What‘s Included

Reviews

• An Excellent Jungle & Canal Experience

  John M,

  Feb 7, 2025

  5.0

  This is a three-for-one booking: 1> Lake Gatun boat ride, excellent; 2> Panama Canal tour, excellent; 3> Ft. San Lorenzo visit, mediocre. We did this our first day in Panama, which helped to get us oriented. Pick-up was at 0630 at our downtown hotel. Communication in advance was excellent. The driver was fifteen minutes early, we were five minutes early. Be warned that there is no coffee or breakfast, so my advice is to get coffee in your hotel room and pack a pastry if you don't want to wait until lunch to eat. We did stop at a roadside bodega at 0900 for a bathroom break but the offered food was modest. Our tour started off on Lake Gatun with a boat tour that was awesome. We saw crocodiles, monkeys, toucons (small), and a rare spectacle owl. Our guide, Paola, was shockingly knowledgeable and affable. She could not be stumped and certainly deserved an A+. This part of the tour was great, and there is no need to do a separate boat tour. Next we took our van to the Panama Canal. On the lake we saw panamax and neopanamax vessels approaching the locks. One of these vessels then traversed the locks and we witnessed its passage. I read in another review that you really can't experience the passage without traversing the locks in person. I doubt it. We saw plenty, I was satisfied, and we got back to our hotel at 3:30 in the afternoon instead of midnight. Finally we visited Fort San Lorenzo. Here we were given an excellent lunch made by Paola's family restaurant, el Nacional. The food was good and the views were good. The fort was unexceptional and there was no tour, but a new Visitor's Center is under construction and looks close to ready. That will make this leg of the trip better. So I recommend this trip whole heartedly! Dress comfortably and don't worry about getting dirty or muddy. Drink coffee early. BRING BINOCULARS if you own a pair! Mine were sitting home and some of the jungle beasts would have been better viewed that way.

• Paola was a great guide

  dale o,

  Feb 5, 2025

  5.0

  Paola was amazing, we had a great experience and seen lots of animals, would highly recommend, it’s well worth the money

• 10/10 way to spend a day in Panama!

  Christine B,

  Feb 5, 2025

  5.0

  This tour was absolutely fantastic! Our tour guide, John, was well-spoken, knowledgeable, and very entertaining. He left no stone unturned and really made every second of this tour a day to remember. All the drivers were very professional and courteous. Lunch was excellent! I highly recommend this tour!

• MUST DO Tour in Panama

  Janet L,

  Jan 30, 2025

  5.0

  Awesome day and comprehensive tour. Our guide John was fun and very knowledgeable. Our driver Manuel was efficient and safe. Our cruise around Lake Gatun was relaxing and we were able to see several birds, mammals, iguanas and a crocodile. We saw the canal from the Atlantic to the Pacific and learned a lot about how it operates. It was interesting watching the locks operate as a large tanker was passing through. The homestyle picnic lunch at San Lorenzo was delicious and gave us an opportunity a chat with some of the other travelers in our interesting group. The fort is currently under repair in some areas but there was a lot to see and learn at this UNESCO Heritage site. What a great day - we highly recommend this tour!

• Comprehensive, well-paced tour from coast to coast

  agrajaskanda,

  Jan 26, 2025

  5.0

  This was a comprehensive, well-paced tour capably led by Alonso that takes in the Panamá canal from coast to coast. The cruise around Lake Gatún offers a different perspective of the islands and its wildlife. The Agua Clara Locks visitor centre was a very informative stop to learn about the history of the canal and watch the locks operate. Lunch is a homestyle picnic at San Lorenzo overlooking the mouth of Río Chagres, simple but tasty (although a knife would not go amiss). The fort itself has been beautifully restored and you can see why it belongs on the World Heritage list. Special shout-out to our driver Elia for expertly navigating (and avoiding) traffic during closure of the Panamá-Colón highway.