2 Best Hotels in Panama City, Panama
ー with Kitchens and Washers ー
Blog >> Travel ー Panama ー Best Hotels
2 Best Hotels
in Panama City, Panama
Speaking of Panama, you probably come up with the Panama Canal! This 80km canal connects the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, and it is an absolutely recommended place to visit in Panama. You will find the 2 best hotels in Panama City Panama on this page!
Panama is located in Central America and has a tropical climate, so it’s hot and humid year-round. Because of this weather, you can get fruits such as mangoes, bananas, pineapples, watermelons, plantains, and papayas at very affordable prices, so you can indulge as much as you want!
Although Latin America might not be familiar to many people, it’s a great place to enjoy Latin cultural music — even played on buses — and unique foods like empanadas and various fruits.
Among Central and South America, Panama is relatively safe. On this page, I’m sharing information about two hotels where I stayed in Panama. Both hotels feature a kitchen and a washing machine, with the second hotel also offering a dryer. This makes it incredibly convenient to prepare meals and do laundry while traveling, providing a more comfortable and home-like experience.
If you plan a trip to Panama, please consider the following hotels! 😊
Table of Contents
- Totumas Lodge
> Basic Information: location, check-in/out time
> Surrounding Area: Tourist spots, Supermarkets, etc.
> Security: Is it safe to stay in?
> My Impressions of staying - La Moderna by Wynwood House
> Basic Information: location, check-in/out time
> Surrounding Area: Tourist spots, Supermarkets, etc.
> Security: Is it safe to stay in?
> My Impressions of staying - Which one is better?
Happytoru is reader-supported. When you click and purchase through my links, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you so much for your support!
>> 1. Totumas Lodge
Basic Information
a
Ave Martin Luther King (Calle del IPA) Casa E-12, Hato Pintado, Panama City, Panama
Check-in: From 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Check-out: From 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
*The time is fixed but it’s adjustable if you contact them in advance!
Languages: Spanish and English
*Owner José speaks both English and Spanish! The staff member, also named José, speaks Spanish and a little English, and they’re very friendly and helpful with various needs!
From Tocumen Airport (PTY), take the metro ($0.85) for about an hour to the 12 de Octubre station, then it’s about a 15-20 minute walk.
*For getting around, inDrive and Uber are great options!
Surrounding Area
a
Supermarkets
- Rey | 12 de Octubre: About a 5-minute walk. It’s a large supermarket that has everything you need.
- Mini Super Hato Dorado: A minute’s walk. It’s a small supermarket that has bread, eggs, snacks, water, and more. Best spot to grab breakfast or refreshments!
- Super Xtra: About 5km. Reasonably priced supermarket, best for budget travelers.
Tourist Attractions & Shopping
- Panama Viejo: About 4 km/2.5 mi.
- Panama Canal: About 19 km/12 mi.
- Albrook Mall: About 9 km/5.6 mi.
- Cinta Costera: About 6.5 km/4 mi.
- Casco Antiguo: About 7.6 km/4.7 mi.
Security
a
Safety in Panama
I’ve been to Panama several times, and I think it’s relatively safe. However, even locals can experience pickpocketing, so it’s important to avoid keeping valuables in your pockets while in the metro or sightseeing. As in other countries, you should be cautious with your phone and wallet to prevent theft.
Safety of Totumas Lodge Hotel
I believe Totumas Lodge is quite safe. There are three levels of security: a gate, the entrance, and your room, each with its own key, and the windows are secured with iron bars — as shown in the photos below — ensuring high security.
In most South American homes, iron bars are installed on windows to prevent attacks. At Totumas Lodge, the owner provides you with keys, allowing you to open and close your room, the entrance, and the gate.
Additionally, since the lodge is located in a quiet residential area, I rarely felt unsafe while walking around, although it can get a bit noisy during construction. Overall, it offers a very relaxed stay.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.
My Impressions of Staying
a
Let’s dive into each of the 3 following points:
- Stay in the Hotel
- Supermarkets
- Transportation Options from the Hotel
1. Stay in the Hotel
- Meals
The kitchen is well equipped with utensils and seasonings, making it perfect for preparing your meals at the hotel. There’s also a beautifully designed dining space, located in a shared area, where you can enjoy your meals.
If you prefer to eat alone or want to share a meal with a partner or family in your room, there’s a table inside the room as well. This lets you enjoy your meals in a relaxing atmosphere in your room.
- Laundry
You probably wonder how to do laundry while traveling, don’t you? Well, no worries! Totumas Lodge has 2 washing machines, drying lines, clothespins, and drying racks.
To use the washing machine, you’ll need to insert a $1 coin. If you don’t have any coins, you can ask José, the friendly and helpful staff, and he might be able to exchange some for you. 😉 If you want to save money, it’s a good idea to do laundry every 2 to 3 days, depending on the amount of laundry.
Just keep in mind that there’s no detergent provided, so it’s best to bring your own or buy some at a nearby supermarket.
Additionally, during the dry season from December to April, the temperatures are high, so if you hang your laundry out at night, it will already be dry by morning. (In the rainy season, however, it may take longer to dry. ) This means you can do laundry at night and have everything ready by morning before going back to your country.
- Comfort
The room has air conditioning, making it very comfortable! However, the shared spaces and kitchen only have fans, so it is hot midday. While it can be hot during the day, there’s a lovely breeze in the mornings and evenings. If you want to enjoy your meals while soaking in the atmosphere of Panama, I highly recommend spending some time in the dining area!
The shower provides both cold and hot water, so you can take a warm shower in the morning or at night when it feels chilly.
Additionally, the hotel has reliable Wi-Fi, ensuring stable connectivity throughout your stay. Each room includes a TV, allowing you to relax and watch series before bed—perfect for lounging around!
If you’re wondering how to use your phone in places without Wi-Fi overseas, be sure to check out the article on eSIMs below! It will make your overseas travel even easier and more comfortable!
September 22, 2024
What is an eSIM? It’s the best way to use phone during your trip. Are eSIMs better than physical SIMs? Absolutely! Using eSIM makes your travels even better and convenient!
2. Supermarkets
When you want to grab breakfast or snacks, I highly recommend visiting the nearby supermarket to experience the local atmosphere and see unique foods!
Here’s a list of the closest supermarkets:
- Mini Super Hato Dorado: A minute’s walk. It’s a small supermarket that has bread, eggs, snacks, water, and more. Best spot to grab breakfast or refreshments!
- Rey | 12 de Octubre: About a 5-minute walk. It’s a large supermarket that has everything you need.
- Super Xtra: About 5 km. Reasonably priced supermarket, best for budget travelers.
In Panama, well-known supermarkets are El Rey, Super 99, and Super Xtra. Super Xtra is particularly budget-friendly, so if you’re looking for a reasonably priced option, it would be better to check out Super Xtra!
If you’re feeling too lazy to go to the supermarket or it’s late at night, you can use an app called PedidosYa. This allows you to order from supermarkets or choose from menus of restaurants for delivery, similar to Uber Eats. While you can pay by credit card, there are times when the system may reject it, so it’s a good idea to have some cash on hand just in case. When you don’t want to go outside, give this a try!
3. Transportation Options from the Hotel
- Walking: The surrounding area mainly has supermarkets and banks, making it difficult to explore on foot.
- Metro: The metro runs north, south, east, and west throughout Panama City. It’s quite affordable, costing $0.75 / €0.69 for a one-way trip. Credit cards are available by touching a machine at the gate. The nearest metro station is 12 de Octubre, which takes around 10 minutes to walk.
Using Uber or inDrive, it takes about 5 minutes for around $3 / €2.75. - Uber: One of the recommended transportation options in Panama is Uber! By registering in advance on the Uber app, you can easily request a ride and pay by credit card. Using uber maximizes your mobility and makes your trip more enjoyable!
- inDrive: inDrive doesn’t offer service in some countries, but in Panama, it’s widely used just like Uber. One downside is that you can’t pay by credit card, but it’s often a few dollars cheaper than Uber, making it a great option for budget travelers! I recommend downloading the app and giving it a try.
*By the way, in Panama, both the local currency, the balboa, and the US dollar are accepted! (1 balboa = 1 US dollar.) The coin colors are the same but the designs are slightly different, so make sure not to use them in the US.
>> 2. La Moderna by Wynwood House
*Note: The hotel name may be listed differently as below on some sites, but it refers to the same hotel.
The different name: Refined 1BR in Casco Antiguo
Basic Information
a
SAN FELIPE,B 10002 EDIF LA MODERNA BOMBA ENTRE CALLE 12 Y AVE B AL LADO DE BOL, Panama City, Panama
Check-in: From 3:00 PM to 0:00 AM
Check-out: By 11:00 AM
*There is no reception, so you enter your room using the key located in the box next to the door. The code of the key box will be informed via email in advance.
Languages: Spanish and English
*If you have any questions, just send an email, and they will respond quickly 😀
From Tocumen Airport (PTY), take the metro ($0.85) for about an hour and a half to the 5 de Mayo station, then it’s about a 15-20 minute walk.
*For getting around, inDrive and Uber are great options!
Surrounding Area
a
Supermarkets
- AMPM | Casco Antiguo: It’s located right next to the entrance door of the hotel. They sell alcohol, drinks, bread, snacks, and more. Since it’s geared towards tourists, the prices are a bit higher.
- El Machetazo | Santa Ana: About 5-minute walk. It’s a large supermarket that has everything you need!
- Super Xtra: About 1 km/1.6 mi, or a 5-minute Uber or inDrive ride. It’s a reasonably priced supermarket. However, it’s located in El Chorrillo, which is one of the most dangerous city in Panama City. So, I highly recommend using Uber or inDrive, or visiting the nearby supermarket mentioned above!
Tourist Attractions & Shopping
- Panama Viejo: About 11 km/6.8 mi.
- Panama Canal: About 8 km/5 mi.
- Albrook Mall: About 5 km/3.1 mi.
- Cinta Costera: 8-minute walk
- Casco Antiguo: one minute-walk
Security
a
Safety of La Moderna by Wynwood House
La Moderna by Wynwood House is relatively safe. However, since it’s located in Casco Antiguo, it can be quite busy with heavy traffic and many people, making it more crowded than the area around Totumas Lodge. To ensure security, the entrance door of the hotel requires you to enter a code for access.
Once you enter the hotel, you can take the stairs or an elevator to the 3rd floor, where rooms are located. You will need to enter a code to open a key box, that is provided via email in advance, and you can enter the room.
Since the area is busy with cars and pedestrians even during the day, it’s advisable to hide the code you enter when accessing the hotel so that it’s not visible to people on the street. A few kilometers west of the hotel is El Chorrillo, which is a quite dangerous area in Panama (refer to “Panama travel advice” by the Government of Canada). Please try to avoid getting too close to that area.
By the way, I went to the supermarket Super Xtra in El Chorrillo without knowing about the area’s reputation, and I didn’t feel too scared while walking around. However, it seems to become quite dangerous at night, so I recommend avoiding going out after dark. It’s also a good idea to check the information on dangerous areas before exploring.
My Impressions of Staying
a
Let’s dive into each of the 4 following points:
- Can’t find the hotel or entrance…?
- Stay in the Hotel
- Supermarkets
- Transportation Options from the Hotel
1. Can’t find the hotel or entrance…?
I struggled to find the hotel for more than 10 minutes as I couldn’t find the entrance… The hotel entrance is located to the left of the AMPM | Casco Antiguo store (check on Google Maps). Once you find the entrance door, there’s a keypad on the right side where you can enter the code sent to you via email to get inside the hotel.
The room key is located in a key box on the 3rd floor, and you can get the key using the number provided in the email.
When I entered the code, it didn’t work, and after about 30 minutes of emailing back and forth, I finally managed to get into my room. The issue was that I had been given the wrong code; once I entered the correct one, the box opened right away. Because of the trouble I encountered, they didn’t offer a discount but instead extended my checkout time from the original 11 AM to 3 PM.
2. Stay in the Hotel
- Meals
The kitchen utensils and seasonings — only oil, salt, and black pepper — are well-stocked, making it perfect for preparing meals in the hotel. Since the seasonings are limited, I recommend buying any additional items you need from the supermarket or the shop downstairs. Plus, you can enjoy your meals while taking in the beautiful views of Panama in the room, which makes for a fantastic experience!
There are two induction cooktops, so in the morning, you can toast bread in the toaster, fry eggs in the pan, and make coffee using a coffee maker. Breakfast is ready in no time! It is an amazing experience to have breakfast seeing the stunning view of Panama from the room or even the balcony. If it’s too hot outside, you can turn on the air conditioning and eat inside the room.
- Laundry
La Moderna by Wynwood House has both a washing machine and a dryer, and they are free of charge! Since they don’t provide laundry detergent, you need to bring your own or buy some at the nearby supermarket.
Dryers offer a fantastic advantage when traveling! For instance, if your flight back home is in the afternoon, you can easily finish washing and drying in the morning before you leave! It takes about two hours for a standard wash and dry. How perfect that you don’t need to do laundry arriving at your home!
- Comfort
The room has air conditioning, making it very comfortable! During cooler times in the morning and evening, you can open the door to feel the breeze and enjoy the view of Panama from the balcony.
The shower offers both cold and hot water, so if you find a cold shower too chilly in the morning or at night, you can easily switch to hot water. Plus, there are two options for the showerhead: a fixed one above and a handheld one, so you can choose whichever you prefer!
There are several bars around the hotel, so at night — especially from Wednesday to the weekend — it can get quite lively with loud music. However, since it’s Latin music, you might find yourself wanting to dance along! If it’s too noisy, you can just close the windows and you’ll be fine. However, if you are particularly sensitive to noise, staying at Totumas Lodge might provide a more comfortable experience.
The hotel offers reliable Wi-Fi, ensuring stable connectivity throughout your stay. Each room is equipped with a TV, and once you register with the provided password, you can enjoy watching Netflix for free! There’s nothing better than sitting on the sofa, watching your favorite shows while enjoying the beautiful views of Panama—it’s truly a perfect way to relax!
3. Supermarkets
When you want to grab breakfast or any meals, I highly recommend visiting the nearby supermarket to soak in the local atmosphere and see unique food.
Here’s the information for the closest supermarket:
- AMPM | Casco Antiguo: It’s located right next to the entrance door of the hotel. They sell alcohol, drinks, bread, snacks, and more. Since it’s geared towards tourists, the prices are a bit higher.
- El Machetazo | Snata Ana: About a 5-minute walk. It’s a large supermaket that has everything you need!
- Super Xtra: About 1 km/1.6 mi, or a 5-minute Uber or inDrive ride. It’s a reasonably priced supermarket. However, it’s located in El Chorrillo, which is one of the most dangerous cities in Panama City. So, I highly recommend using Uber or inDrive, or visiting the nearby supermarkets mentioned above!
The shop next to the hotel sells bread, alcohol, drinks, snacks, laundry detergent, and more, making it very convenient for any immediate needs. For groceries and household items like food and detergent, I recommend heading to El Machetazo | Santa Ana, which is about a five-minute walk from the hotel. They also accept credit cards!
When you enter the store, you have to pass any large bags and receive a number tag for reclaim at a counter. If you don’t have a shopping bag, you’ll need to buy an eco-bag at the checkout, so I recommend bringing your own if you have one. After you finish your shopping, remember to go back to the counter and reclaim your belongings!
4. Transportation Options from the Hotel
- Walk: The area around the hotel is full of supermarkets, banks, and attractions like Cinta Costera and Plaza 5 de Mayo, so you can have a great time exploring on foot! It’s also perfect for those looking to enjoy some drinks and dancing as many bars are around the hotel and the area.
- Metro: The metro system in Panama runs north, south, east, and west, offering a convenient way to get around. A one-way fare is about $0.75/€0.69, making it quite affordable. The nearest metro station is 5 de Mayo, which is about a 15-minute walk from the hotel. If you prefer, you can use Uber or inDrive, which takes around 10 minutes and costs approximately $3 to $5.
- Uber: One of the recommended transportation options in Panama is Uber! If you’ve never used it, please make sure to register for the Uber app in advance, as it allows you to book rides and pay with a credit card.
- inDrive: inDrive doesn’t offer service in some countries, but in Panama, it’s widely used just like Uber. One downside is that you can’t pay by credit card, but it’s often a few dollars cheaper than Uber, making it a great option for budget travelers! I recommend downloading the app and giving it a try.
>> 3. Which One is Better?
You might be wondering, “Which one is better?” The answer is, “It depends on the person!”
Totumas Lodge is recommended for those who:
- Prefer a quiet area around the hotel
- Want to interact with other guests and local owners
- Want to ask for recommended attractions at the hotel (the owner provides detailed information)
- Prefer to be a bit away from the city center
- Want a hotel with a well-stocked kitchen (including several condiments to cook)
- Desire breathtaking views of the sunrise and Panama City
On the contrary, La Moderna by Wynwood House is recommended for those who:
- Want to enjoy panoramic views of Panama from the balcony
- Prefer free access to a washing machine and dryer
- Want to enjoy Latin music from nearby bars while staying at the hotel
- Prefer to be within walking distance of sightseeing spots
- Want to stay in a modern hotel
- Desire private kitchen and bathroom
- Want to relax while watching Netflix
- Want to enjoy Panama by drinking and dancing at nearby bars
In this post, I’ve introduced the 2 best hotels in Panama City Panama that come with kitchens and washing machines. Each hotel has its unique features, so be sure to choose the one that appeals to you!
Prices can vary slightly across different booking sites, so I recommend checking for the best rates or using a site that you often use.
Have a great trip to Panama!
¡Que tengas buen viaje! (Spanish: Have a good trip!）
During my senior year of college, I created my own website and launched several YouTube channels.
I realized that working for a company for my entire life, just like most students do after graduating from university in Japan, was not what I wanted to do, so I learned how to build a website from scratch through YouTube and online resources, eventually launching my site.
Nowadays, I run a blog that covers various topics, including travel, language learning, tips for living a fulfilling life, and more. I also have multiple YouTube channels where I share videos about travel and practical life advice.
