Panama Wildlife & Cultural Tour

Panama Wildlife & Cultural Tour Overview

Panama, a Wildlife and Cultural Walking Tour, encompasses the World Heritage architecture and museums of Panama City and a thorough exploration of the country of Panama, from the famous canal to observing rainforest wildlife and snorkelling in the Bocas del Toro archipelago. Running 2 - 14 Feb 2025 (max 14 guests) the trip costs from £5,911 pp

Panama: the name is synonymous with the Canal, but there is far more to this Central American country than the century-old link between the Pacific and the Caribbean. A bridge between continents, the isthmus has an exceptionally rich ecological diversity with one third of its territory classified as protected areas of tropical rainforest, mountains, cloud forest, offshore islands and coral reefs. This itinerary is perfect for a gentle on foot exploration to observe monkeys, sloths, anteaters, parrots, toucans, hummingbirds, turtles and exuberant tropical flowers.

We begin our journey concentrating on the wildlife of the Soberania National Park, including a boat trip on the main canal lake, created to divert the brutal force of the Chagres River. We walk through tropical forests in El Valle and in the Boquete highlands; take tours of coffee and chocolate estates; fly to the Bocas del Toro archipelago for a dolphin-watching boat trip and swimming and, of course, discover the engineering wonder of the world that is the Panama Canal with its history of De Lesseps, Eiffel and Theodore Roosevelt.

A beautifully restored 5 star hotel, built over a hundred years ago in the heart of the UNESCO listed ‘Casco Viejo’ of Panama City, makes the ideal base for the conclusion of our visit and we investigate the city’s 17th century Spanish colonial heritage. This renovated maze of lanes, shady plazas, enticing restaurants, Baroque churches and grand mansions, on a headland above the Bay of Panama was built after the original Panama City was looted by Henry Morgan, pirate and later Governor of Jamaica.