kyle

this will be my first trip to Panama. i am from the US and have traveled in many latin countries before. i speak decent spanish. i have a reservation at the Hotel Milan. i understand they run a tight ship at this hotel. is that true ?

i've noticed that many hotels in Panama don't answer e-mails either. i would like a guest-friendly hotel (i'm not banking on getting lucky) with a pool for 4 nights.

i haven't had much luck breaking into the Panamanian way of doing things...

soltero

Yes -- so tight that they will not let you bring visitors to your room. :-)

Emails: yes, very few will answer (unless you go way upscale, like the Executive, Marriott, et. al.). If your Spanish is good, your best bet is to call them.

kyle

thanks. so i guess i may need to switch hotels but i want to stay in the el cangrejo area...

soltero

There are lots of choices in El Cangrejo, most of them more guest-friendly. (By the same token, you don't want something too loose, for your own security.) El Parador, Torres de Alba, Las Vegas, Coral Suites, Granada, Sevilla Suites, Las Huacas, Ejecutivo, Marbella, Suites Ambassador are all in the $30-100 range. In the past, you could even find deals at El Panama and the Veneto -- but probably not now, since there's a shortage of rooms and everyone's jacking up their rates...

kyle

i notice i can't seem to get through to some of these hotels using email. i guess i need to call...

soltero

Right. Like I said. :-)

GordonS

LOL ... Before going to the Decameron last month, I sent a total of 5 emails to them asking about wi-lan availability. Actually got one reply which made absolutely no reference to my question. Since Decameron was a Columbian company, my guess is that the emails went to the Head Office where no one either cared or perhaps understood English. Your best bet is to call. So I had my daughter who speaks fluent Spanish call and she got an answer from Royal Decameron Beach Resort staff which was partly right. So, your best bet is to call or from users of this Forum where I learned a lot more of the nitty gritty than from the websites.

__________________
Gordon and Randy,
Canada

kyle

i need to get this hotel situation straight asap. i just got a ticket from baltimore maryland to panama for 307.00 !!

soltero

Umm, OK Kyle, so what's the problem? Did you call any hotels?

kyle

i'm trying to decide between Sevilla and Las Vegas. i need to decide quickly. i've been searching for feedback on hotels in panama but it doesn't seem to be too much in the way of if single men approve. i mean in Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic we labeled hotels "girl friendly" or all inclusives which meant no visitors.

soltero

Both Vegas and Sevilla are guest-friendly. It used to be that Las Vegas was much cheaper, because they'd give anyone the corporate rate -- but someone told me they've stopped doing that. So, if prices between the two are roughly comparable, I'd choose the Sevilla because it is much quieter (it's very close to the Vegas, but not on an intersection). The rooms are also a bit larger and nicer. You will still (probably) need to call them to verify rates and availability.

But, one more thing: All of these hotels are nice places. While the ones mentioned will not prohibit you from bringing a guest to your room, they will not look kindly on a daily parade of obvious working girls -- mainly because too many of the other guests find it offensive and/or dangerous, due to the perception that those girls hang with a tough crowd. So, please be cool; don't contribute to the notion that all gringo tourists are incorrigible horndogs. :-)

kyle

not to worry. some CR, DR and PR hotels have the same perception. i had a woman steal from me once in the DR so i'm always cautious about bringing women back to my room.....

thanks