Colon Shore Excursion: Panama City and Canal Private Tour

Colon, Panama

8 hours (approx.)
Pickup offered
Group discounts
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Take in the highlights of UNESCO-listed Panama City without getting bogged down by planning on this private full-day shore excursion from Colon Cruise Port. Admire the views from Ancon Hill; stroll along the Amador Causeway; see the Bridge of the Americas and the Panama Canal; and explore the atmospheric Old Town on a walking tour—all at your own pace.

Forget the rush of large tour groups and explore at a pace that suits you
See landmarks such as Miraflores Locks, the Bridge of the Americas, and the Frank Gehry Bio Museum
Check off plenty of Panama City landmarks in limited time
This private tour can be customized to your interests and ensures you’ll receive personalized attention from your guide

What's Included

Professional guide
Port pickup and drop-off
Private tour

Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup point

Puerto de Cruceros
P.º Gorgas, Colón, Provincia de Colón, Panama

Itinerary

On arrival at Colon Cruise Port, meet your private guide and set out on the around 1-hour drive to Panama City by private vehicle. Start your day with a visit to the 654-foot (200-meter) summit of Ancon Hill, from where the views span Panama City and the Panama Canal.

Continue to Miraflores Locks, where you can learn more about the legendary canal at the Miraflores Visitor Center and watch a 3D movie about the canal’s history. Stop to take photos of the iconic Bridge of the Americas and the striking multi-colored Frank Gehry Bio Museum, then stroll along the Amador Causeway, where you can enjoy lunch (own expense) gazing out over the Pacific Ocean entrance to the Panama Canal.

After lunch, follow your guide on a walking tour of Panama City’s old town, Casco Viejo, and admire the UNESCO-listed monuments.

Depending on your cruise departure time, either head straight back to Colon port, or relax with a drink (own expense) at one of the waterfront bars as you watch the sunset over the canal.

Your tour ends with drop-off at Colon cruise port.

Bridge of the Americas

1 minute • Admission Ticket Free

Miraflores Visitor Center

1 minute • Admission Ticket Included

Casco Viejo

2 hours • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking, unless booked within 4 days of travel. In this case confirmation will be received within 48 hours, subject to availability
At time of booking, Cruise ship passengers must provide the following information at time of booking: ship name, docking time, disembarkation time and re-boarding time
Children must be accompanied by an adult

Not wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

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Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 3 days in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Reviews

4.6

based on 18 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Gonzo the Great

Sam_K, Mar 2026

Definitely ask for Gonzo. Fabulous guide. Gonzo is organized, friendly, knowlegable and very personable. He went out of his way to make this the best excursion we ever had.

Great tour in Panama

Judith_S, Jan 2025

Awesome tour! Kevin was punctual and very personable! Very knowledgeable and entertaining. Highly recommend this tour!

Perfectly guided day in Panama City

Kamelia_C, Apr 2024

Levi was a fantastic guide for our day in Panama City off the cruise ship! He picked us up from the port in Colon in a clean, air conditioned vehicle. He spoke perfect English. He took us into Panama City with a perfect itinerary. We stopped at the harbor to admire the gorgeous city views and the Bridge of the Americas. We had a walking tour of Casca Viejo, which included a hidden gem in Iglesia de San Jose - the largest nativity scene I have ever seen. We stopped for a traditional Panamanian lunch and had amazing food that was both beautifully presented and delicious. We went into a shop that handcrafts beautiful Panama hats and were treated to a view of the VIP area with a Teddy Roosevelt replica and a $35K USD hat that took over a year to make. Then Levi took us to the Miraflores Locks visitor center, where he produced tickets to the 40 minute documentary on the canal in Imax, narrated by Morn Freeman. Then we exited the building to a stadium viewing area and watched ships going through the locks while an announcer explained what we were viewing, how it worked, and the specs of the ships passing through. Then Levi made sure we returned to our ship with plenty of time to spare. Besides planning a perfect day for us in Panama, Levi was friendly, likable, knowledgeable, and gave us so much valuable information and insight into Panamanian culture, history, and architecture. This tour had it all and we highly recommend you request Levi for your tour guide!!!

The viewing at the Canal...

Calvin_P, Mar 2024

The viewing at the Canal was great.. Our guide timed it so we would view a ship going through the canal. Which was interesting. We did not have enough time to watch the Imax movie. We stopped for a nice lunch in Panama city. Did not have time for museum nor seeing much of the city. We got lost a fun times and had to stop for gas Not the quality tour we would have expected from viator. All of the other tours we have gone on with viator have been wonderful.

Great experience but too expensive.

Thelma_Z, Feb 2024

Our guide was great, very informative, catered to us and took good care of us. The amount we paid was too high compared to other alternatives. Although we had a great experience, we could have done this excursion much cheaper via taxi.

Great private driver and tour

Corry_F, Dec 2023

Alberto was a very conscientious and knowledgeable driver and guide. We really enjoyed his kind nature and ability to listen to his customers desires and respond appropriately. Well done.

A++++++

Diana_R, Jan 2023

Kevin knew just how to get to our stops the fastest way, made sure we arrived early to beat the crowds, and was knowledgeable about all our stops. We also had a great time talking to him because he was from Boston and has lived in Panama for almost 20 years.

Great Tour!

jfshape, Jan 2023

Levi was our FANTASTIC guide. We were two couples and his car was comfortable, he was personable, and very knowledgeable about Panama and its people. We were lucky to arrive at the Miraflores Lock visitor center to see two cruise ships go through the lock. We had a great day.

Very nice tour

Ronald_M, Dec 2022

Very nice day touring Panama City and the Mira Flores locks. Kevin was great. Very knowledgeable and professional. Easily handled special requests since our tour was private. He even heped pick out a great spot for a local lunch.

Great day in Panama

Tamyra_D, Nov 2022

We had an awesome day. Gonzo, our guide for the day, was very knowledgeable and packed as much into our 6 hour visit as possible and got us back to the cruise port on time. We enjoyed learning all the history surrounding the canal and Panama City. Thanks so much!

An excellent private tour

nanjm26, Nov 2019

My friend and I booked this tour in February, 2019. All of the tours that we would have taken through our cruise ship were already booked. We decided that for a little money more, we'd get a private tour. They opened up more groups on the shore excursions, but we stuck with our decision to go through Viator. Our tour guide was Nicholas Guerrero. He was excellent. He gave us the history of Panama City, the canal and some of the cultures of the people while driving. His English was excellent. He answered all of our questions thoroughly. We did a walking tour of the old city. Nicholas also found shops for particular souvenirs that we were looking for. After an authentic Panamanian lunch, we drove to a nature center. Nicholas used to work there and was a naturalist guide, so we learned about the animals and got great pictures of the sloths. Afterwards we toured the Miraflores visitor center to see and understand the workings of the canal. Watching the ships in the locks was fantastic. When we were finished, Nicholas took us back to our ship. The next day we sailed through the canal. It was exciting to observe the things we had seen the day before from the comfort of the balcony in our stateroom. I highly recommend this tour and Nicholas as a guide!

This was an amazing tour! Gonzo was...

Anne_P, Mar 2018

This was an amazing tour! Gonzo was so informative and personable. He picked us up at the port. His English was perfect as if he grew up in US but he was born and raised in Panama and provided tons of great information about growing up in Panama. We drove through a rainforest and heard the history of panama canal. The locks were so cool to see from above and we watched a few ships pass through while we toured the museum. We saw some great views of panama city and stopped at an animal reserve area to see turtles, frogs, lizards, fish, etc. We saw a number of sloths sleeping and on the way out saw a very active sloth. Yes ACTIVE. Crawling through branches, eating leaves, etc. That was a super highlight. More views then we parked in Panama City. Gonzo took us on a very informative walking tour. We had a great lunch at local restaurant. Did some shopping for local crafts. He then took us to our hotel by airport. We HIGHLY RECOMMEND this tour and ask for Gonzo! You will not be disappointed. Hope to be back sometime soon.

Juan provided a great tour. He...

Pam R, Jan 2018

Juan provided a great tour. He provided the history of Panama, Panama City and Colon. He also provided information related to standard of living in Panama. We were able to eat at a local restaurant - the food was excellent. We spent time at the canal, old town and new town and many other areas. We were on a cruise and Juan's tour covered two tours that were provided by the cruise line. He provided history of the canal and gave us a tour of the previous US base. The van was good as well. Very clean. We would highly recommend this tour.

Tour guide Gonzo was great, but they...

batt812, Oct 2017

Tour guide Gonzo was great, but they need to show up on time, not 1 hour and twenty minutes late. They need to offer some cold bottled water on the tour.

We were picked up right at the port...

james_g, Mar 2017

We were picked up right at the port terminal and driven straight to Panama City. Toured the old city and then taken to the canal locks. Edgardo was very good at telling us the history of the area and canal. Highly recommend the tour.

Bust never rip off again viarto

Karlheinz_Z, Mar 2026

Tourist trap,no service provided,will file suit,were not picked up,but claimed to have been on site, Driver claims to have been at the location at the time! lie, fraud, has collected 500€ for nothing

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Response from Host, Mar 2026

Cancelling a tour on the same day it is scheduled is not possible under our policy. Due to the false statements and defamatory accusations you have made, you have been added to the blacklist shared among European tour operators. We will not accept any future bookings from you. Our guide and driver waited at the agreed meeting point for more than three hours. Claiming that nobody was there, or that you called and sent messages, is simply not accurate. We did not receive any calls or messages, and no proof of such attempts has been provided. For this reason, the booking is considered a no-show and no refund can be issued.

Esperienza fantastica

Daniele_L, Feb 2024

Giornata bellissima e guida molto gentile e disponibile.Si chiama Jorge e ci ha fatto vedere tutto quello che gli abbiamo chiesto! Abbiamo vissuto una giornata splendida e siamo entrati nello "spirito" di Panama.... Consiglio vivamente questa esperienza! Un pò costosa ma ne vale assolutamente la pena!