Tour Information
Note: The information presented here is an abbreviated version of our formal General Information for Tours to Panama. Its purpose is solely to give readers a sense of what might be involved if they took this tour. Although we do our best to make sure what follows here is completely accurate, it should not be used as a replacement for the formal document which will be sent to all tour registrants, and whose contents supersedes any information contained here.
ENTERING PANAMA: Panama requires a valid passport for entry by US citizens. Your passport should be valid for at least six months after the date the tour ends. At the time of writing, a tourist card is required; cards cost US $5 and are purchased at the airport immediately before entering the immigration line (the desk at which these cards are issued may not be immediately obvious). Citizens of other countries may need a visa and should check their nearest Panamanian embassy; if required by the embassy or visa-granting entity, WINGS can provide a letter for you to use regarding your participation in the tour.
PANAMA MAP AND COUNTRY INFORMATION: You can view maps of Panama in the University of Texas series here. You can review the US Department of State’s Background Note on Panama here.
HEALTH: No specific inoculations are necessary, although up-to-date tetanus protection is always a good idea. Biting insects and arachnids are seldom a major nuisance, although chiggers and biting gnats can be locally numerous around the Panama Canal and in the dry forests below the Canopy Tower.Thanks to extensive decade-long efforts at mosquito control, malaria has been virtually eradicated in Panama, and the Centers for Disease Control no longer consider travelers at risk of the disease; consult your own doctor about the CDC’s recommendation and what action you should take.
The sun and the humidity can be intense. Be sure to have adequate protection, including a sun hat and a strong sunblock lotion.
Please note that the health/medical information contained herein, and the more thorough information provided in our formal General Information for Participants in Tours to Panama, is gleaned by WINGS from websites dedicated to traveler’s health issues. Advisories and recommendations from agencies such as the CDC can change frequently. We urge you to consult with your physician, local health department, or the CDC for the most up-to-date health advisories. You can check with the CDC here.
PACE OF THE TOUR: As with all tours in the tropics, we will try to be in the field at dawn. Most days will involve departures close to 7 a.m., with the exception of days spent at Achiote Road (4:30 a.m.) and Cerro Azul (5 a.m.). For several mornings at the tower we’ll start with an hour’s vigil atop the building looking out at the surrounding canopy. Breakfasts will be at our lodges before our morning departure. Many of the birding sites that we visit on the tour are within 30 minutes of our lodges. Birding in and around central Panama is from Sea Level to 3,500 feet in elevation and, other than some narrow and slightly uneven trails and some steep paved roads at Cerro Azul, the walking presents no particular problem. It is worth noting that the trail conditions and gradients around Burbayar Lodge are significantly more rugged than the trails around the Canal Zone. The sun can be intense, so have a hat and sunblock lotion.
CLIMATE: We’ll encounter a variety of weather. Daytime high temperatures will likely fall between the mid 70s and low 90s F; it can be cooler, down to the 60s F, at the higher elevations. There may be some afternoon showers, but rarely are they of a duration or an intensity to affect our birding; raingear and a small umbrella will be useful. Rain can make the day feel surprisingly chilly, so be certain to have a heavy shirt or light jacket.
ACCOMMODATIONS: Three hotels are used during the tour. The Canopy Tower near Panama City is a retrofitted US radar tower. Although the rooms are not large and the noise-proofing leaves something to be desired, the novelty of your surroundings makes up for it. Guests staying in the single rooms will share bathroom facilities (two toilets, one shower) with up to four other people; if space permits, single travelers may request, on payment of a single occupancy supplement, a double-occupancy room with private restroom facilities. The Canopy Tower has a free public internet terminal and wireless access.
Burbayar Lodge is more rustic but very comfortable. The cabins have individual bathrooms. power is provided by a generator, which is turned off in the evenings, making a flashlight essential. The wide terrace, many comfortable hammocks, and attractive gardens provide the perfect setting for our afternoon breaks.
The last night of the tour will be spent at the Country Inn Amador, a large modern hotel just west of Panama City near the shores of Panama Bay.
DRESS: Informal throughout.
TRANSPORTATION: Transportation during the tour is by specially modified rainforest trucks, or by vans or comfortable buses. Transfers from the airport and between hotels will be by 15- or 22-passenger vans.
SMOKING: We request that you do smoke in the vehicles or when the group is gathered for meals, checklists, etc. If you are sharing a room with a non-smoker, please do not smoke in the room. If you smoke in the field, do so well away and downwind from the group. If any lodge, accommodation, or location where the group is staying or is gathered has a more restrictive smoking policy than the WINGS policy, the more restrictive policy will prevail.
GENERAL INFORMATION AND CONDITIONS OF WINGS TOURS: Please take a moment to read the WINGS General Information and Conditions. This section contains important information about how we conduct tours, e.g., what is included in the tour price, refund and cancellation policies, pace of the tours, and other information that will help you prepare for the tour.
FINAL INFORMATION: Final information with instructions for meeting the group, hotel addresses, etc., will be mailed about three weeks before trip departure. Other news will be communicated as necessary. If you have any questions, please let us know.
Updated: May 2012