My husband and I vacationed two weeks in Panama, from Feb 19 – March 4, 2020. We explored the country, visiting Panama City, Santa Catalina, Boquette, Bocas del Toro and San Blas islands owned by Guna Yala. There are a lot of options for hotels in Panama City. We were fortunate to have chosen to stay at the Central Hotel Panama for our 3 nights in the old city. We would highly recommend this hotel for its exceptional service, great value, aesthetically beautiful ambience and its convenient location in Casco Viejo.
The service is friendly and personable and the staff went above and beyond to assist us. I had the unfortunate situation of losing my cell phone and my husband’s phone got drenched on the boat ride to San Blas. It was a rough day! However, the hotel staff spoke English much better than our Spanish and were so helpful in assisting us with bookings, phone calls and computer use to allow us to re-organize due to our technology loss. As an added bonus we were served a complimentary glass of wine and a bottle of rum to sooth our nerves. We cannot thank the hotel staff enough for their hospitality and would like to make a special shout out to Reynaldo and Gretel for their kindness.
I loved the hotel’s historic French architecture and beautiful lobby. The main attraction is a stunning wooden winding staircase with a lovely atrium, sitting area and restaurant on the main level. Our room was small, just like you would expect from an historic building, but clean and comfortable with a regular sized bathroom. We enjoyed our balcony overlooking a street in the old city. Our room was perfect for us but there are larger suites available of course. They served a hot and cold breakfast buffet, which was included in our room rate. The gym was adequately equipped and the rooftop pool has a spectacular view of the old city and the modern skyline in the distance. We were provided excellent recommendations for restaurants in the area.
If you go to Panama City, you must stay at this charming hotel!