Youth Hostels in Panama

Your first impression of this hostel is when the very friendly and excited Patrick (son of the owner) picks you up from the airport. He makes you that much more excited to be there. However, other than this home turned hostel being very close to the airport (20min) and the very helpful and accommodating Patrick, it's less than exciting and far from all the sites and nightlife. And there is nothing other than 2 grocery stores in the immediate area. The private room was basic, felt more like someone's bedroom we were staying in. We did meet some nice travelers and had a BBQ together, but it's not located in a place for any sites, nightlife or restaurants. It's an hour bus ride to the main bus terminal on the most uncomfortable bus we've been on in 6 months (but you can't beat transportation for 25 cents and awesome blaring reggaetone). From there you take a taxi to other sites like Miraflores Locks (another 15 minutes) or Casco Viejo. Taxis are very expensive, better to try and find a collectivo van for $2 each. We were only there for 3 nights, so we thought it would be better to stay near the airport. I had high hopes for a big German breakfast, but we only got eggs the first day and other than that it was white bread or thin sliced German bread (yum), deli cheese and ham, coffee and juice. Regrettably, we should have stayed downtown or in Casco Viejo.

Autumn and Abe

We are a retired couple who have stayed in many hostles in many countries over the years and we would highly recommend the Panamerican to budget travelers.

The Good: Friendly staff. Good coffee, available all day. Hot water 24 hours. Great WiFi - accessible from our room. Spacious room with French doors to a balcony overlooking the park. Overhead fan. Great, safe location.

The Not So Good: The building is concrete and inherently noisy. Normal conversation, which sometimes goes quite late, carries up to the rooms. We found it necessary to use earplugs to allow us to sleep through it.