Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SAFETY IN THE DARIÉN
For many years the general rule of thumb for
safety
in the Darién has been to draw an
imaginary line from by the Caribbean Colombian border, through Yaviza, to Bahía Piñas,
on the Pacific coast, beyond which you should not travel. Rancho Frío excepted this still
holds; however, due to the occasional flare-up in violence, and drug-trafficking related
incidents in other areas of the Darién in recent years (see
By boat from Colombia
), the
Panamanian frontier police, SENAFRONT, has now placed draconian restrictions on inde-
pendent foreign travellers.
At the time of writing, foreigners were only allowed to travel as far as Metetí, La Palma,
Yaviza and El Real (but not to the national park) without a permit. If you are travelling on
an
organized tour
or with a registered Panamanian guide, they will organize the paperwork
for you. Independent foreign travellers are required to obtain a (free)
permit
from the main
office of SENAFRONT- who are based in Corozal (see
map
), close to the Panama Rail-
road terminal in Panama City (Mon-Fri 8.30am-3.30am; 527 1000), and are likely only
to understand Spanish. You need to take your passport and a written letter, preferably in
Spanish, detailing where you are intending to go and when, and naming your guide, if you
have one. The whole process is supposed to take three days.
Many of those who know the Darién well, including community leaders, believe these
current travel restrictions are overly strict, overstating the level of danger on the ground,
and are unnecessarily bureaucratic. That said, the security situation in the Darién is change-
able, so you should always seek local advice both before and during your travels.
LOCAL GUIDES
Most villages have local guides who will probably only speak Spanish (and their indigenous
language) and will have varying levels of knowledge about the rainforest and its wildlife.
Guiding services generally cost $10-20/day.
ORGANIZED TOURS
Though customized itineraries can also be arranged, all-inclusive tours generally leave
Panama City, the majority from December to the end of April, and include transport to and
around the Darién as advertised, as well as accommodation, meals and non-alcoholic drinks,
activities and bilingual guiding services in Spanish and English. Prices given here are per
person.
ANCON Expeditions
269 9415,
anconexpeditions.com
.
The Rolls-Royce of tour op-
erators, with top-notch bilingual naturalist guides, offering four-day tours to its comfortable
lodge in the Punta Patiño Reserve, with prices to match ($803 assuming two sharing). A visit
to Mogué is included and one of the nights can be spent there, rather than in the lodge, for an
extra $48. Minimum of four people required.
