Located on the isthmus connecting North and South America, Panama is a country in a transition zone and also controls the Panama Canal. While many simply pass through Panama or the Panama Canal, it is a country worth staying in for a while. The coast is marked by several natural harbors and while several of them are primarily working ports, especially Cristobal which is the main port on the Caribbean end of the Panama Canal, the port areas are still beautiful and the surrounding towns and cities are fun to explore.

Panama City is the heart of the country as approximately half of the population of Panama lives there. The city is ready to cater to the needs of tourists with plenty of hotels and good restaurants. Outside Panama City, much of the country is remote with fewer facilities for both tourists and locals. However, the natural beauty of Panama makes travel outside Panama City alluring to many.

The Cordillera Central, the mountain range that runs through Panama as part of the continental divide, includes four major volcanoes and several minor ones. You can hike in the mountains and the volcanoes. The Quetzal Trail is popular, but remains uncrowded most of the year. This day hike winds through tropical forest and tropical forest on and around Volcan Baru.

Over 900 bird species live within the skinny borders of Panama, some that you won’t find anywhere else. The Pipeline Road in Soberania National Park boasts the world record for number of birds counted in 24 hours and over 500 species of birds can be found here.

Because of its close proximity to the equator, Panama is warm year round with average daily temperatures in the 90s dipping into the 70s at night. It is a rainy country except from December to March, the dry season, when it hardly ever rains. These conditions mean that the other eight months of the year, you’ll want to pack rain gear and plenty of spare socks if you plan to enjoy the natural wonders Panama offers.

Panama City and its environs are home to some of the most interesting historic sites in Panama. Casco Viejo, the Old Quarter, is a walled and the second iteration of Panama City. When pirates destroyed the first Panama City (Panama Viejo), Panamanians formed Casco Viejo. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the buildings there are being restored to reflect the original Spanish Colonial style of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

For a look at modern history, check out the Panama Canal. This shipping route allows the long sought after passage of goods from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and was the final connection point for an easy trade route between the oceans. The earliest known attempts to build a shipping lane through Panama dates to the sixteenth century. The Panama Canal was not a reality until the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finished it in 1914. Tolls from the Panama Canal bring a significant amount of money to Panama and the ports that flank the canal see more action (in terms of containers handled) than any other Latin American ports.

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