Contact Information:
Investment Promotion, P.O. Box 4421, Zone 5, Panama 
Republic of Panama
www.ipat.gob.pa
Tel: (507) 226-7000 ext 351   Fax: (507) 226-2313
E-Mail: ipat01@pty.com

INVEST IN FUN AND PLEASURE
Panama is a unique destination: a country which offers a delightful combination of history, culture, commerce and natural beauty.  Visitors love Panama's warm and fun loving people, its rich ecology and its cultural diversity - all of which are easily accessible from nearly every major city in the world.

Recognized   as the "Eighth Wonder of the World," the magnificent Panama Canal unites the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean through three sets of locks and three man-made lakes.  The Canal is truly an unprecedented engineering feat, combining engineering skill and natural processes to create one of the world's most important waterways.  Viewing the Panama Canal from land at the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks, or from a ship, is the experience of a lifetime!

Panama is best known for its canal, but there is much more to the country.  Panama City is the most exciting and cosmopolitan city in Central America.  Located on the Pacific Ocean, nearly one million people live in Panama City, or about half the country's population.  Panama's skyline ranges from the soaring skyscrapers of the banking and business sectors, to the growing suburbs surrounding downtown, to the ruins of the original city built in 1519, to the charming colonial district known as Casco Antiguo.  This neighborhood was built after the pirate Henry Morgan destroyed the original city and has been named by UNESCO as a "World Heritage Site."

A duty free port for goods from all over the world, Panama is a shopper's paradise.  Visitors can find jewelry, previous stones, embroidered tablecloths, oriental crafts, designer watches, perfumes, photographic and electronic equipment, household appliances, fine crystal and porcelain - all at reasonable prices. There are modern shopping centers in Panama with a variety of specialty shops.  On España and Central Avenues one can fine everything from the latest fashions, to handicrafts and computers.  Panama is known for the quality and diversity of its molas, brightly-stitched cloth pieces made by the Kuna indians of the San Blas Islands.  Wood carvings and baskets also make unique souvenirs from Panama.  

Hundreds of cruise ships transit the Canal each year, stopping at ports on both sides of the country.  Island hopping is easy with daily ferries to Taboga Island and flights to Contadora, both in the Pacific.  A catamaran also takes visitors to Contadora from Panama City.  Cruises on the Panama Canal can be easily arranged as well.  

Casinos are located in all of the most important cities and hotels for visitors' entertainment.  The newly-renovated Presidente José Remón Racetrack is also open on Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays and on holidays.  In Panama, earning from games of chance are tax exempt.

INVEST IN NATURE AND ADVENTURE
Panama is a tropical paradise ideal for people seeking outdoor adventure. A natural land bridge connecting North and South America, Panama is home to a greater diversity of wildlife than any other country in the Mesoamerica. Species unique to both North and South America are found here in abundance.

Panama is one of the most exciting and diverse eco-tourism destinations in the world. Twenty-five percent of the nation’s territory is protected forest, with an extraordinary record of twelve different forest classifications and ten wildlife refuges. Plants, animals and climate converge here in the most opulent and lavish combinations. 

More bird species live in Panama than in all of North America.  In addition to migratory birds, there are over 933 native bird species including the stunning Quetzal, found in the highland Province of Chiriqui, and the Harpy Eagle, one of the largest birds of prey and Panama’s national bird, found in the Darien Jungle. World-renowned birding sites include the Cerro Azul Mountain Range, the cloud forest regions of Baru Volcano and Cerro La Vieja, as well as Pipeline Road in Soberania National Park.  Another well-known place to see birds and other wildlife, is at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute’s refuge of Barro Colorado Island.

Panama’s warm, wet climate makes the country a most colorful flower garden.  There are more than 10,000 plant species including 1,200 varieties of orchids, 678 species of ferns, 1,500 varieties of trees and all kinds of tropical fruits and vegetables. 

In El Valle, an ancient, fertile volcanic valley, visitors can see the rare “Golden Frog” and an unusual tree with a square trunk, while hummingbirds practically perch on your camera. The El Valle Canopy Tour lets you see the forest from a unique perspective – high above the forest floor where you are attached to cables that transport you from tree to tree.

Other eco-tourism adventures in Panama include three-to-fourteen day trips on foot and by dugout canoe in the Darien Jungle. One of the most fascinating is the Trans-Darien Expedition, which retraces the trail of Spanish explorer Balboa from the Caribbean to the place where he discovered the Pacific Ocean.  White water rafting trips on the Chagres River can be easily arranged, as well as trips to the Cerro Azul Mountains or the beautiful highlands of Chiriqui, just one hour by plane from Panama City.

INVEST IN FISHING, DIVING AND EXOTIC ISLANDS
Panama has 2,800 kms. Of coastline on two oceans and more than one thousand islands. The Pacific islands are of volcanic origin and are generally covered with plush tropical forest. The Caribbean islands, on the other hand, are coral and tend to be flat, sandy and covered with coconut palms.

Deep sea fishing around these islands and elsewhere in Panama is renowned. Panama has set more black marlin records than anywhere else in the world. Piñas Bay and Coiba Island in the Pacific are what fishermen like to call Panama’s “best-kept secrets”.

Local divers have their “secrets” too: Bocas del Toro, Coiba and San Blas, to name a few.  Each of Panama’s dive spots are unique due to the diversity of marine life found here. Remarkably, Panama has two oceans and four seas.

Bocas del Toro is a charming place to visit, not only for diving. A perfect combination of natural beauty, history and local tradition, Bocas is known for its extensive forests, beautiful islands and white sand beaches with crystal clear water. Bocas is truly a natural laboratory with an impressive variety of marine life found on coral reefs and in the mangrove forest protected by the National Marine Park of Bastimentos Island.

Coiba, the largest island in the American South Pacific, has been declared a national ecological park. It has the oldest coral reefs in Central America and offers excellent deep sea fishing, diving and snorkeling. The island has lush, virgin rainforest and mountainous terrain giving way to stunning waterfalls.

Start dreaming about a vacation in Panama! Where else can you chose from a thousand islands and miles of unspoiled beaches on both the Caribbean and the Pacific.