BASICS - The Rough Guide to Panama - page 61

Visiting the parks
The national parks are managed by the National Department for the Environment, the Autor-
idad Nacional del Ambiente (see anam.gob.pa ). Dealing with tourists is in theory the job
of Panama's national tourist agency, the ATP, but ANAM staff in the regional and local of-
fices, as well as the guardaparques (park wardens) are often very helpful and likely to be of
more direct use.
ANAM offices are generally open Monday to Friday from 8.30am to 3.30pm. If you need a
permit, to book accommodation, or to hire a guide, it's best to drop by the regional or larger
town offices to sort matters out in advance. If this is not possible, you can usually organize
something on the spot - indeed, in theory, there should be a full-time resident warden at each
national park entrance although in practice, it is not always the case.
If you decide to organize your visit by telephoning one of the ANAM offices, ask to talk
to someone in Aréas Protegidas , and note that most ANAM employees only speak Spanish.
With tourism very much a fledgling business in Panama, it may be some time before there is
an integrated approach and anything like standardized facilities across the national parks. In
most places, you will need to ask the park warden, and possibly hire them as a guide since
maps and trail signs are conspicuously absent.
Given the general lack of infrastructure and information and the dilapidated state of some
facilities, the park fees in some locations can seem excessive - though they are substantially
less for nationals and residents. Most places charge $5-10 per person to visit ($20 for Coiba),
plus $5 per person to camp and around $15 for a bed for the night. Charges for the smaller
reserves are generally around $5. However, these minor niggles are substantially outweighed
by the outstanding beauty of the parks themselves, which you can often have all to yourself.
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OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
Both inside and outside the parks, Panama offers a host of outdoor activities, from
swinging through the canopy on a zip line to tracking tapir prints in the mud of the
Darién or lolling on a deserted beach. Some of these pursuits can be experienced as effi-
cient packages from Panama City; others will need to be arranged more informally on
the spot and a few require no organization whatsoever. Already renowned as a world-
class birdwatching and sport fishing destination, Panama's reputation for outstanding
diving, whitewater rafting and wilderness hiking is only just beginning to become estab-
lished.
Several excellent tour operators , providing knowledgeable bilingual or multilingual natur-
alist guides work out of Panama City and offer tours around the country though for the more