Yes, you read it right. I took an extended weekend trip to Panama City, Panama, and spent $350 total. That includes flights, hotel, food, transportation, and activities. This was my least expensive trip to date and I am still shook!!! Here is the breakdown.
Flight
Would you believe me if I told you I only paid $83 roundtrip for this quick getaway? And what if I said I got this price flying Delta Airlines? Well it's true! The price for a 4 day trip from Tampa to Panama City averages anywhere from $250 to $450, with Delta falling around $350 or so. But I only spent $83!!! The key to getting the discounted price is to take advantage of Delta SkyMiles! I applied for the Delta SkyMiles American Express Blue Card back in 2020, when the welcome bonus was 15,000 points when you spend $1,000 in the first 3 months. For most of the year, that was my go-to card with almost every purchase because I wanted to earn points (I never carried the balance from month to month). Since getting that card, I was able to earn a little over 43,000 miles to use when traveling. I decided to finally use my points for my trip earlier this year. I used 40,000 points to pay for the bulk of my flight and only had to pay $83 for the taxes.
For more info on how to make credit cards work for you when traveling, check out this blog post!
Flight = $83
Accommodations
Panama City has a plethora of inexpensive hotel options, with many great options under $100 a night. I went to Panama with 2 friends and we stayed at the Aloft Panama for $285 total. Split 3 ways, that equates to $95 per person.
Hotel = $95
Transportation
The most surprising thing about this trip was how inexpensive Ubers are. In Tampa, a 15-minute ride will cost about $20. In Panama, this same ride time cost less than $5! And Aloft is centrally located so most of our rides didn't take long and typically cost between $2.50 - $5. Our most expensive rides were for the airport just because that is a busier hub, but even that was only $11 each way. Because the hotel was close to quite a few restaurants, we were also able to walk sometimes which saved even more money. Our total transportation cost was $65 which is already low. But because we split in by 3, my cost was only $22.
Uber = $22
Activities
The goal of this trip was to keep it as inexpensive as possible so we did not book a ton of pricey excursions. Instead, we kept it simple. On the first full day, we walked around and explored the historic district of Casco Viejo. Beautiful buildings, cobblestone roads, lots of people (tourists and locals), a ton of stores and vendors, and plenty of restaurants/bars to choose from. Later that day, we decided to head to Amador Causeway for a bike ride ($4 for 1 hour). Riding bikes is one of my favorite inexpensive ways to experience a city. On the 2nd full day, we went to take pictures by the big "Panama" sign at la Cinta Costera and then explored the area over there for a while. We came across another bike rental vendor that had 4-person Surrey bicycles ($12 for 1 hour divided by 3 people) so we decided to go for another ride. Later that day, we went to the Multiplaza Mall. I bought a few items but I won't include those in this budget just because they were things I planned to buy in America anyway. The only tour we had booked was a street food tour but the guide caught COVID and had to cancel.
Other inexpensive or free things to do in Panama include hanging out by the pool, exploring Panama Viejo (the actual original city), visiting Parque Omar, and learning more at the Panama Canal.
Activities = $8
Food
We also tried quite a few restaurants while in Panama. I would definitely recommend the burgers at Esa Flaca Rica food truck (we went twice), the fried red snapper at Parrillada Jimmy, and brunch at Roadster's Diner (all walking distance of Aloft hotel). We also tried Tantalo Kitchen and Champs Elysees. Unfortunately, we did not care for the food at Cafe Coca Cola or Restaurante Brutto.
We heard a lot of good things about El Trapiche for traditional Panamanian food so I was excited to go. However, we didn't get to go because they closed earlier than expected. This was actually a common problem we noticed with restaurants closing fairly early (around 9pm) and the operating hours on Google were often inaccurate (restaurants would open or close earlier that the time listed). Be mindful, esp. as you are making dinner plans!
Food = $133
I told you, $350!!!
So this is what they mean when they say travel doesn't have to be expensive. I could get used to this! Because I traveled with friends, we split the hotel, uber, and surrey bike costs which helped me save money. But even if I went to Panama City as a solo traveler, I would have only spent about $570 which is still really good. I really enjoyed my time in Panama. In fact, if I had brought my work computer with me, I would have extended my trip for a few more days. And I'd highly recommend it to anyone looking to get out and explore while staying on a budget. Have you ever used airline points to travel? What was your experience?
Comments