| Home > Destinations > Central
America > Panama > Know
Before You Go
The more you know about the destination and the conditions
you can expect on your Wildland Adventure, the more you
will enjoy your experience. We invite you to call our destination
specialists at 1-800-345-4453 so that we can answer any
questions or concerns. The following information will also
help you prepare for the exciting experience ahead and enable
you to get the very most from your trip.
Air Travel
We are pleased to assist you with your flights to Panama.
We offer discounted bulk rate fares with preferred airlines
and are familiar with the best schedules and routing to
Panama City. There is no obligation to purchase your international
tickets from Wildland Adventures. In general, fares we
offer to most destinations are usually below market rates
based on advanced purchase and availability at the time
you are ready to purchase your ticket. However, the airline
market to Panama is so competitive, we suggest you consider
purchasing your tickets through an online reservations
system, or we can do it for you for a $40 per ticket fee.
Local flights within Panama are already included in the
cost of your Wildland Adventure.
Health
Once you sign up for a trip, we provide detailed information
about health precautions and possible immunizations for
travel to each destination. Wildland Adventures staff are
not licensed medical authorities to advise which medications
or inoculations you and your private physician decide are
necessary for your safe participation on the trip. However,
we know the exact areas, environments and conditions under
which you will be traveling, all of which can affect the
relative risk of exposure to health conditions and help
you make your own decisions concerning immunizations and
prescription medicines. Preventative measures against infectious
diseases may require advance planning. Pregnant women and
parents traveling with young children should consult their
physician or pediatrician.
Panama is a relatively safe country and in general you
do not need to be any more concerned about your health than
you would traveling to most developed nations of the world.
No immunizations are required for travel to Panama. Dengue
fever and malaria are found in Panama but only in certain
low elevation areas. Risks to Wildland Travelers is relatively
low. Recommended immunizations include typhoid, yellow fever,
hepatitis A and hepatitis B. All travelers should be up-to-date
on tetanus-diphtheria, measles-mumps-rubella, polio, and
chicken pox immunizations.
The best prevention is use of insect repellent and wearing
light colored clothing with long pants and long sleeves
in the morning and evening. Most travelers are pleasantly
surprised to find that biting insects, including mosquitoes,
are much less prevalent than anticipated. Accommodations
on Wildland Adventures provide screened rooms and landscaped
grounds to reduce on site insect populations and thereby
minimize your exposure.
MD
Travel Health: Complete travel information updated daily
for physicians and travelers.
VISA and Passport Requirements
A passport is required for entry into Panama, and should
be valid for six months after your return date. An advance
visa is not required for American citizens. Non-US citizens
should check with the Panamanian Embassy at the following
address and phone number:
Embassy of Panama in Washington, United States of America
2862 McGill Terrace, NW
Washington DC 20008
Tel: (202) 483 1407.
U.S. State Department Passport Services
Reading List
Enrich your travels by using our recommended reading list
and online ordering through Longitude Books. For each destination,
we feature "Essential Reading," four or five books
that are a comprehensive introduction to each region. This
list favors well-written, concise books that capture the
spirit of a place including guidebooks, memoirs, histories,
field guides, natural histories, novels or other great books.
You will also find the new and hard-to-find books, field
guides, classic accounts of exploration, travel narratives,
books on art and archaeology, novels, essays and well-written
academic books.
Panama
Reading List
Panama
Books for Kids
Travel Supplies and Packing List
We provide you with a specific packing list and recommended
travel products for your trip once you have signed up for
your Wildland Adventure. Two companies we recommend for
travel supplies include:
ExOfficio
We highly recommend their performance engineered,
quick dry and lightweight travel apparel designed for
outdoor-oriented adventure travel.
www.exofficio.com
TravelSmith
A resource for every travel clothing category
and a variety ofspecialty travel products.
www.travelsmith.com
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe to travel in Panama?
Panama carries a legacy in many people’s minds of
a country with U.S. military bases, the dictator Noriega,
mosquitoes and malaria, and more recently warnings from
the State Department about travel in the Darien. One benefit
of all this negative perception is that Panama remains
less developed and less touristy. It is a friendly nation
with a benevolent relation towards American people with
an excellent and still developing ecotourism infrastructure.
Safety concerns in the Darien region are only in the most
remote areas near the Columbia border, far from where
we venture on any of our Panama itineraries.
Destination Information
For further information about Panama we recommend the following
websites:
CIA World Factbook
General International Travel References
|
