THE GUIDE - The Rough Guide to Panama - page 147

timum viewing times for vessels transiting are before 11am, when ships are usually entering
the canal from the Pacific, and after 3pm, when they are exiting.
The museum , which serves to promote the Autoridad del Canal de Panamá (ACP) as much
as to inform you about the canal, squeezes both the French and US construction efforts into
the ground-floor exhibition - for more in-depth coverage go to the canal museum in Casco
Viejo . Against a vast montage of historical photos and a soundtrack of blasting dynamite, the
bare bones of the enterprise are covered through impressive scale models and bilingual texts.
Sound effects continue on the first floor as the focus shifts to the biodiversity of the canal's
catchment area, while on the floor above, the spotlight turns to engineering; highlights in-
clude a virtual high-speed transit of the canal, complete with illuminated 3-D topographic
map, and the chance to experience life inside a lock culvert (thankfully without the water).
The centre also houses a couple of thinly stocked cafés, a restaurant and a gift shop.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING: THE PANAMA CANAL
Holiday Inn Ciudad de Saber (City of Knowledge), Clayton 317 4000, hin-
npanama.com . Bang opposite the Miraflores Locks, so you can watch the canal action night
and day, though you'll need an upper-floor room. The well-appointed, spacious rooms have
giant plasma-screen TVs, crisp white sheets, sparkling bathrooms and the usual business
amenities . But you are a long way from the city so taxi fares will hit the wallet hard. Breakfast
included. $120
Restaurante Miraflores Miraflores Visitor Centre, Miraflores Locks 232 3120. Average
and overpriced buffet fare ($31 for lunch, $34 for dinner) play second fiddle to the location,
so reserving a balcony table well in advance is a must. You'll see more canal action if you
opt for the evening floodlit experience. It's not cheap, but it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Daily noon-11pm.
< Back to The Panama Canal and central isthmus
The road to Gamboa
Once beyond the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks, the road to Gamboa (Carretera Gail-
lard) skirts the emerald rainforest of the contiguous Parque Nacional Camino de Cruces
and Parque Nacional Soberanía , both of which have trails to suit hikers, bird lovers and
anyone interested in the Spanish conquest. It then ascends to the continental divide at the
Parque Municipal Summit , before swooping down to the bridge across the Río Chagres,
which marks the entrance to the somnolent canal-era town of Gamboa. Unfortunately buses
to Gamboa, though regular, are infrequent, so that visiting several sites in one day is tricky
unless you have your own transport.