Panama City

Panama City is Central America's financial and logistics capital, a skyline of glass towers standing directly across the water from the colonial old town of Casco Viejo. The Panama Canal anchors a business-travel and corporate-production economy, while Casco Viejo's restored plazas support a growing lifestyle and hospitality content scene. Crews and location scouts work across both the modern financial district and the historic quarter, often in the same shoot day. English is widely spoken in business contexts alongside Spanish, and the US dollar circulates alongside the Panamanian balboa.

Sancocho (chicken and root vegetable stew), ceviche with the day's catch, patacones, and a serious rum and craft cocktail scene in Casco Viejo's restored bars. The Panama Canal is genuinely worth a location day; canal-adjacent shoots need advance permitting. Heat and humidity are constant; schedule outdoor work for early morning or late afternoon. Tipping runs 10%, sometimes included as a service charge. For the country baseline on currency and visas, see /countries/panama.