Old Panama

Another stop on our Panama Cruise aboard the Emerald Princess was a multi stop at Colon, where we got off the ship and took an all day tour to the Old Panama City bus tour which included a tour through modern Panama and dropped us off back at the port of Colon to get back on the boat. The tour was long, there was a good amount of driving but it was so worth it. The city was founded back in the 1500s and it's amazing to look at the coastline of the modern city across the way.

A UNESCO world heritage site on the must-see list! 400 year old ruins from the sacking of Panama City. The views are incredible, the museum is well done, and the preservation of history makes this worth the quick 15 minute drive

Historical site, definitely enjoyable, you can have a nice view of the city from the top of the tower. It’s a bit of walk inside but they provide transportation from the entrance to the center. Although, for the price they charge, there isn’t much more than just ruins of stone buildings. The museum is decent but not extraordinary.

Visiting Panamá Viejo was like stepping into a really important piece of history. I remember seeing the ruins of the old city and feeling a sense of awe at how much has endured. The stone structures, especially that towering cathedral, gave me a real sense of what life must have been like centuries ago. It was interesting to see the modern skyline of Panama City in the distance, creating this cool contrast between the past and present. Walking around the grounds, it felt so peaceful and historic, and I could almost imagine the bustling city that once stood there. It’s definitely a place that connects you to the deep roots of Panama.

Closed on Monday. Not much to see. Disappointing. You can go on the road along and you will see what the ruins are about. The waterfront is impressive though with this wide plain, many birds and mangroves like trees.

This was a cute stop, but if you are short on time, then this isn’t strictly necessary since there are many other (better) ruins in other parts of the world. With that said, we found the spot to be really interesting to show what the early colonial settlement looked like and we also learned about the ancient burial grounds of indigenous peoples. A few tips for you: after you buy your ticket, keep an eye open for the shuttle carts that will take you to the main parts of the ruins. We were not told about this shuttle service from any of the workers at this site, but we were lucky enough to see it arrive back at the visitor centre just before we were going to start walking along the path to the main ruins. The path between the visitor centre and the main section of the ruins is probably a 20 minute walk but with zero shade and under the beating sun so we would definitely not recommend walking. We did not see any one walk the entire time that we were there and everyone took the shuttle. Once you get to the main site of the ruins, make sure to climb the stairs up to the top of the tower for excellent panoramic views of the city. We also found all the signs within the tower to be incredibly informative. While we are not usually museum people, we actually spent so much time in the museum going over every exhibit because we found it very informative and interesting. If you get sunburnt easily or are sensitive to the sun and heat, we recommend bringing an umbrella for shade since there isn’t a lot of shaded areas around the ruins.

Beautiful ruins with tons of history to see, their credit card machine was not working and we had to go through three credit cards before they realize it was their machine. The experience is definitely overpriced at $17 per entry. But it is a very cool experience. There is a tram that will take you from the building to the ruins and back.

17usd fee for non-residents gives you bus ride and entry to the museum plus free walk around the establishment to see the stone walls remains of the medieval town of Old Panama. The museum has plenty of interesting notes, exhibits and models of the life at the time plus a lot of focus on the battle with captain Morgan.