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Day 1 : Arrival in Panama
Meet and greet at the Tocumen International Airport by
a representative. Transfer to your hotel.
Overnight at the Hotel Caesar Park Panama
Day 2 Panama City
Passing through Altos Del Golf, an up market
residential neighborhood, we continue on to visit Casco Antiguo,
the colonial city of Panama visiting The Golden Altar.We’ll walk
around the French Plaza visit the Independence Plaza and the
Inter-Oceanic Canal Museum.After lunch at either Mi Pueblito, or
at Flamenco Island in Amador. After lunch you will have time to
explore the artisan stores and other sights on the Amador Causeway
that unites 3 islands to the mainland and protects the Pacific
entrance to the Panama Canal. At end we will be at the Miraflores
Locks where you will experience the operation of the Panama Canal
first hand and enjoy an audiovisual presentation that describes
how ships pass through this engineering wonder. We arrive back at
the hotel after a full day, with time to relax before
dinner.Overnight at the Hotel Caesar Park Panamá
Day 3 Panama City / Full Canal Transit /
Gatun Lake
A fascinating and unique tour that shows you first hand
the operation of this vital marine link. Early in the morning you
will be picked up from your hotel and transferred to Pier 18 in
the Port of Balboa. The boat leaves at 7:30 am and heads out
towards the Pacific entrance of the Canal, adjacent to Flamenco
Island.
Once the Panama Canal Authority Pilot, who will guide us through
our transit, has boarded the boat we will follow our companion
vessel for the transit of the Miraflores Locks (by Canal
standards, we are a small vessel, and for reasons of economy,
rarely transit the locks alone). These locks raise the boat to the
level of the Miraflores Lake that we will cross until we reach the
Pedro Miguel Locks here our boat will be raised to approximately
85 feet above sea level so that we can cross through the center of
Panama.After exiting Pedro Miguel we enter the narrowest section
of the Canal known as Gailard (or Culebra) Cut. This was the most
difficult part of the excavation during the construction of the
Panama Canal as it cuts through the continental divide, we will
arrive at Gamboa where the Panama Canal Dredging Division has its
headquarters and where you will be able to observe the impressive
machinery used here to keep the canal in navigable condition.We
will then make our way across Gatun Lake, at one time the largest
artificial lake in the world, toward Gatun Locks, the final set of
locks at the Atlantic end of the canal, to be lowered back to sea
level. At the port of Cristobal we will board the bus for our ride
back to the starting point in Panama City. Your day will be filled
with incredible views, watching the huge freighters passing, the
incredible wildlife that flourishes in the Canal watershed and the
appreciation of just what it took to build this waterway 100 years
ago. An unforgettable journey through the 8th wonder of the
world.Overnight in the Hotel Caesar Park Panamá
Day 4 – El Valle de Anton
In the morning we leave the hotel for El Valle de
Anton, a luxurious valley located in the center of an extinct
volcano crater. This valley is at 600 meters above sea level and
offers magnificent views and a very agreeable climate. Here we
will visit the quaint Sunday market, where local artisans offer
their work for sale. We will also visit a waterfall that cascades
over 25m, see some mysterious petroglyphs, stroll through the El
Nispero Botanical Gardens and Zoo and you can even take a dip in
the river below the waterfall if you want.Lunch will be taken in
one of the typical local restaurants.For those looking for a bit
of adrenaline adventure, you can go on the Canopy Adventure.
Travel through the treetops on a system of cables, passing over
the waterfall and river as you glide from platform to platform.
The price of the Canopy Adventure is not included, there will be
an additional charge per person.Return to Panama in the late
afternoon.
Overnight in the Hotel Caesar Park
Day 5 – Gatun Lake / Portobello / Colon /
Panama City
An early start after breakfast in your hotel, takes you
the Panama Canal Railway Train Station at Corozal, the starting
point of our “trans-continental” rail journey in newly restored,
air-conditioned passenger cars along the historic route that was
the first rail link from the Atlantic to the Pacific anywhere in
the Americas.
The railroad follows the east bank of the canal and affords an
intimate view of the waterway and the rainforests that blanket its
shores. You will be picked up at the Atlantic side for a tour of
the Caribbean coast and the historic site of Portobello.
Portobelo was the name given to perhaps one of the most ideal and
well-protected inlets along the Caribbean coast of Panama. A haven
for the Spanish conquistadors and a juicy target for pirates
trying to get their hands on the treasures of the New World. Sir
Francis Drake died off the coast of this area in 1596 and was
supposedly buried in a lead coffin close to what is now known as
Drakes Island.Portobelo was the final Caribbean terminus of two
trails that crossed the jungles of the isthmus, Camino Real and
Camino de Cruces. Here, once enough merchandise had been
accumulated, caravans of sailing ships would begin the trip back
to Spain, escorted by enough firepower to repel most, but not all,
pirate attacks as they attempted to sail on past the West Indies.
In its heyday, Portobelo was a complex of batteries and forts that
guarded the entrance to this beautiful inlet, perhaps the most
heavily fortified of the Spanish control points along the coasts
of the Americas. Nevertheless, this strategic and heavily
fortified harbor was not enough to keep out the fleet of ships
commandeered by Englishman Edward Vernon, who captured and
destroyed the forts in 1739.Joined by one of our guides we’ll take
an intimate look at the outstanding features of this important
historical site as well as the Church of the Black Christ and
learn its interesting legend.Overnight in the Hotel Melia Panama
Canal
Day 6 – The Route of the Conquistadors
After breakfast we leave to follow the Route of the
Conquistadors. We start with a visit to the Gatun Locks on the
Caribbean side of the canal, passing underneath the huge lock
gates. We then embark in small boats onto the lower Chagres River
until we reach the historic Fort San Lorenzo, built by the Spanish
in the 16th Century to protect their settlements on the coast.
From this advantageous position one can almost visualize the
Spanish galleons and the boats of Sir Francis Drake who fought and
anchored off this coast hundreds of years ago.Enjoy the exotic
vegetation and the abundance of wildlife and butterflies that you
will see en route, one of Panama’s remaining primary tropical
rainforests where you can see various species of monkey, sloths
and birds of every description. This is an exciting and unique
tour. During the day we will offer a light lunch and we return to
the hotel in the late afternoon.Overnight in the Hotel Melia
Panama Canal
Day 7 – Melia Panama Canal / Gamboa
Rainforest Resort
After breakfast we will depart for the Gamboa
Rainforest Resort. Here you will enjoy all the facilities of this
luxury resort. In addition you will take in their Exhibition
Center with the Orchid Farm, Reptile Display, Butterfly House,
Aquarium and perhaps the most exciting, a ride on the Aerial Tram
through the jungle canopy to the viewpoint that overlooks the
canal.
You will have plenty of time to relax and enjoy the resort’s
facilities.
Overnight in the Gamboa Rainforest Resort
Day 8 Embera Drua Indigenous Community
This captivating, authentic cultural excursion leaves
from your hotel at 8:00 a.m. A short bus ride takes us to our
starting point of our trip by motorized dugout canoes up the
Chagres River where we will meet the passionate and friendly
people of the Embera-Drua community and learn about their
indigenous culture and traditions. We will lunch in their typical
thatched huts; definitely an unforgettable experience. You will
also have the chance to take a tour with the “Medicine Man” who
will explain the use of plants as natural medicines. The village
lies above a beautiful tranquil natural pool and waterfall in the
river, perfect for a refreshing swim before we return to the city.
You will also be able to purchase some of their incredible
handicrafts.
Overnight in the Gamboa Rainforest Resort
Day 9 – Barro Colorado Nature Reserve
Early in the morning we head to the dock at Gamboa for
our trip across Gatun Lake. For nature lovers this is considered
one of the best tours in Panama offering a view into the richness
of the areas ecology and being so close to the city as well. The
island of Barro Colorado is located in the center of Gatun Lake
and was once the top of a hill before the construction of the
canal. Since 1923, the island has been a nature reserve and in
1943 the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute established
research laboratories for the investigation of neo-tropical plants
and wildlife. Accompanied by a specialist guide you will be able
to explore the trails and search for monkeys, sloths and other
mammals. Innumerable species of tropical birds enjoy this natural
habitat as well. A light lunch will be served on the island.
Overnight in the Hotel Caesar Park Panamá
Day 10 –Departure Day
After breakfast at the hotel you will be transferred to
the airport for your flight hom
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