Car rental at the Panama City Airport

Rent a car at Panama City Airport

With a rental car from Panama City Airport (PTY) your holiday can start well. A rental car is ideal in Panama because the roads are well developed and you can get to remote places that are hardly or not accessible by public transport. Panama is also crossed by the legendary Panamericana (Pan American Highway). Wouldn't it be a great experience to drive a rental car on this world-famous road?

Car rentals at Panama City Airport

The car hire companies' offices at the airport are located on the ground floor, public area Arrivals, opposite the information desk for taxis.

• Budget
• ACE Rent A Car
• Express
• Economica
• Eurocar Rental
• National
• Alamo
• Payless
• Avis
• Sixt
• Hertz
• Dollar
• Thrifty

Arrival and departure at Panama City Airport

Panama Airport can be reached either via the South Corridor toll road or the normal Avenida Domingo Diaz / Via Tocumen road. The journey time via the toll road is approximately 20 minutes, and about one hour via the regular road. 

General information about Panama City Airport

Panama Airport (PTY), also known as Tocumen International Airport (Spanish: Aeropuerto Internacional de Tocumen), is an international airport near Tocumen, about 24 km east of the capital Panama City. Panama City International Airport in Tocumen is considered a regionally important aviation hub in the Caribbean, South, North and Central America and offers routes to several major European cities. It serves as a basis for the Panamanian airline Copa Airlines. Tocumen International Airport is currently the busiest airport in Central America.

One of the world's longest non-stop flights to Panama Tocumen Airport was planned for 2016. Emirates was to fly a Boeing 777-200LR from Dubai to Panama City. The distance of the flight is 7,463 nautical miles or 13,821 kilometres. However, the flight route has been postponed several times and has not yet been introduced; Emirates now flies to Rio de Janeiro airport in Brazil.

Facilities at Panama City Airport

There is a bank and ATMs in the departure area, level 100 (ground floor). There are also several exchange offices.

Free Wi-Fi Internet access is available for 2 hours in the entire airport building, as well as public telephones throughout the airport.

Restaurants with international and local Panamanian cuisine as well as cafés, snack bars and fast-food outlets are present throughout the airport, both in the public area and after security checkpoints. Most of the facilities for eating and drinking are grouped in a separate "food court" floor/level.

In the departure area of the airport there are a variety of shops selling clothing, travel supplies, books, magazines, souvenirs, electronics and cosmetics. Several duty-free shops are also available.

There are porters who can help you. Trolleys are also available, but only within the security area. A lost property office can help you with lost items.

At the airport there is an emergency clinic, a pharmacy and showers.

Transportation from and to Panama City Airport

Tourists can take the metro bus (Linenbus) from which several lines travel to the airport. You need a rechargeable card, one trip costs uniformly 25 cents. The journey to Panama City takes about one hour.

The Metro Mall offers a free shuttle service from the airport to the shopping mall of the same name. Departure every 30 minutes or hourly. In addition, some large hotels offer a free transfer to the airport.

Taxis for tourists are located outside the airport building. You should agree on the fare in advance and negotiate in any case. The price for a trip to Panama City is between US$ 20 and US$ 30, depending on the destination.

Information about Panama and Panama City

The ease of travel and the variety of impressions make Panama one of the most attractive up-and-coming tourist destinations in the world. In just one week, visitors can enjoy two oceans, experience the mountains and the rainforest, get to know local culture and immerse themselves in lively urban life. The capital city of Panama City is a modern, developed metropolis that resembles Miami. Here, commerce, art, fashion and gastronomy have established themselves.

Panama is known as "Crossroads of the Americas" due to its privileged position between North and South America. The indigenous meaning of the country's name, "abundance of fish", reflects Panama's reputation as a paradise for water sports enthusiasts and eco-tourists. Panama's flora and fauna is incredibly diverse due to the land bridge that links two huge continents. For example, Panama has been named as the country with the most bird species in the world: over 900 different lives here. Panama's many indigenous tribes are still thriving and live in the same old ways as their ancestors, who offer exceptional cultural diversity.

Panama is also crossed by the legendary Panamericana (Pan American Highway). The northern part of the Panamericana ends in Panama. The cities of David and Panama City are located directly on the route. There are currently no construction activities. Temporary endpoint is the small town of Yaviza. Afterwards you have to take a ferry to Colombia.

Panama City is a very multicultural place with a large population from many different parts of the world. Spanish is spoken by most people, and many also speak basic English. Customer service is improving slowly and is surprisingly good in the hotels. But also on the streets, the inhabitants of Panama are mostly very friendly and helpful and like to give advice.

There are great shopping opportunities, from high-end stores in the shopping malls around Paitilla and in the banking district around Via Espana, to real bargains in La Central (Central Avenue, now transformed into a pedestrian zone) and Los Pueblos Outdoor Mall. You will also find many ethnic shops (mostly Chinese and Indian) in certain parts of the city.