Port of Colon to Panama City Airport

I'm got a very intriguing sounding southern Caribbean cruise on hold right now, but before I put a deposit down I have a few questions. How far is Panama City from Colon, and will I be able to find reliable transportation from one place to the other? We'll be docking at Colon but flying out of Panama City. Is this doable without too much trouble? What's the earliest I should book a flight out (the ship docks at 6:00 a.m.).

Thanks for any advice from those who have been there! ;)

So no one's docked in Colon and flew home from Tocumen International?

Hhhhmmmm...

According to this website it is about 2 hrs from Panama City to Colon

http://www.panamainfo.com/en/destinations/colon

You might find more info on the site

Would the cruise line not have transfers to the airport?

Colon is a new homeport for RCI so there is probably not any dedicated transportation from Colon piers to Tocumen like you would find in ports that have a lot of cruise ships. Your best bet maybe to use what RCI is offering or perhaps contact one of the tour operators mentioned on this thread.

I, too, am looking for a means of transportation for a family of 12 round trip from Panama City airport to the port of Colon for a RCCL cruise. Any suggestions...cruise line transfers will be very costly I'm, afraid!

As of today - 3/4/08 - Royal Caribbean STILL cannot tell you (1) What airport to fly into (2) how long it will take to get back and forth (3) how much it costs or (4) how long after the ship gets in to book your return flight. And they are starting to sail out of there in November!!!

I booked the Enchantment of the Seas out of Panama for Feb 2009 - it gets in on Sunday morning at 6 am - the flights out of Panama City are at 11 am - it takes a good 90 min to get from the port to the Airport, according to what I have seen - getting to an 11 am flight will be cutting it awfully close - but I the other choice is a 3 pm flight that gets me back to NY at midnight!!!

On a good note - the official web site says it is about $50 US to go from Colon to Airport.

Lou

I am thinking of the Colon to FLL in April. I would like to book a hotel/resort and spend a full day to see the canal area before the cruise. Now I am concerned due to traffic issues and unrest. Not sure what to do.:confused:

I also have a cruise from Colon booked right now, but still cannot get info on transfers and from which airport we should fly into and out of. I hope they tell us soon.

I just met someone on our cruise who missed the ship in FLL and flew to Panama City to meet the ship at it's first port of call, which was Colon. They took a cab from the Marriott in Panama City to Colon. It took 2 hours and they paid $100. I don't know if this helps.

My wife * I have the Jan 11, 09 cruise booked and we are concerned about little to no information from RCI about this port and transportation. The cost of the air far exceeds the cruise fare, but we have been to all the other ports already and would love to try something new. We are going down 2 days early to make sure we don't miss the ship!

Does anyone have any more information about earliest flight out? Those of you flying in the day before, are you staying in Panama City? Any hotel recommendations?

I would bet most people stay in Panama City. There isn't much in Colon. If you want to be closer to Colon, check out the Gamboa Rainforest Resort

and some reviews below:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g298428-d305406-Reviews-Gamboa_Rainforest_Resort-Colon.html

We are actually considering arriving on Friday, two days early. Never done this area before and would love more time in case of problems. We also fly out of Boston in January, and you never know what's going to happen with storms.

We are actually considering arriving on Friday, two days early. Never done this area before and would love more time in case of problems. We also fly out of Boston in January, and you never know what's going to happen with storms.

We are also considering two days early. Have you thought about where you're going to stay yet?

We're flying from Dallas to Mexico City on Friday and then to Tocumen in Panama City on Saturday Morning, arriving about 11am. We've booked at the Country Inn and Suites Panama Canal....Didn't book canal view as we probably won't be in the room much ....we may change our mind and upgrade that.

Our RCCL Cruise leaves from Colon on Sunday so we're going to take Saturday to explore Panama City and then we'll probably just take a cab ourselves from there to Colon - arriving in time to board the ship early. I think $50/pp if it's truly 2 hours in transit sounds reasonable to me.

Let me know if anyone has any better ideas~!

I just spent 15 minutes writing a response . . . and lost it. When I cool down, maybe tonight, I will try again.

Bottom line suggestion is let the cruise line worry about it . . . tonight I'll try again to explain why.

Regards, Richard

Let me make a few observations that hopefully will be helpful to you, Jenbo57, and maybe to some others as well.

Colon is an old city, and is one of the poorest and most run-down cities in Panama, as well as being the second or third largest, depending on how you count. It's primary reason for being has been the Colon Free Zone, which is the second largest free port in the world, second only to Hong Kong. Don't read "Tourist or Duty Free" here, it's a different world for trading goods in huge quantities and acting as a world wide distribution hub, convenient to the Canal which has historically made Panama the "crossroads of the world."

Although ships call there, they always tell their passengers not to go off into Colon on their own. Most Panamanians don't. I wouldn't, even although I live in Panama and feel comfortable in most areas of Panama City.

There is one road between Colon and Panama City, currently under construction. It was due to be finished this fall, now they are saying late Spring of '09 - keep your fingers crossed, since it could be '10 this being Panama. For some reason a lot of people who work in Panama City live in Colon, and vice versa, so traffic is heavy and pouring cement or an accident make it, what one cruise tour passenger called "the road to hell." It can easily take 2 hours between Colon and Panama City.

Tocumen is Panama's only International airport and is about a 40 minute drive, depending on traffic, from downtown Panama City. So you are going to be around 3 hours from the airport assuming good conditions.

You can probably get a cab, but, since he's unlikely to have a fare coming back, and since diesel is now $4.25 a gallon, he'll probably want you to pay him for both ways. If you can get a van you may be OK, but most Panama cabs can only seat 2 people and few would have enough space with their trunk closed to carry two people's cruise luggage. And I wouldn't want to drive through Colon with the trunk open or the luggage held in by a rope.

So again, if you're just looking for a transfer to the airport, I'd book it through the ship.

Now, if you want to see some of Panama, and stay and see a little of Panama, that's a different story. You might consider going to see the authentic real Embera Indian village with Anne Gordon. She could pick you up in Colon and drop you off at a hotel in Panama City, even the one by the airport. See my www.richarddetrich.wordpress.com blog for info about the Embera, Embera tour, and Panama City hotels. Most of the US flights leave early in the morning (7AM-9AM) and in the afternoon (3 or 5PM), at least the ones I use.

Panama hotels have the second highest occupancy rate in the world, so book early.

"Unrest" was a temporary condition, and is not a real problem now. Like people everywhere we are upset with the cost of gas and the increase in food prices. We use the US dollar and a lot of what we buy is imported, so, just like in the US we've watched the dollar plummet over the last four years.

Hope that's helpful. Regards, Richard

I too am doing the southern caribbean out of Colon. It looks like this is focused on Central American cruisers. I don't speak Spanish very well, so I hope the annoucements and such are translated into English as well.

At any rate, we will try and come in a day early and then do the cruiseline transfer from the airport. Are there any decent hotels (a courtyard or like) close to the airport?

Thanks

I got a recommendation for My Friend Mario www.myfriendmario.com

This was their quote....very reasonable IMHO - Good Luck!!!

R: easily we can handle your tailor itinerary without problems

- Transport from the PTY airport to the hotel to drop off luggage.

R: US$35 (US$17.50 per person)

- Sightseeing in Panama City for the day….Mira Flores / Canal locks and other sights that we can see around Panama City as time permits…maybe some local food….finishing up about 7 or 7:30 pm back at our hotel. Nothing strenuous….mainly sightseeing….

R: US$70 per person (US$35 per person)

- Sunday morning tour from Panama City to Portobello

- Drop off at Colon 2000 cruise terminal after Portobello as early as reasonable possible. (Cruise ship departs at 7:30pm. We must be onboard by 5:30 pm but prefer to be onboard much earlier.

R: US$160 (US$80 per person) , or if you prefer we offer transfer from Panama City to Colon2000 for US$40 (US$20 per person)

About 15 minutes from the cruise port is Meliá Panama Canal.

It would be a great option to spend the night before your departure or as a place to stay the night you return.

See http://www.meliapanamacanal.com/... we are staying Christmas Eve for $99/two + breakfast.

I got a recommendation for My Friend Mario www.myfriendmario.com

This was their quote....very reasonable IMHO - Good Luck!!!

 

R: easily we can handle your tailor itinerary without problems

- Transport from the PTY airport to the hotel to drop off luggage.

R: US$35 (US$17.50 per person)

- Sightseeing in Panama City for the day….Mira Flores / Canal locks and other sights that we can see around Panama City as time permits…maybe some local food….finishing up about 7 or 7:30 pm back at our hotel. Nothing strenuous….mainly sightseeing….

R: US$70 per person (US$35 per person)

- Sunday morning tour from Panama City to Portobello

- Drop off at Colon 2000 cruise terminal after Portobello as early as reasonable possible. (Cruise ship departs at 7:30pm. We must be onboard by 5:30 pm but prefer to be onboard much earlier.

R: US$160 (US$80 per person) , or if you prefer we offer transfer from Panama City to Colon2000 for US$40 (US$20 per person)

Thanks for the info! I had a hard time trying to find info from the Courtyard Marriott in Panama City to Colon. I have yet to book the cruise for April 2009...but will do very soon!

Understand this is an old thread, but it was useful for me multiple years after the fact!

Back on topic, though...

As recommended, I went with My Friend Mario for a tour/transfer from Colon to Panama City. They had good prices and good service. I was happy with the tour. Oddly, my only complaint of the actual tour was that there was almost too much info packed into the whole thing (probably tour-guide specific...). As a warning to Europeans, the non-stop info combined with strong accent appeared to be difficult for folks who speak English as a second language (some actually fell asleep). As an English speaker (1st language), I loved it, but recognize the effort to translate the accent.

WARNING: The worst part (and only bad part) was before the tour even started!! It seems that the Colon port is divided into two separate bldgs. One is attached to a sort of mall with a Casino in it that is across the street and the other is about a ship-length away. Info from My Friend Mario tells you to look for a Casino.

THE TOUR DEPARTS FROM THE BLDG WITH THE MALL ACROSS THE ROAD!!

If, like me, your RCCL cruise arrives into the OTHER bldg, there's NO indication that you're in the wrong bldg. We had to ask for the Casino and were told to start walking. SO, with all our luggage, we literally had to take a hike down a somewhat sketchy path between bldgs (some of it unpaved!!) in order to find the meeting point and losing a couple pints of sweat in the process. We felt digusting and were absolutely miserable...

That said, the tour was really good....

FYI, not sure if port locations are permanent, but Celebrity was at the "correct" bldg...