Undiscovered Panama

Undiscovered Panama Itinerary:

• Day 1

  Your trip begins today in Panama City, Panama. We meet at Tocumen Airport and transfer to the town of Gamboa by the Panama Canal (45 minutes) where we spend the next two nights.  Gamboa was built in the early 1930s to house workers brought in to maintain the canal, which was completed in 1914. Depending on our arrival time, we can opt to stroll along the nearby nature trails or grab our binoculars and head to the canopy tower in hopes of catching our first glimpse of the colorful local birdlife.  Meals are on our own today.

• Day 2

  After breakfast and a briefing with our guide, we board an expedition boat and depart on a wildlife-viewing adventure that includes a voyage across Gatun Lake, the largest man-made lake in the world when it was created in 1914 by damming the Chagres River.  The Canal chambers that lift ships 85 feet in three stages each use about 56 million gallons of water, which rushes in from Gatun Lake by force of gravity alone.  We’ll pass gigantic cargo ships transiting the waterway – a sharp contrast to the lush, natural surroundings – and observe forest-covered islands that were once hilltops.  Our boat gets near enough to shore to search for crocodile, osprey hunting for peacock bass, three-toed sloth, mantled howler monkeys and keel-billed toucans among other wildlife.  We’ll enjoy a picnic lunch on a small island with extraordinary views of the Panama Canal before our visit to the Embera Indian village of Ella Puru.  The Embera, a people of the rain forest, were formerly nomadic but now rely on ecotourism to maintain their culture and traditions which might otherwise be lost.  We’ll learn about their way of life and have an opportunity to purchase their spectacular handicrafts.  Our last stop this afternoon is the Miraflores Locks Visitors Center to view the canal in operation.  After France lost as many as 20,000 workers attempting to build the canal in the 1880s, the U.S. government began committing vast resources to the project in 1904 and completed it a decade later.  Now, ships sailing from New York to San Francisco can cut almost 8,000 miles from the voyage by transiting the canal instead of sailing around South America’s Cape Horn.  We’ll have time to tour the interactive exhibits at the visitor’s center before returning to Gamboa for dinner.  All meals included.

• Day 3

  Early this morning we take a 15-minute drive to the Camino de Cruces (Las Cruces Trail), built by the Spanish in the early years of the colony to connect Panama City on the shores of the Pacific Ocean with Fort San Lorenzo by the mouth of the mighty Chagres River on the Caribbean Sea.  Fortunately a stretch of this trail has been protected within the 55,000-acre Soberania National Park.  Over the course of four to five hours, we’ll hike the mostly flat trail through magnificent rain forests teeming with exotic wildlife and historic landmarks.  Once we reach the ruins of the town of Venta de Cruces by the Chagres River, we’ll board our waiting support boat and cross back to Gamboa before continuing on to the Panama City airport and taking off on a one-hour flight to David in western Panama’s beautiful Chiriqui highlands.  From David, we’ll begin our short drive into the mountains to the small, serene garden city of Boquete.  Hiking distance: 6 miles.All meals included.

• Day 4

  Wake with the singing birds for our 1.5-hour drive to the put-in for Class III-IV whitewater rafting on the remote Chiriqui River, considered to be one of the top rafting rivers in all of Panama. After spending the morning and part of the afternoon on the water, we travel back to charming Boquete, known as the “Valley of the Flowers and the Eternal Spring” and famous for its flowers, citrus fruit and some of the best coffee in the world. We have an opportunity to dine on our own this evening or share a meal with our traveling companions and newfound friends.  Rafting 4-6 hours (actual rafting time and difficulty varies by season and river conditions). Breakfast and lunch included. 

• Day 5

  We’ll drive 2 1/2 hours to Cerro Punta to start our 5-hour-long hike along the Los Quetzales Trail through enchanting cloud forest of draped moss and some of the tallest trees in the hemisphere.  We are hiking in Baru Volcano National Park, home to Panama’s tallest peak (11,400’) and one of the protected areas found within La Amistad World Biosphere Reserve stretching from northwest Panama to southeast Costa Rica and containing 5,000 species of plants found nowhere else on earth. We’ll make several stops throughout the day to enjoy great views and look for the elusive Resplendent Quetzal, thought by many to be the most beautiful bird in the Western Hemisphere and considered sacred by the Mayas. After our hike, we return to Boquete for our final night in the highlands.  Hiking distance: 6 miles. Breakfast and lunch included.

• Day 6

  We’ll begin the day with an exciting zip line canopy tour near Boquete that provides a treetop perspective of the surrounding jungle as we soar from platform to platform.  In mid-morning, we begin our descent from the cloud forests of Chiriqui to the coral reefs of Bocas del Toro, a spectacular archipelago of islands on the Caribbean Sea and a certain highlight of our adventure.  Driving over the Continental Divide through Fortuna Nature Reserve, we make several stops along this beautiful road before reaching Almirante for a short boat ride to Colon Island. Then it’s time to enjoy this pristine paradise of long, sandy beaches.  After arriving in ‘Bocas’ in mid-afternoon, we can relax, go for a swim or get better acquainted with the small town where we stay for the next two nights.  Driving time: 4 hours including stops.  All meals included.

• Day 7

  We depart from our inn by boat early this morning and traverse the expanse of Bastimentos National Park, Panama’s first marine national park, navigating through clusters of Red Mangroves.  We’ll take a short hike through lowland forest along the Caiman Trail looking for such birds as the red-throated ant tanager and golden-collared manakin.  The trail also provides another opportunity to see white-faced capuchins and three-toed sloth.  A nearby lagoon is home to spectacled caiman, slider turtles and the tiny “Blue Jeans” poison dart frog.  After our walk, we’ll visit the Ngobe Bugle indigenous community, many of whose residents still fish by canoe and live without electricity.  In the afternoon, we’ll don our masks and fins and enjoy the cool clear water as we snorkel among mangroves and coral reefs, searching for fish, brightly colored sea fans, sponges and brittle starfish.  Hiking distance: 2 miles.  Opportunities for snorkeling/swimming this afternoon.  Breakfast and lunch included.

• Day 8

  Today we venture into the sea with kayaks.  We drive to Boca del Drago on the opposite side of the island, where we take a quick boat ride before slipping our kayaks into the man-made Changuinola Channel, a canal built to transport bananas over 100 years ago.  Abandoned for its original purpose, the channel is now a perfect spot for paddling and wildlife viewing.  We return to Boca del Drago for lunch and have some final free time to relax and soak up the Caribbean sunshine before catching our short flight back to Panama City.  Tonight, we’ll celebrate the week’s adventure during a farewell dinner at a restaurant in the colonial section of town.  Kayaking: approx. 4 hours.  All meals included.

• Day 9

  After breakfast, catch the group transfer back to the airport for homeward-bound flights or spend additional time in Panama exploring this incredible country on your own.  Breakfast included.

Although we will do our very best to adhere to the schedule listed above, this itinerary is subject to change for numerous reasons beyond our control including weather and terrain conditions.

If you are traveling alone and specifically request single accommodations, you will be asked to pay the full single supplement noted on the trip itinerary.  If you wish to share accommodations, we will assign you a roommate if one is available. If a roommate cannot be found, you will be asked to pay a reduced single fee which is half of the full single supplement. Please be advised that there are a limited number of single rooms available on most departures.

All accommodations; meals as noted in the daily itinerary; local English-speaking guide; all land and water transportation within Panama; rafting and kayaking gear; zip line canopy tour; arrival and departure transfers as noted above; entrance fees to national parks, reserves and Miraflores Locks visitor’s center.

Airfare to/from Panama; airfare from Panama City to Boquete and Bocas del Toro back to Panama City ($150); 4 dinners; snorkeling gear (we recommend bringing your own mask and snorkel for a comfortable fit and renting fins for a minimal fee); tourist card ($5); alcoholic beverages or soft drinks; guide gratuities; laundry fees; excess baggage charges or insurance of any kind.

This trip is rated as Moderate [3].  Participants should arrive in good physical condition and plan on 4-6 hours of activity on most days including: 2-6 mile hikes over some potentially muddy terrain in a warm/humid climate; whitewater rafting on fast-moving water (class II-IV); sea kayaking and snorkeling/swimming.  Novice rafters and kayakers are welcome.  A regular exercise regimen consisting of walking/hiking and paddling/swimming (if possible) is highly recommended beginning at least 2-3 months prior to departure.  The better shape you are in, the more you’ll be able to enjoy all that this adventure has to offer.

As it is situated just above the equator, Panama has a tropical climate with warm to hot days and slightly cooler evenings. Year-round temperatures vary little from month to month with daytime averages in the 80s-90s and nighttime averages in the 70s. We can also expect slightly cooler temperatures during our time in the highlands. Humidity is often above 70%. In the tropics, rainfall is a possibility at any time making adequate raingear a necessity.

This trip is subject to the booking information set forth in the current REI Adventures Reservation Information. Please read this information carefully and call us if you have any questions. A full gear list and pre-departure information is sent upon sign-up. We highly recommend the purchase of travel insurance through REI Adventures. If coverage is purchased within 21 days of your initial trip deposit, the 'Pre-existing Conditions Exclusion' is waived (certain exclusions apply).

We look forward to having you join us for the trip of a lifetime! Why wait? Space is limited, reserve your adventure today.

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