Drive from Panama City to Boquete

[Suzanne Dodge]

can anyone tell me,how long a drive,from Panama City to Boquete?  We're renting a car at the airport,so we won't have any stops..or not too many,hopefully?...thanks

[Suzanne Dodge]

Thanks,guys & gals...for your suggestions.....I'm thinking we'll probably spend the night somewhere...and start fresh the next a.m.......certainly...sounds safer that way.......the highway sounds like a nightmare.....but,has anyone ever driven in Newfoundland.....sounds very,similar to this......Ha.ha.ha....if anyone knew I'd written this....they'd kill me!!!!!

I appreciate all the information & tips  you've offered......thanks,again......

 

Roy & Sue Dodge

[George Jorgenson]

Here is a very good bus schedule site that I found. Just make sure that you just put in Panama when entering a departure site. It doesn't recognize Panama City. Hope it works as well for you as it did for me.

http://thebusschedule.com/EN/pa/index.php

[Marion A. Clamp]

The name is Terminal (or Terminales) David-Panama.  This is the company with the double deckers.  In the time since we have lived here I have ridden on Padafront just once, an overnight due to get to PC several hours before my flight left.  The bus made numerous stops and broke down even more times!!  I barely made the flight.  But that was six or seven years ago, maybe their buses have improved since then.  I love the buses, stop halfway for lunch or dinner or breakfast or snack.  Watch a movie (shown on the bus), read, sit back and let the driver take the stress of the InterAmericano.  Panama has a great bus transport infrastructure (and cheap) -- time enough to stop and explore by bus or car, once you are comfortable with the country and the language -- not to mention the roads and driving habits.

[Alan]

Thanks!  I can't wait!!!

[Bjorn Sefeldt]

Personnally i hate riding buses, after doing too many greyhound trips...like a 33 hour trip from LA to Houston....yuk

and you have 'no control' , like i a plane...in a car YOU decide when ,where to stop, what to see etc...its more "travelling" not just 'riding'...just my opinion.

[Bjorn Sefeldt]

Personnally i hate riding buses, after doing too many greyhound trips...like a 33 hour trip from LA to Houston....yuk

and you have 'no control' , like i a plane...in a car YOU decide when ,where to stop, what to see etc...its more "travelling" not just 'riding'...just my opinion.

[Bjorn Sefeldt]

As Lee always says..."This isnt Kansas",....so scenic or not...visiting more than just a bus or plana and Boquete, is going to be misleading if you plan to retire here...see as much as you can, or you will be surprised after you move here and will realize :"oh ,this isnt like....(insert state you are from)"

[Alan]

I lived in Ecuador in '89 & 90.  I used buses all the time, but they weren't well equipped.  I take it these double deckers have rest rooms?

[Peter Duthie]

Having just completed driving 3,500Km in Panama including driving from Panama City to Boquete and back along with several other destinations  driving in Panama is hard going.  

First the Pan American Highway passes through many towns and villages so the speed is constantly dropping from 100Kmh to 40 Kmh.  Even on the open road you will have bicycles, horses and pedestrians walking along the edge of the road on both sides.

Once you get west of Santiago it is a two lane road.  So to make any time you will need to be working to pass the many trucks and buses on the road.

The highway is winding and hilly so no setting the cruise control and just keeping the car between the lines.

Getting out of Panama City is confusing.   There are very few signs,  the GPS software I had was garbage.  I ended up going through the same toll plaza three times before I realized the GPS was causing me more problems than it was solving.

I could not find a good map in Panama so you might want to buy a good map before arriving.

The Pan American Highway is poorly marked so you won't know where you are, how far you have to go or even if you are on the right road.

Don't let your car get low on fuel.   Knowing when you will find the next gas station won't be obvious.  Also be sure you have cash to pay for gas as many stations don't take credit cards.   The bathrooms at many stations are not that clean.

If you have a chance buy a phone that works in Panama.  I paid $20 for a phone with 300 minutes and used it several times when I got lost on side trips.

If you are going to take any side trips rent a 4wd vehicle.  Many rough and/or dirt and rock roads in Panama.

Finally the drive isn't that scenic.  Allow seven hours for the drive and be prepared for the drive from the highway to Boquete.  (See posts on the highway of death. )   You probably want to do this section when it is still day light.

[Cindy Thomas]

If your only destination is Boquete, take a flight or the bus.  It's a long, long ride and not very interesting and both ways is torturous.   There are checkpoints along the way and the speed limit changes without notice.  The flight is about $120 and the bus is $15-18 both from Albrook.  The rental companies are also notorious for adding on extra charges and fees.

[Bjorn Sefeldt]

I dont agree.....especially if its the first visit....see the whole place or as much as possible...dont just fly in to a point , visit and go back....the picture of the country you are contemplating as a retirement place will be twisted...see as much as you can...I think the drive is boring at places , but its educational too....don`t do the "this is Tuesday ,this must be Belgium"

 

of course , opinions are like your rear end , divided