12 Things to Do in Panama City Beyond Just Walking Around Casco Viejo

Panama City was the first stop of my three-week Central America trip, and we gave it exactly one full day before taking the night bus toward Bocas del Toro.

We arrived with almost nothing planned, no accommodation booked and apparently no interest in checking the weather either, because we somehow managed to arrive at the end of August during rainy season. It poured for a good part of the day, but we still went out, wandered around Casco Viejo, found a cheap local lunch completely by accident and explored whatever looked interesting.

After actually visiting, I still don’t think Panama City needs several days of city sightseeing. If I went back, I’d spend one day properly exploring the capital and use any extra time for the Panama Canal, wildlife or some of the incredible places you can visit from the city.

So if you’re looking for the best things to do in Panama City, these are the ones I’d actually prioritize rather than trying to tick off every attraction Google Maps can find.

12 Things to Do in Panama City

1. Explore Casco Viejo Without Planning Every Street

Casco Viejo is the obvious place to start, and it was the part of Panama City I enjoyed exploring the most.

This is the historic district, with colonial buildings, plazas, churches, cafés, restaurants and views across the water toward the completely different modern skyline. The contrast between the old city in front of you and the skyscrapers across the bay is probably one of the most recognizable things about Panama City.

I wouldn’t make a strict itinerary around every building here. We didn’t, and I wouldn’t if I went back either. Give yourself a few hours and wander around instead.

Some of the main places you’ll come across include Plaza de la Independencia, Plaza Herrera, Plaza de Francia, Paseo Esteban Huertas and Las Bóvedas, but unless you have a particular interest in one of them, I wouldn’t spend the morning racing between pins on Google Maps.

If something looks interesting, stop. If another church does absolutely nothing for you, keep walking.

That’s basically how I explore cities anyway.

→ Read my Panama City in One Day itinerary

2. Eat Somewhere Local Instead of Only Staying in Casco Viejo Restaurants

One of the things I remember most clearly from our day in Panama City wasn’t a famous attraction at all.

We were looking for somewhere cheap to eat when we noticed a line of locals outside Fonda San Felipe. We had no idea what the place was, but a queue of people who actually lived there seemed like a better recommendation than another TripAdvisor list, so we joined them.

There were different dishes already prepared, you picked what you wanted on your plate, and I paid around $6 for my food and a Coke.

Considering Panama City had been feeling expensive on our backpacking budget, that was a win.

I’d happily go back. It was exactly the kind of random place we probably would never have found if we had spent the entire day following a list of tourist attractions.

3. See the Panama Canal

You can’t really talk about things to do in Panama City without mentioning the Panama Canal.

We didn’t organize our day well enough to make this the focus of our trip, but if I went back, I would definitely include it. It’s one of those places where I think seeing it in person makes far more sense than reading another paragraph about how important the canal is to global shipping.

The most famous option is visiting the Miraflores Locks, where you can watch ships moving through the canal system.

If seeing the locks is one of the main reasons you’re visiting Panama City, I’d plan that specifically rather than assuming every Panama Canal tour includes them, because they don’t.

4. Take a Panama Canal and Monkey Island Wildlife Tour

This is actually what I’d choose for the afternoon if I went back with only one day in Panama City.

Instead of spending another five hours moving between city attractions, I’d take a Panama Canal, Monkey Island and wildlife tour and get out onto Gatún Lake.

You still experience the canal, but you also get rainforest, wildlife and the chance to see monkeys, which sounds much more interesting to me than spending the entire day sightseeing in the capital.

The tour I looked at when putting together my one-day itinerary lasts around five hours, so it fits nicely after a morning in Casco Viejo.

Just remember that the tour I chose doesn’t include the Panama Canal locks, so if Miraflores is a priority, you’ll need to plan that separately.

→ Book here: Panama Canal, Monkey Island & Wildlife Tour

5. Walk Along the Cinta Costera

If you want to see another side of Panama City, head toward the Cinta Costera, the waterfront area running along the bay.

This is where the contrast with Casco Viejo becomes very obvious. One minute you’re surrounded by old colonial streets, and then you’re looking across at a skyline full of high-rise buildings that could belong to a completely different city.

I wouldn’t put this above Casco Viejo if you’re short on time, but it’s worth including if you have a few hours to wander.

It also gives you some of the classic views back toward the old city and across the modern skyline.

6. Get Out of the Polished Tourist Areas for a Bit

One thing I found interesting about Panama City was how quickly the atmosphere could change once we walked away from the more polished parts of Casco Viejo.

We weren’t deliberately looking for a particular neighborhood. We just kept wandering.

That’s something I’d still recommend doing during the day if you’re comfortable exploring cities this way, because otherwise it’s very easy to visit Panama City and only see the restored colonial streets and expensive-looking restaurants.

Obviously, use some common sense about where you’re going. I was traveling with a male friend on this trip, and I know I was much more relaxed wandering around than I probably would have been alone.

7. Visit the Miraflores Locks

If your main Panama bucket-list item is watching ships actually pass through the locks, go to Miraflores.

This deserves its own mention because “seeing the Panama Canal” can mean several completely different experiences. A wildlife boat tour on Gatún Lake is not the same thing as standing at the locks watching enormous ships move through the canal.

Personally, if I had several days, I’d probably do both.

If I had only one day, I’d choose based on what interested me more: the engineering and locks themselves, or combining the canal with rainforest and wildlife.

→ Book here: Panama Canal Locks Tour

8. Take a Day Trip to the San Blas Islands

If I had an extra day in Panama City, I would choose San Blas before adding another full day of city sightseeing.

The islands look completely different from Panama City: Caribbean water, small islands and an entire day away from the capital.

This is exactly what I mean when I say I’d use Panama City as a base rather than spending three consecutive days looking for more things to do inside the city.

San Blas is a long day trip, so this isn’t something I’d try to squeeze into a short afternoon. Give it the whole day.

→ Book here: San Blas Island Hopping Day Tour

9. Visit an Embera Village

The other day trip I’d seriously consider is an Embera village experience.

This would give you a completely different day from both Panama City and San Blas, usually combining time with an Indigenous Embera community with nature and, depending on the tour, a waterfall or rainforest stop.

Again, this is something I haven’t personally done, so I’m not going to pretend I have.

It’s simply one of the experiences I’d prioritize if I returned with more time because it would show me a completely different side of Panama from the one I saw during my short trip.

→ Book here: Embera Native Village & Waterfall Tour

10. Spend Some Time in the Rainforest

One thing Panama City has that makes it much more interesting as a base is how quickly you can get from skyscrapers into actual rainforest.

Soberanía National Park is one of the obvious places to do that, and several wildlife tours around the canal area combine rainforest, Gatún Lake and Monkey Island.

This is another reason I wouldn’t spend three days purely sightseeing inside Panama City.

The surroundings are more interesting to me.

If I went back, I’d want at least one day where the city disappeared completely and I was somewhere looking for wildlife instead.

11. Have Drinks on a Rooftop in Casco Viejo

If you’re staying overnight in Panama City, Casco Viejo has plenty of rooftop bars where you can finish the day with views over the old city and skyline.

Some of the better-known options include Tántalo, CasaCasco, Vista Corona and Sama Sky Lounge.

We were traveling on a pretty aggressive backpacking budget, so Panama City rooftop-bar life wasn’t exactly the priority of that trip.

But if I went back with a little more money, I’d definitely finish the evening somewhere with a view rather than calling it a day after sightseeing.

12. Use Panama City as the Starting Point for the Rest of Panama

This isn’t technically an attraction, but it was one of the most important things Panama City was for us.

It was our entry point into Panama and the beginning of our entire Central America trip.

After our one day in the capital, we went to the bus terminal, took the overnight bus toward Almirante, caught the boat to Bocas del Toro and continued the trip from there.

And honestly, if you have limited time in Panama, I think that’s worth remembering.

You don’t have to keep adding days to Panama City just because it’s the capital.

Panama has much more to see.

For me, Panama City works best as somewhere you explore properly for a day, use as a base for a couple of great excursions if you have time, and then continue.

→ Read my Panama itinerary

What I’d Prioritize With One Day in Panama City

If I only had one day again, I’d keep it simple.

I’d spend the morning exploring Casco Viejo, stop at Fonda San Felipe for lunch, and then take the Panama Canal and Monkey Island wildlife tour in the afternoon.

That gives you some history, local food, the canal, rainforest and wildlife without spending twelve hours rushing between tourist attractions.

It’s also basically the itinerary I wish we had planned before arriving instead of discovering everything as we went in the pouring rain.

→ Read my full Panama City in One Day itinerary

What I’d Do With Two or Three Days

If I had a second day, I’d leave the city.

My first choice would probably be San Blas, simply because it’s such a completely different experience from Panama City.

With a third day, I’d look at either the Embera village experience or another nature-focused trip around the canal and rainforest.

That’s also why I decided not to write a separate three-day Panama City itinerary. For me, days two and three aren’t really about finding more city attractions. They’re about using Panama City to reach somewhere else.

Things I Wouldn’t Prioritize in Panama City

I wouldn’t try to see every museum, every church and every viewpoint just because they appear on a list of the “top 27 things to do in Panama City.”

That’s not how I travel, and after actually visiting, I still don’t think the city needs that kind of itinerary.

Give Casco Viejo proper time, eat somewhere local, see the canal in whatever way interests you most and then use the rest of your trip for experiences that take you beyond the capital.

There are much more interesting things to do in Panama than spending three days ticking buildings off a list.

How Many Days Do You Need for These Things to Do?

For Panama City itself, I still think one full day is enough if you travel at a reasonably fast pace.

Two or three days make sense if you’re counting day trips from the city, not because you need three days to explore the capital.

If you’re planning San Blas, an Embera village and the Panama Canal, then Panama City can easily become a three- or four-night base without you actually spending every day sightseeing in the city.

→ Read my guide: How many days you need in Panama City

Final Thoughts on the Best Things to Do in Panama City

Panama City wasn’t my favorite place from our Central America trip, but I also think we did it in the least organized way possible: one full day, constant August rain and almost no planning.

If I went back, I wouldn’t suddenly give myself four days to explore every corner of the capital. I’d simply do the city better.

I’d explore Casco Viejo properly, go back to Fonda San Felipe, experience the Panama Canal, add wildlife and then use any extra days for places like San Blas or an Embera village.

For me, that’s where Panama City becomes much more interesting: not as somewhere you need endless attractions to fill your itinerary, but as a city that gives you access to completely different sides of Panama.