ENES

Start planning
A cargo ship inside the Miraflores Locks of the Panama Canal

Panama City & Canal Experience

The Canal at Miraflores, then the city your way.

Plan this experience

Start where Panama’s story turns global: the Miraflores Locks, where ships are raised and lowered between the Pacific and the interior of the Canal.

Then choose how to see the city: the colonial streets of Casco Antiguo, the ruins of Panamá Viejo, or both in one day. Private transportation connects every stop.

Casco Antiguo from the bay: colonial buildings and the bell tower of the San Francisco church

Choose your city

Every option starts at the Miraflores Locks. Then the day continues to the part of the city you choose.

  1. Casco Antiguo

    1. Miraflores Locks
    2. Casco Antiguo

    The colonial quarter: plazas, churches, restaurants and rooftops.

  2. Panamá Viejo

    1. Miraflores Locks
    2. Panamá Viejo

    The archaeological ruins of the first Panama City, founded in 1519.

  3. Casco Antiguo + Panamá Viejo

    1. Miraflores Locks
    2. Panamá Viejo
    3. Casco Antiguo

    From the ruins where the city began to the district that replaced it.

Know before you go

  • What is Miraflores?

    • The Miraflores Locks are on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal, close to Panama City.
    • Ships are raised or lowered in two steps between the Pacific and Miraflores Lake.
    • The visitor center has observation terraces right beside the lock chambers.

    It is the easiest way to watch the Canal at work, a short drive from the city.

  • What is Casco Antiguo?

    • Casco Antiguo, also called Casco Viejo, is the historic district of Panama City, founded in 1673.
    • Its streets hold colonial architecture, plazas, churches, restaurants and rooftops.
    • It is a UNESCO World Heritage site together with Panamá Viejo.

    It is the living historic heart of the city, best explored on foot.

    1. 1519 Panama City founded here
    2. 1671 The city is destroyed
    3. 1673 Rebuilt at Casco Antiguo

    What is Panamá Viejo?

    • Panamá Viejo holds the archaeological remains of the original Panama City, founded in 1519 on the Pacific coast.
    • The city was destroyed in 1671 and rebuilt a few kilometers away, where Casco Antiguo stands today.
    • Its ruins include the tower of the old cathedral.

    It is not the same place as Casco Antiguo: it is where the city began.

More experiences

Tell us what you’re planning.

Share what you know so far. A local coordinator will come back with questions, options and a proposal.

Prefer to write directly?

The Going To Panama team, here in Panama

What are you planning?

Choose one or more. We only ask what we need to get started.

Email or WhatsApp, whichever you prefer.

Hotels, flights, the kind of trip or event. Whatever you already know.

We only use your details to answer this request.