gbryan84
Jan 26, 09, 10:32 am
I just returned to NYC from my weekend Mileage Run down to PTY. I know there were a few of you that were asking where I was staying and the condition so here is a brief write up of that and some things I did.
I stayed at the CentroAmericano Hotel on Ecuador st. There is no postal system in Panama and not a lot of cab drivers knew of the specific hotel but they know the area well if you give them the cross streets of where you are staying. I paid $44 a/i for my stay and would say that I don’t regret it but my standards are not that high when staying overnight on a MR. The room was about 10x10 and had an old full size bed, 9" TV w/ cable, and a mini a/c that cooled the room fine. I would compare this hotel to a low level $30/night super 8 or the equivalent. The area seemed safe as the policia patrolled regularly and I didn't feel threatened at any time.
Things to do:
I asked the lady at the hotel which casino she recommended and she said the "Royal Crown Casino" next to the Marriott. It had $2 minimum black jack which I played for a few hours winning a whopping $10. The casino wasn't that crowded but the didn’t allow smoking so I asked the casino host where I could get a Cuban cigar. He told me about this place across from the Marriott called "Havana's." This place wasn’t just a cigar bar but a "wh:eek:re house" too. I smoked my cigar and got a few drinks on the patio and left. Cigars were $7-$20 and Coronas were $3.50. Not sure how much the women were as I declined each one that approached and tried to talk to me.
On Sunday morning I asked the lady at the hotel what I could do for about 3 hours and she arranged a tour of the city with a local taxi driver. He charged $10 an hour and drove me around the city for a few hours speaking broken English trying to explain the history.
Taxi Information:
Taxi's to/from airport ran $20 and you must pay toll's ($1.25 and $1.40). Taxi's inside the city ran from $3-$5 where I went and the tour was $10/hour.
Hope this helps some of you doing the weekend runs down there and if you have any other questions feel free to post or PM me.
I stayed at the CentroAmericano Hotel on Ecuador st. There is no postal system in Panama and not a lot of cab drivers knew of the specific hotel but they know the area well if you give them the cross streets of where you are staying. I paid $44 a/i for my stay and would say that I don’t regret it but my standards are not that high when staying overnight on a MR. The room was about 10x10 and had an old full size bed, 9" TV w/ cable, and a mini a/c that cooled the room fine. I would compare this hotel to a low level $30/night super 8 or the equivalent. The area seemed safe as the policia patrolled regularly and I didn't feel threatened at any time.
Things to do:
I asked the lady at the hotel which casino she recommended and she said the "Royal Crown Casino" next to the Marriott. It had $2 minimum black jack which I played for a few hours winning a whopping $10. The casino wasn't that crowded but the didn’t allow smoking so I asked the casino host where I could get a Cuban cigar. He told me about this place across from the Marriott called "Havana's." This place wasn’t just a cigar bar but a "wh:eek:re house" too. I smoked my cigar and got a few drinks on the patio and left. Cigars were $7-$20 and Coronas were $3.50. Not sure how much the women were as I declined each one that approached and tried to talk to me.
On Sunday morning I asked the lady at the hotel what I could do for about 3 hours and she arranged a tour of the city with a local taxi driver. He charged $10 an hour and drove me around the city for a few hours speaking broken English trying to explain the history.
Taxi Information:
Taxi's to/from airport ran $20 and you must pay toll's ($1.25 and $1.40). Taxi's inside the city ran from $3-$5 where I went and the tour was $10/hour.
Hope this helps some of you doing the weekend runs down there and if you have any other questions feel free to post or PM me.