Casco Antiguo & Panama Viejo World Heritage eXpedition

Overview

Available languages

English

Spanish

Mobile ticket

Do one or both sites, for the walking tour we can meet in the colonial city or arrange pick up by writting us a message.

Casco Antiguo de San Felipe is where the new City of Panama was founded in 1673 (the 350 year anniversary was in 2023), built only 5 miles Southwest from where the first city (Panama Viejo archeological site) was left in ruins after the fires started by the Spanish colonials themselves, in an effort to save the strategic position crucial for World Trade since the Pacific Ocean was discovered in 1513, and to avoid the collapse of the Spanish Empire right there and then, to the most famous pirate of the second half of the Spanish Colony, their nemesis who commanded the "Rogue" attack in 1671: Captain Henry Morgan.

Both are World Heritage Sites as per UNESCO.

Additional Info

Wheelchair accessible

Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller

Service animals allowed

Public transportation options are available nearby

Transportation options are wheelchair accessible

All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible

Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

What‘s Included

Free museums in Casco Antiguo de San Felipe

Guided tour and transport when visiting both sites

Foreign Univ. Students w/ school i.d.

Children (6-17)

Panama Viejo archeological Park

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

What To Expect

Plaza Tomas Herrera

We will start walking to the main squares and town center of the San Felipe area, if we have both sites in your tour we will cover the highlights of San Felipe for about 1 hour before going to Panama Viejo archeological site.

10 minutes • Admission Not Applicable

Plaza de Francia

As we walk down Avenida "A" (Ave.) we will stop by St. Joseph's Church, where we can get a glimpse of the Gold Altar and a Nativity Scene that is inside the Spanish Colonial Church founded in 1675. We will also stop by the Society of Jesus Ruins (Jesuit monks) and the flat arch ruins (used by the french as evidence that Panama was suitable for the waterway they wanted to build).

22 minutes • Admission Not Applicable

Options

Casco Walking tour+Ruined city

Museum, Ruins, Visitors Center: The Nat'l Park is a World Heritage Site, it has a permanent and a temporary museum exhibit that adds value to this tour.
Panamá Viejo, +500 y/o City: The 1st City settled on the Pacific side of the America's was dubbed after the birthplace of the Queen: "Castilla de Oro".
Historic and Cultural: The anniversary of the foundation of this City was in 2019, that celebrated 500 years in 2019.
Duration: 3 hours: The walking tour of the Casco Antiguo lasts about 1 hour and 15 minutes, and this is a great complement to that experience.
Driving 8 Kms East, "Uptown": After the walking Tour of San Felipe, we go uptown beyond Panama City, towards the historic ruins of Panama Viejo.
Sedan, SUV or Van: We adjust for the comfort of our travelers to their group size.
Visitors Center: The library, visitors center and crafts store will offer you the opportunity to find souvenirs for those that await for you.
Pickup included

Casco Antiguo Walking Tour

Duration: 2 hours: On average

Reviews

5.00

8 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

Alex was a spectacular guide and terrific story-teller! Exploring Casco Antiguo with him is a must!
A6699DEmarthaj,
Apr 16, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Alex was an absolutely fabulous guide! He has a vast amount of knowledge about the history of Casco Antiquo and was very generous in sharing lots of interesting stories about the buildings he was showing us! We covered a temendoud amount of ground in 3 hours - but he really paced us well and welcomed all our questions! We learned so much from him! And we had a renewed appreciation for both the ruins and all the restored buildings!
Highly recommended
Orville R,
Jan 7, 2024
- Review from Viator
5.00
Richard was an excellent knowledgable guide. Would definitely recommend him. He was patient and kind and took some excellent photos of us
Highly knowledgeable guide
Ashley F,
May 12, 2023
- Review from Viator
5.00
The Richard was extremely informative and I learned so much about Panamá. I was solo on trip and felt safe. I would have liked to see more places, but the weather made it more difficult because I don’t really want to be outside in the rain. He did a good job of finding indoor locations and helped me take lots of pictures. We did see many historical sites.
A History Buff's Dream Tour
Nathalie,
Jul 27, 2022
- Review from Viator
5.00
Richard is a knowledge and intelligent guide. He knows the history of the Panama Canal and the roles played by France, Spain, and the United States. I would recommend this tour to anyone who has a penchant for historial events. Any history educator or history buff will be enthralled with Richard's level of knowledge of the Panama Canal, while moving through the historical event sites.
Awesome Time in Panama!
ruthlS9646AW,
Jun 27, 2022
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
My wife and I had a great time touring with Richard at the Casco walking tour, Gamboa Rain Forest and Ancon Hill in Panama. Richard was very friendly, punctual and knowledgeable. The goal was to see a sloth at the rain forest and Richard came through! We highly recommend him!
A beautiful and educational peak at the Magic of Panama
bryansV4589DH,
May 31, 2022
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Richard was a very knowledgeable guide and did a fantastic job at giving us a an experience of the rich history of this amazing city. There was a fair amount of walking at a comfortable pace, but no one even seemed to notice because there was so much to see and hear about. When we finished, Richard recommended a restaurant for us to have lunch. It was the best meal we had the entire month we were in Panama. I can highly recommend hiring Richard to enhance your experience as you visit Panama.
Amazing time in Casco Viejo (and much more)!
Drewraffe K,
Jan 13, 2022
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
My husband and I had a wonderful experience with Alex as our tour guide! He is very friendly, knowledgeable, charismatic and engaging. He took us through some of the most interesting parts of Casco Viejo and at the end, we ended up booking yet another tour with him. The next day he took us to the canal, we stopped to check out a sloth, and then headed to see the monkeys at Monkey Islands. It was a wonderful day! I can’t recommend Alex enough! He went above and beyond to make our experience authentic all while catering to what we needed. Thank you Alex! We hope to see you again in the future!
Monkey Island, Panama Canal, and Casco walking tour
Ryan D,
Jan 9, 2022
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Alex was great, he picked me up at my hotel at 6:30am and took me to a local coffee shop. From there we drove an hour to catch a boat out to monkey island. It was just he and I on the boat which was awesome because all the other boats were packed. From there he offered to show me the Panama Canal but I didn’t have an interest so he drove me back to Casco and gave me a walking tour and showed me a great place to grab a bite to eat. Incredibly friendly and willing to go the extra miles. Literally!