Our Countries

Panama

General Information

Panama has a cultural multiplicity that makes it unique in the region, to which the constant presence of visitors from all over the world also contributes.

 It is particularly rich, because although it comes from very diverse cultural origins and traditions, it has been stimulated by the atmosphere of tolerance and harmony that has always prevailed in the territory.

Panama is world-famous for its 48-mile canal that connects the Pacific Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean. Each year, over a million people visit the canal and are able to witness this engineering marvel at work. Panama is very proud to have this magnificent creation operating 365 days a year, enabling the world’s cargo to be shipped efficiently and safely to new destinations.

Three million years ago, the Isthmus of Panama emerged from the sea and changed the world forever. It divided an ocean and joined two continents together, triggering one of the most important natural evolution events in the history of the world. Today, this narrow land bridge in Central America is home to more species of birds and trees than the whole of North America.

Ariadne has been heading GMT Panama for 11 years. She is also GMT’s International Program Director. Among her responsibilities, she oversees GMT’s program development in all the countries we operate. Dante has been her assistant for over 9 years. He is GMT’s LATAM chief interpreter and Webmaster.

 

GMT Panama has a close relationship with a local panamanian school called CADI Bilingual Academy. CADI allows bilingual students to participate as interpreters during GMT trips. GMT trips in Panama are not only enriching multicultural experiences for trippers, but for these young panamanians too. Some of them have even decided to study health care professions as a result of the positive experiences they are exposed to during our clinics.

 

Panama is one of the safest countries in Latin America. You can safely walk around the city, go out at night and use public transports. As in many other countries, there are specific regions where safety measures must be taken (same measures an educated traveler must always take when visiting a foreign country): 

  • research the country you are traveling to
  • do not draw too much attention
  • make copies of important documents
  • be aware of your surroundings
  • always carry small amounts of money
  • watch over your luggage
  • do not go out alone at night without supervision from a local
  • always respect traffic signs, etc.

Some importants phone numbers to know: 

  • National Police: 104
  • Firemen Department: 103
  • Civil Protection: 3160080/3160335
  • Red Cross: 3151388
  • Medical emergencies: 911
 

There are 2 seasons in Panama: the dry season and the wet season. The dry season runs from January to March, and the wet seasons runs from April to December. You may also find many regions in Panama with their own distinctive climate. To the west, you will find the cold lands of Boquete, in the Chiriqui province; and to the east you can find the dense, humid and warm jungles of the Darien province.

Travelers arrive to the Tocumen International Airport, in Panama City, Panama. If you provide GMT with your flight itineraries, we will be waiting for you. If you don’t, you can safely use one of the free shuttle services, call an Uber or hire a taxi. We work with different hotels, so make sure you always verify the name of the hotel you must travel to (it is included in the itinerary we send 8 weeks prior to the trip).

Our trips follow the standard GMT trip format (unles otherwise requested by the chapter):

  1. Arrival day
  2. Travel day
  3. Clinic day 1
  4. Clinic day 2
  5. Clinic day 3
  6. Clinic day 4
  7. Free day, and
  8. Departure day

We visit many different safe rural regions, but we mainly operate in the central provinces (Cocle, Veraguas, Herrera and Los Santos), and we sometimes develop our programs in the Panama province (capital), and the Darien province (jungle). We always include the locations we will visit, along with Google Maps links, in our itineraries.