Bar, in the Hotel Las Vegas (Calle 55 and Avenida Eusebio A. Morales, El Cangrejo) before meandering over to
Oz Bar & Lounge (Calle 53, Marbella). Take Five Wine Bar (Calle 1), in the bohemian Casco Viejo neighborhood, sometimes features live jazz, and the nearby Blu Room martini bar (Calle 1) draws the city’s young glitterati.
The Canal
If you miss the canal, you haven’t really seen Panama. The Miraflores Visitor’s Center – with its ample terraces, museum, renowned restaurant and gift shop – is a choice place to take in one of the greatest engineering feats of all time. It’s also an easy 20-minute taxi ride from Panama City (Tel: 507 276 8325). For the full experience, a coast-to-coast crossing only takes nine hours. Tour operators like Panama Marine Adventures (Tel: 507 226 8917,
www.ptymarineadventures.com) offer excursions starting at $99.
| Downtime Rainforest Canopy Tour. Strap on a harness and get ready for a heart-thumping ride through the jungle as you glide along cables strung between the treetops. Tours cost about $95 a person. www.adventuresinpanama.com |