Colon serves as both a departure port and a port of call for Panama Canal itineraries, with Royal Caribbean, Windstar, and Ponant sailing from October through April.
Colon sits at the Caribbean entrance to the Panama Canal, one of the great feats of engineering and a working waterway still central to global trade. From here, travelers head inland to witness ships rising and falling through the Gatun Locks, a firsthand look at the canal's mechanics that shaped a century of maritime history. The surrounding province opens onto dense tropical rainforest, home to howler monkeys, toucans, and sloths, along with communities such as the Embera and Guna, who share traditions of weaving, music, and craft largely untouched by outside influence.
Most visitors venture beyond the port itself, as Colon's city center offers little for walking exploration; excursions instead travel by vehicle to the canal, the rainforest, or the Gamboa Rainforest Resort, where an aerial tram carries passengers through the forest canopy for close views of birdlife. Boat trips along quiet waterways add a slower, contemplative counterpoint to the canal's grand scale.
Pavlus Recommendations
How our planners would spend a day in Colon.
Watch the Gatun Locks in Action
See massive ships rise and fall through one of the canal's original lock systems, an hour's drive from port and a firsthand look at engineering that reshaped global trade.
Ride the Gamboa Aerial Tram
Glide through the rainforest canopy on Panama's only gondola of its kind, spotting toucans, sloths, and monkeys with a naturalist guide pointing out wildlife at eye level.
Meet the Embera Community
Travel inland to visit an Embera village, where artisans share weaving, music, and craft traditions largely unchanged by outside influence—best arranged as a guided excursion given the distance from port.
