Slightly smaller than South Carolina, Panama is located in the south of Costa Rica and north of Columbia. The Panama Canal which allows ships to pass from the Caribbean Sea to the Pacific Ocean makes the place famous. This place is spread in about 75,517 square kilometers, and Panama has a huge coastline of 1000 miles. The people here mainly speak Spanish, but most of them are comfortable speaking English too. Panama’s population is estimated to be 3.4 million. It’s the Panama Canal which makes Panama a vital cog in international shipping. A place with tropical weather, Panama has 7 main ports.
Table of Contents
Sea Ports of Panama
1) Port of Balboa
Balboa is on the side of the Panama Canal which faces the Pacific Ocean. With a dry dock, Balboa was found to be the busiest container port in South America in the year 2012. The Pacific Terminal at Balboa is a multimodal one connecting the railways to the ships. The Panama Canal Railway connects Balboa to the city of Colon.
Address: Av. Roosevelt, Panamá, Panama
Phone: +507 207-5130
Website: http://www.ppc.com.pa/
2) Port of Almirante
With a width ranging from 2 to 13 miles, the anchorage at Almirante Port, Panama is guarded by the Colon Island. The bay also has a lot of other islands. This port is mainly meant for handling the banana exports of Panama. There’s also a ferry or water taxi service to Bocas Del Toros from this port. The Almirante Bay falls into a lagoon, the Chiriqui Lagoon in its north.
Address: Panama, North America
Phone: +507 233 997
Fax: 507 696992
3) Port of Cristobal
The port of Cristobal is located in the province of Colon which has a population of 2, 85,429 as of 2017. Named after the Spanish explorer Christopher Columbus, Cristobal is located on the west of ManzanilloIsland in the Atlantic Ocean. While Cristobal, Colon, Panama faces competition from other ports it’s thriving now under private ownership.
Address: Panama, North America
Phone: +507 433 7900
Website: https://www.ppc.com.pa
4) Manzanillo International Terminal
What was once a US naval airbase, Manzanillo International Terminal is today a thriving port. It was returned to Panama in 1977 following the signing of the Torrijos-Carter Treaties. After the port was returned to Panama, it was initially used as a storage zone for vehicles of Latin America. It was in August 1993 that the port that the transformation of the port started with the coming of the Stevedoring Services, America.
Address: Av. Randolph, Colón, Panama
Phone: +507 430-9800
Website: http://www.mitpan.com/
5) Bocas Del Toro
Also known as the Bocas Town among locals, it’s the capital of the province of Bocas Del Toro, Panama. This town is more of a tourist resort and not quite a full-fledged port. Located in the extreme south of the Colon Island in the Caribbean Sea, it’s a thinly populated town. This is actually a transport hub with the place being connected to islands and islets close to it by boats and ferries.
Address: Isla Colon, Bocas del Toro, Panama
Phone: (507) 6474 6884 (Panama)
Website: http://bocasdeltoro.com/
6) Vacamonte
The Vacamonte Port is an exotic tourist hub. The port here receives a steady flow of cruise ships from all corners of the world. Dotted with resorts overlooking the crystal clear sea, Vacamonte has the tourism industry as the backbone of its economy. Most of the people here find employment in the hotels and resorts and many others have their source of income somehow linked to the tourism industry.
Address: Panama, North America
Phone: +507 251 0111
Address: Panama, North America
7) Veracruz Port
The Veracruz Port in Panama is also more of a tourist destination than a port handling freight. The place is known for its many hotels, luxurious or budget. The town offers visitors many activities like diving and is also well connected with Mexico. There are also quite a few fine restaurants here offering seafood.
Address: Avenue Marina Mercante No. 210, 7 Piso, Col. Centro, Veracruz 91700, Mexico
Phone: 52 229 923 2170
Website: http://www.puertodeveracruz.com.mx/
Conclusion
The small land of Panama acts as a port of call for thousands of ships passing through the region due to its strategic location in the Pacific Ocean. While some of its ports are full-fledged freight corridors, the others are beautiful tourist attractions. We hope that our list of ports in Panama comes handy when you visit the place. Do let us know. We hope to hear from you.