Intrepid Nomads Logo
Intrepid Nomads™

You could be fooled into overlooking Panama when travelling through Central America but to do so would be a great shame. The costs in the country are comparatively high for the region but it does have some unique sites which can’t be missed.


Average Cost per Day for a Couple – US$100


Our average cost includes

  • Transport 
  • Hotels/Hostels
  • Daily spends 
  • Treks/excursions


In total we spent 7 days in Panama. As the country is more expensive than others in Central America so we had to be selective when choosing what we wanted to do, selecting only to visit Boca de Toro and Panama City.


Typical Costs


Hotels/Hostels: Private double rooms were the most expensive we have seen in Central America. We stayed in two excellent hostels, Hostel Heike in Boca cost $28 per night and Panama Central, in Panama City, cost $42. Dorm rooms can be found for $15-$20.


Food: We didn’t eat out a lot in Panama and saved a lot of money by cooking for ourselves There are supermarkets everywhere where you can pick up meat and veg fairly cheaply. A typical meal in a restaurant with drinks will cost $35-$45. There are numerous fast food restaurants in Panama City.


Beer: A bottle of beer can found for between $2-4 in restaurants. Rum can be bought cheaply in shops.


Entrance Fees and Activities


With our limited time in Panama we could only squeeze in the following activities.

  • Boat/Snorkelling Tour Boca del Toro - $25pp
  • Panama Canal - $15pp
  • Metropolitan National Park - $4pp

Transport


Busses are a safe and easy way to get around. We didn’t travel much so we can’t give too many examples of costs.

  • Sixoala boarder (Cost Rica) to Boca del Toro Boat – Shuttle - $10pp
  • Boat to Boca del Toro - $7pp
  • Boca del Toro to Panama City – Boat and Bus - $40pp
  • Bus to Airport from Panama City – 25 cents (Taxis costs $25)


Highlights


We only visited two places in Panama and enjoyed them both very much. Boca del Toro is a beautiful Island for relaxing and a visit to Panama Canal is a must do when in the city. We also heard excellent reports from people who had visited the San Blas but we decided to miss this out as it didn’t fit with our travel plans.

✖