Topic Wiki

List of TR's:
Denverite
saw50st8
dvol
dvol Pictures
zow
CGR, CGR #2
itreu001
TripsPls
davidrotts63
yuneeq Contadora (Pearl Islands)
Something Fishy (Cuba)
Something Fishy (Honduras)
Ponash123
PBaruch
Moishes 2/5/24 Panama Extended Weekend



Kosher Food/ Restaurants:
Places to Eat:
Aria
Aroma Café
Darna Dairy/Bakery
Kava
Jeffrey’s Bakery
Pita Pan
Pita Plus
Lula by Darna
Metsuyan
Hilel Sports Bar and Grill- Closed
Darna
La Spezia
Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (including 2 at PTY)
Dr. Sandwich
Prime Grill
Forever yogurt in casco viejo- Chalav Yisroel ice cream - Closed down
NEW - Jerusalem Israeli Cuisine by Chabad in Casco Viejo
Supermarkets:
Superkosher
Supermacardo Deli K


Cholov Yisroel:
If you go onto Kosher Panama Website you can search for Cholov Yisroel by entering Jalav Israel in the search, just be aware if the site lists Jalav Israel and Lacteo in the description, the establishment may have both CY and non-CY so be aware and double check with the staff.
SuperKosher also had a nice selection of CY breakfast/snack/frozen items available.

There is a local chalav yisroel that isn't up to everyone's standards. It isn't up to Chabad as they use a lower kasherimg temperature than the alter rebbe holds.
This is what local chabad down there told me. Don't hold me to any of it please.


Synagogue:

The Jewish community in Panama is mainly in Panama City in the Punta Paitilla area.
You must bring your passport with you to enter the shuls. You can bring your passport over during the week if you are not staying in the eruv. They will make a copy of your passport.

Sinagoga Beth El – Orthodox, Ashkenazi. After Shabbat morning services, they have a full sit down Kiddush lunch.
They also serve breakfast after weekday shacharit.
Contact Asistente al Rabino secretaria@centrobethel.com - Déborah Wizel

Shevet Ahim – Sephardic. proper attire required, denied entry for shorts.

Ahavat Sion –

Chabad -  bracha Karniel goldberg  brachagold@gmail.com

Things to Do:
Panama Canal
Amador Causeway
Old City
$30 cabbie for all day
Panama John on FT cab and tour guide
San Blas islands
En Valle Market
Casco Viejo
Barefoot Panama tour company
Boquete
Biosphere
Miraflores Locks
Ancon Hill (tallest point in the City)
Anton Valley (hiking, waterfalls, horseback riding)
Panama Viejo
MultiPlaza (high-end mall)
Parque Natural Metropolitano
Partial canal transit
Monkey Island boat tour
Rainforest Gondola tour
Contadora (Pearl Islands) - whale watching, snorkeling/scuba on Chipera, Mogu Mogu, https://pearlislandsdaytours.com/
Rainbow bass fishing
Ziplining
Rent bikes along the water
Rainforest
Beach- Santa Clara and punta palmar both 1.5+ hours from Panama City
Indigenous tribes
Coffee plantations in the mountains
Whale watching
City tour (includes animals)
Chargres River Tour, hike to waterfall, visit Embrera Indian Village
Hiking Portabello road
Natural Metropolitan Park
www.therealpanamatours.com
Almiza Tours/ My friend mario http://www.bscpma.com/mfm/aboutus.htm (Website not working!)
Colon
Bocas del Toro
Old city/Casco viejo

Hotels:

Getting Around:
Uber is the best way to get around, cheap and reliable (if you go to the rainforest, there might not be any cars available going back, search before)

Notes:


Please Update the Wiki
« Last edited by moishes on February 05, 2024, 05:12:28 PM »

Author Topic: Panama Master Thread  (Read 300120 times)

Offline LastRowMiddleSeat

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #540 on: September 18, 2019, 07:22:35 PM »
We stayed at the Le Meridian
They were very nice to us on Shabbos walked us up to open the doors without us having to ask
Hotel is clean and spacious nothing fancy
Location is excellent, we walked to shevet achim for all 3 minyanim takes less than 5 min
On Shabbos we walked to Beth El which took 12/15min


Offline PBaruch

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #541 on: September 18, 2019, 10:07:11 PM »
We stayed at the Le Meridian
They were very nice to us on Shabbos walked us up to open the doors without us having to ask
Hotel is clean and spacious nothing fancy
Location is excellent, we walked to shevet achim for all 3 minyanim takes less than 5 min
On Shabbos we walked to Beth El which took 12/15min

Thanks.  Where did you eat on Shabbos?
What do you do after your dreams come true?

Offline Divora M

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #542 on: September 18, 2019, 11:22:15 PM »
We stayed at the Le Meridian
They were very nice to us on Shabbos walked us up to open the doors without us having to ask
Hotel is clean and spacious nothing fancy
Location is excellent, we walked to shevet achim for all 3 minyanim takes less than 5 min
On Shabbos we walked to Beth El which took 12/15min

Why didn’t you go to Shevet  Achim for shabbos as well?

Offline Ploni3

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #543 on: September 20, 2019, 12:21:48 PM »
Beth El is ashkenaz. Others including Shevet Achim are sefardic

Offline Kobe Bryant

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #544 on: September 25, 2019, 03:10:46 PM »
I liked the pool better at JW it was overlooking the bay. I did not think it was old and dumpy. Lobby more elegant. Look at the pics on the webwsite. However, I did not like the bathrooms.
Sortis was very modern but very noisy - like a Vegas hotel. I was upgraded and had a nicer room there.
stayed at JW (including Shabbos) was an amazing experience (very familiar with Shabbos protocol ) .
im assuming you are referring to bathrooms not being so private.
130k for 5 nights.

Offline Divora M

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #545 on: September 25, 2019, 08:11:37 PM »
Just got back from Panama, was beyond amazing.
I find it funny as we were there same time as some other DDFR's , week of Aug 16th,but didn't meet. TR to come...

Did you post a TR yet?

Offline Rechavia

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Great Trip to Panama - Thanks to our guide Alon
« Reply #546 on: October 27, 2019, 05:51:59 AM »
Hi,
My husband, brother-in-law & sister-in-law traveled for the first time to Panama City, Panama!  We were enchanted by the wonderful Jewish Community, beautiful synagogues and the great choices of kosher eateries.
The key to our enjoyment was the hiring of  Alon Levy:  +507 6683-1663 as our tour guide for three days.  He adjusted the tours that he provides to our interests and special needs.  https://en.panamawithalon.com/
BTW Chabad of Panama recommends his services on their website.
https://www.chabadpanama.com/templates/articlecco_cdo/aid/4018942/jewish/Tour-Guides.htm
We enjoyed our stays at the Las Americas Golden Tower Panama Hotel and the Marriott Executive Apartments.  They were quite accommodating and the locations were convenient.  La Spezie Pizzaria was our favorite place to eat though we enjoyed many of the other options.
I hope these comments are helpful to the next traveler!


Offline Divora M

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Re: Great Trip to Panama - Thanks to our guide Alon
« Reply #547 on: October 27, 2019, 08:47:58 PM »
Hi,
My husband, brother-in-law & sister-in-law traveled for the first time to Panama City, Panama!  We were enchanted by the wonderful Jewish Community, beautiful synagogues and the great choices of kosher eateries.
The key to our enjoyment was the hiring of  Alon Levy:  +507 6683-1663 as our tour guide for three days.  He adjusted the tours that he provides to our interests and special needs.  https://en.panamawithalon.com/
BTW Chabad of Panama recommends his services on their website.
https://www.chabadpanama.com/templates/articlecco_cdo/aid/4018942/jewish/Tour-Guides.htm
We enjoyed our stays at the Las Americas Golden Tower Panama Hotel and the Marriott Executive Apartments.  They were quite accommodating and the locations were convenient.  La Spezie Pizzaria was our favorite place to eat though we enjoyed many of the other options.
I hope these comments are helpful to the next traveler!

Thanks for sharing! We are also booked to stay at the Marriott Executive Apartments, were you there for shabbos?

Online cgr

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #548 on: October 28, 2019, 12:30:13 PM »
We stayed at the Le Meridian
They were very nice to us on Shabbos walked us up to open the doors without us having to ask
Hotel is clean and spacious nothing fancy
Location is excellent, we walked to shevet achim for all 3 minyanim takes less than 5 min
On Shabbos we walked to Beth El which took 12/15min

We stayed at the Le Meridien as well. Personally I'd recommend staying closer to kosher food. There are other good options close by, so all you gain is Uber rides in traffic by staying at the Le Meridien.

Offline Ploni3

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #549 on: October 31, 2019, 12:37:35 AM »
These choices depend on your priorities. We stayed at the Hilton and very much appreciated the ocean views from the room, rather than the city views that you get the hotels closer to food (except the JW Marriott - whose rooms were much smaller and with an open bathroom concept).  The uber rides to food were $2-3 and in the more than ten times we made those trips we only had to deal with a bit of tough traffic once or twice.

Offline deals

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #550 on: November 07, 2019, 12:27:15 PM »
anyone has any info about babysitting a 10 month old ?

Offline Divora M

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #551 on: November 11, 2019, 03:53:28 PM »
I just had a horrible experience with Sorhay (the real Panama tour). She quoted me a price for two different tours and then when I was ready to pay she raised the price hundreds of dollars claiming she never gave me that price even though I sent her the messages proving it. She was extremely rude and even when she had to admit she gave me those prices she said it was a mistake and she will not honor it. I am glad I got to see her true colors before going on full day tours with her. She really came off to me as a horrible person.

Offline PBaruch

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #552 on: November 11, 2019, 04:53:33 PM »
I just had a horrible experience with Sorhay (the real Panama tour). She quoted me a price for two different tours and then when I was ready to pay she raised the price hundreds of dollars claiming she never gave me that price even though I sent her the messages proving it. She was extremely rude and even when she had to admit she gave me those prices she said it was a mistake and she will not honor it. I am glad I got to see her true colors before going on full day tours with her. She really came off to me as a horrible person.

Wow - we were going to book her for various tours in January.  Everyone else always spoke well of her.
What do you do after your dreams come true?

Offline Divora M

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #553 on: November 11, 2019, 05:25:10 PM »
Wow - we were going to book her for various tours in January.  Everyone else always spoke well of her.

I know, I was shocked based on all the reviews. Since the first time I reached out to her she had attitude with me.

Offline Denverite

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #554 on: November 17, 2019, 09:00:33 PM »
I know, I was shocked based on all the reviews. Since the first time I reached out to her she had attitude with me.

Wow that’s crazy, especially that she wouldn’t apologize after you showed her own messages!

Offline chuchem

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #555 on: November 18, 2019, 05:28:19 AM »
I just had a horrible experience with Sorhay (the real Panama tour). She quoted me a price for two different tours and then when I was ready to pay she raised the price hundreds of dollars claiming she never gave me that price even though I sent her the messages proving it. She was extremely rude and even when she had to admit she gave me those prices she said it was a mistake and she will not honor it. I am glad I got to see her true colors before going on full day tours with her. She really came off to me as a horrible person.

I had amazing experience.
People have bad days sometimes, she also.
I understand its fustrating, but its not like a amazon price mistake, she is a hard working human and if she made a mistake, then dont expect her to honour it just because she misquoted
Use someone else, but I dont think a one negative from 100 positive should break her reputation

Offline Divora M

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #556 on: November 18, 2019, 11:36:20 AM »
I had amazing experience.
People have bad days sometimes, she also.
I understand its fustrating, but its not like a amazon price mistake, she is a hard working human and if she made a mistake, then dont expect her to honour it just because she misquoted
Use someone else, but I dont think a one negative from 100 positive should break her reputation

I have been in contact with her for a few months now. It was not a one time occurrence. Her customer service is horrendous. I think all the business she has gotten is too much for her to handle. I am just letting people in this forum know about my experience and they can decide for themselves. I did get a different tour guide who was extremely accommodating  and charged 1/3 of Sorhay's prices. When I was doing research on our trip to Panama I didn't hear about too many other tour guides so for people that don't want to spend thousands of dollars on tours there are much better options for them.

Offline efi

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #557 on: November 18, 2019, 12:18:16 PM »
I have been in contact with her for a few months now. It was not a one time occurrence. Her customer service is horrendous. I think all the business she has gotten is too much for her to handle. I am just letting people in this forum know about my experience and they can decide for themselves. I did get a different tour guide who was extremely accommodating  and charged 1/3 of Sorhay's prices. When I was doing research on our trip to Panama I didn't hear about too many other tour guides so for people that don't want to spend thousands of dollars on tours there are much better options for them.
I agree that she is very expensive compere to the other tour guides

Offline PBaruch

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #558 on: November 18, 2019, 12:38:29 PM »
I have been in contact with her for a few months now. It was not a one time occurrence. Her customer service is horrendous. I think all the business she has gotten is too much for her to handle. I am just letting people in this forum know about my experience and they can decide for themselves. I did get a different tour guide who was extremely accommodating  and charged 1/3 of Sorhay's prices. When I was doing research on our trip to Panama I didn't hear about too many other tour guides so for people that don't want to spend thousands of dollars on tours there are much better options for them.

Who did you end up using? We might consider using your guide. Thanks
What do you do after your dreams come true?

Offline tdb

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Re: Panama Master Thread
« Reply #559 on: November 18, 2019, 01:46:22 PM »
I just had a horrible experience with Sorhay (the real Panama tour). She quoted me a price for two different tours and then when I was ready to pay she raised the price hundreds of dollars claiming she never gave me that price even though I sent her the messages proving it. She was extremely rude and even when she had to admit she gave me those prices she said it was a mistake and she will not honor it. I am glad I got to see her true colors before going on full day tours with her. She really came off to me as a horrible person.

I've had a great experiece with her and would use her again in a heartbeat. She is expensive but well worth the price. Did you speak with her or just text? She can be curt via text message.  I have not heard any negative reviews from anyone that actually hired her.
« Last Edit: November 18, 2019, 02:21:48 PM by tdb »