Panama or Costa Rica? Which country in Central America should you travel to next…? They are both internationally known as great travel destinations, but is one better than the other? We will explore everything about them and try to figure out if you should travel to Panama or to Costa Rica.
The two countries offer a wide range of activities for travelers, but they are famous for their beaches, tropical forests, and national parks. We will compare them in terms of the following:
- Tourist attractions;
- Outdoor activities;
- Natural beauty;
- Beaches;
- Culture and heritage;
- Resorts;
- Eco-friendliness;
- Shopping;
- Nightlife;
- Food scene;
- Travel facilities;
- Travel safety;
- Costs;
- Tourist index;
Do you want to learn more about Costa Rica and Panama? Have a look at:
Page Contents
Panama vs Costa Rica – travel edition
Tourist attractions in Panama and Costa Rica
Both countries have more than their share of tourist attractions, with plenty of things to do and see spread all over them. While this is true, we need to explain that Costa Rica probably has more attractions, but they are less diverse than Panama.
In Costa Rica, almost all the big attractions are national parks, nature hikes, and other outdoor activities. There are very few really interesting man-made tourist attractions. In Costa Rica, the most prominent destinations are the Manuel Antonio, the Monteverde Cloud forests, Arenal Volcano, and the whole Cahuita area.
Learn more about the most famous landmarks in Costa Rica
Panama, on the other hand, also has nice national parks, beaches, and mountains, but it has a more interesting capital city with attractions that aren’t available in Costa Rica. Things like the Panama Canal, Casco Viejo, and old Panama… But you also have the paradisiacal San Blas islands, the backpacker’s hub of Bocas del Toro, and Boquete’s cloud forests and hikes.
Have a look here at the most famous landmarks in Panama
For this reason, Panama wins this first topic only by a small margin. However, if nature is the main thing you are looking for, you are probably better off going to Costa Rica.
Outdoor activities in Costa Rica and Panama
Following what we were saying, Costa Rica has to win this topic. It’s not that Panama doesn’t have outdoor activities. In fact, it has many things to do outdoors, with great variety and very enjoyable. Panama is way above the average regarding things to do in the wild. The thing is… Costa Rica is probably the best country in the world on this!
In Costa Rica, you have an incredible variety of things to do in the wild. You can hike a volcano, go to wild beaches, hike in many cloud forests, go bird watching, whale watching, search for animals in the park (and actually see them), go rafting, kayaking, zip-lining, surfing in dozens of different places.
You can spend weeks doing all these, always in different places. It’s just unbelievable for such a small country. Even San Jose offers nature opportunities.
Panama is somewhat similar, it has almost all the above-mentioned things to do, but in less quantity. And to be fair the National Parks aren’t as good.
Mainly if we think of animal watching, on this, Costa Rica is easily a better country. It’s much easier to find wildlife in Costa Rica than in Panama. It also helps that Costa Rica is a tourist destination for a more extended period than Panama, and it also has a more developed tourism sector.
Natural Beauty – Costa Rica vs Panama Travel
Cloud forests, tropical beaches with warm turquoise water and soft sand, national parks with beautiful trails, wonderful mountains… Both countries have them all, and in both countries, they are spread all over.
This is a very difficult call, and I think we will have to give it a tie. If you are looking for a beautiful, tropical country, you’ll be pleased with either one.
The beaches of Panama vs beaches of Costa Rica
One of the big reasons to travel to Panama or Costa Rica is their beaches… But which one has the best beaches? This is a tough call, but if I had to choose, I would prefer the beaches in Panama. Why?
The two most beautiful beaches in the region are in Panama, the San Blas islands (almost any beach there, really), and Pollo Beach in Bastimentos. They are absolutely picture-perfect, with almost blue-fluorescent water, soft sand, and snorkeling spots right from the beach. It doesn’t get better than that.
Costa Rica has many great beaches, some of which have been considered among the best in the world several times. However, we believe they aren’t as good as the two we mentioned above.
Some are crowded (in Manuel Antonio, for example), others are good, but not as amazing as the best in Panama. What we like the most about Costa Rican beaches is that almost all of them are pretty decent, and many are absolutely gorgeous. Costa Rica has miles of excellent beaches for you to choose from.
So, if you have time to explore the whole country, maybe Costa Rica is a good option. You’ll find many beaches to swim, surf and snorkel. However, none are as beautiful as the absolute best of Panama, San Blas, and Pollo beach in Bastimentos. Still, I haven’t been to any beach in the world that is better than those…
You will probably need a tour to visit the San Blas Islands.
Local culture and heritage of Costa Rica and Panama
When it comes to local culture and heritage that you can delve into and explore, Costa Rica and Panama are interesting but not extraordinary.
The Costa Rican are famous for their relaxed way of being and an approach to life where finding happiness is important. As they say: Pura Vida! It’s an easy place to travel and connect with locals. The Ticos are extremely friendly and love to talk with foreigners. The Panamanians are similar and also easy to connect to.
In terms of cultural tourism, Costa Rica has little to offer, and it’s primarily located in central San Jose, where very few people travel to. Conversely, Panama has a few extremely interesting things, primarily found in the capital too.
You have the Panama Canal, one of the most impressive engineering achievements in the world, the ruins of Old Panama, and the Casco Antiguo. Panama City is much more interesting than San José.
In conclusion, Panama has much more to offer in terms of culture and heritage, which is a nice contrast to all the nature and wild you get to explore in the rest of the country. Costa Rica is more one dimensional.
Which is the best eco-friendly destination? Panama or Costa Rica?
Costa Rica is the star when it comes to being a friend of the environment.
Costa Rica takes environmental sustainability seriously and plans to be carbon neutral by 2021 and zero emissions by 2050. These are very ambitious goals, but they reflect how vital ecology is for Costa Rica.
While traveling in Costa Rica, you’ll notice this and all the signs asking for not littering and reducing pollution. Not everything is perfect, and you still find trash sometimes, but Costa Rica is doing the right things and going in the right direction here.
Panama, on the other hand, isn’t close to this level of commitment, but it’s a fairly clean country where ecotourism is perfectly possible, but not to the same extent as in Costa Rica.
Yet, we must mention Coiba island, which is famous for its virgin tropical forest and is sometimes referred to as the new Galapagos. Nevertheless, Costa Rica wins this one by a landslide. If you are looking for ecotourism, Costa Rica is the answer.
Shopping in Panama and Costa Rica
If you love to shop when traveling, you probably should pick Panama, particularly Panama City. Panama City is a modern city with everything you would expect to find in a developed, urbanized area. The Albrook Mall is a huge shopping center with an unbelievable number of shops. In 2015, it was considered the biggest shopping center in the Americas and the 14th in the world…
Costa Rica doesn’t really have an answer for this. San JosĂ© is the biggest town but doesn’t come close to Panama City’s development level. In terms of shopping, Panama wins.
Resorts in Panama and Costa Rica
Both countries have excellent resorts, yet neither is a kind of resort tourist destination, like Cancun or Puerto Vallarta. You’ll find resorts in both countries, and some are pretty good. Still, for that kind of tourism, you’ll probably find better destinations in other countries, particularly if you are looking for all-inclusive resorts. So, we will give this one a tie.
Which has better nightlife? Costa Rica or Panama?
Similarly to what we said on the shopping topic, Panama City differentiates from Costa Rica and Panama. Panama City is a vibrant, diverse, waterfront metropolis, and Costa Rica simply doesn’t have anything close to it. However, apart from Panama City, both countries have few options.
Panama City has many discos, bars, and upscale restaurants. There are options for everyone’s taste and pocket… So, Panama easily wins this one.
The food scene in Panama vs Costa Rica
When it comes to the local food and drinks, both Panama and Costa Rica disappoint a bit. In fact, the food is very, very similar in both countries, and they share lots of dishes. They are also heavily influenced by Mexican and US food. You can easily find fast-food restaurants in both countries.
But which has the best food? We believe Costa Rica is slightly better, although it isn’t a foodies’ destination… not even close. In both countries, the food is very unhealthy, with lots of fried dishes and carbs. It’s perfectly natural to have rice, beans, plantains, yucca, etc., all in the same dish.
So, why is Costa Rica slightly better? Despite being similar, we found the food to have a more intense flavor, particularly in the Caribbean.
On the plus side, both countries have excellent fresh fruit and smoothies. They are also producers of high-quality organic coffee and chocolate.
How easy is it to travel in Panama and Costa Rica?
When it comes to travel facilities, things are a bit more complicated. Panama City is a major hub with lots of flights almost everywhere. While Costa Rica doesn’t have such an important hub, it has developed tourism for longer and receives many flights. Either way, you shouldn’t have problems finding flights to any of the countries, yet we feel that Panama is slightly better on this one.
As per traveling within Costa Rica and Panama, Panama has more developed infrastructure than Costa Rica. The roads are generally better, and the highways are much more developed. This makes travel life much easier in Panama than in Costa Rica.
Yet again, Costa Rica has a more developed travel industry than Panama, with more hostels, hotels, shuttle services, and so on… They exist in Panama but to a much lesser extent.
Overall, this is a very close call, but Panama wins it. In general, Panama has better infrastructure, and that reflects in traveling.
Which is Safer, Panama or Costa Rica?
Both countries are relatively safe for people to travel around. You need to take precautions, as always, but nothing extraordinary. Don’t let your belongings unattended, don’t forget to lock your car, be wary of places with lots of people and bus stops… that kind of thing…
This is a tie; both Panama and Costa Rica can be visited without problems. Nevertheless, it’s always better to have travel insurance.
Which is less expensive? Panama or Costa Rica
Both Panama and Costa Rica are more expensive to travel around than their neighbors in Central and Latin America. They are also more expensive than SEA and most of Eastern Europe.
Between them, Costa Rica is even more expensive than Panama, particularly if you look at tours, shuttles, and Tourism services. Even the food is very expensive in Costa Rica.
On the plus side, in both countries, you can still easily find cheap accommodation (20-40USD) for a couple, and public transport are also very affordable.
In hindsight, Panama has generally similar yet lower prices than Costa Rica. We estimate it is about 10-20% less expensive, on average. So, Panama wins this one, despite not being a cheap destination.
Which is more touristy? Costa Rica or Panama?
Costa Rica has invested heavily in tourism and particularly in eco-friendly tourism. It has been a tourist destination for far longer than Panama. Thus, you can easily see that it has more tourists than Panama. Yet, most of Costa Rica is still pristine and with few tourists.
Panama’s tourism is definitely increasing, and you can see that when traveling around, but unless you expect the country to be deserted, you won’t have any problems with it.
Don’t get us wrong, you’ll find tourists spread everywhere in both countries and in big tourist destinations, like Casco Antiguo and Bocas town (in Panama) or Manuel Antonio and Monteverde (in Costa Rica), you’ll have to share it with other people.
Manuel Antonio is probably the most crowded place in both countries, and sometimes it’s uncomfortable – entering the National Park can be a bit of a nightmare, but once inside, people spread out, and it’s much better.
Nevertheless, it’s very unfair to say that either Costa Rica or Panama is crowded when we think about some of the tourist destinations in Europe, the US, and South East Asia… Between Costa Rica and Panama, Panama is generally less visited.
Our Costa Riva vs Panama verdict
In conclusion, when comparing Panama and Costa Rica closely, we can see that despite being quite similar, they offer slightly different things to travelers.
Costa Rica is still the ultimate eco-tourism destination, with plenty of things to do in the outdoors, abundant wildlife, and excellent beaches and national parks spread all over the country. On the downside, it’s more expensive and lacks a wider variety of things to do, with fewer cultural and heritage things to offer.
Panama, through Panama City, has more cultural and heritage tourism and vibrant urban and nightlife lacking in Costa Rica. Yet, it also has many outdoor activities, wildlife viewing opportunities, beaches, and volcanoes… It has less quantity, but the quality is similar.
Hence, we preferred Panama to Costa Rica, it’s more diverse (and has the San Blas)… but if we had to return, we would return to Costa Rica, as we feel that there are more things to see and do than we haven’t explored… Does it make sense to you…? 🙂
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