Renting a Car in Panama: Here's what I wish I had known ahead of time
*Please note: all information below, including prices, is reflective of the time of writing (2019). Feel free to reach out with questions and I’ll happily help however I can.
I can already see the eyes rolling around your head. “I know how to use Google, I know how to drive, I’m confident I can rent a car.” Who am I to judge your driving? But renting a car in Panama isn’t as cut and dry as in other countries. If you look online like we did, it might freak you out (or in our case, question our entire plan). The reality is it can be done and done well for that matter, but let’s back-up for just one second.
Heather and I have this tendency to book plane tickets mere days in advance and just wing it. Panama was no different. Three days out we found cheap flights and decided to send it down to Central America. We knew that we wanted to make it to Boquete and keep our budget tight. We decided that flying from Panama City to David and Bocos del Toro would hit our bank accounts a little too hard, so we decided to rent a car. We thought we had it all figured out, and then we started to read this thread on Trip Advisor. The more we read, the more doubtful we became. The stress and anxiety began to mount, but like any true adventure, we decided that rolling the dice was the best thing to do.
TRIP ADVISOR SUMMARY
Before you spend hours going down the proverbial rabbit hole on the internet as we did, let me sum up the Trip Advisor thread for you.
Renting a car from Tocumen International Airport is a disaster, especially from Hertz. You’re better off renting from National Car Rentals in the city.
The “Tocumen Banditos” are alive and well and prey on customers like a lion in the wild. They will find fake damage, knowing you have a flight to catch so you won’t put up much of a fight.
Accept the damage and contact Hertz from home, you say? Not a chance. You’ll get no help because Hertz USA has no control over Hertz Panama.
Have insurance coverage from your credit card? Not good enough. You’ll be forced into buying comprehensive.
People have shown up to rental car counters off of the estimate they receive online and are suddenly unable to afford the new price, ultimately walking away in tears (this one gave us the feels).
Crazy, right? If it were all true, it would be. But here’s how our experience went:
View of Panama City, Panama
BEFORE WE ARRIVED
Generally speaking, we tend to search for any opportunity to save a dime. Many times that strategy includes using credit card miles. Even if you don’t have any to spare, a quick internet search will show car deals starting at “just $5/day.” It might seem too good to be true at an initial glance, and that’s because it is.
Despite our instincts, we opted to use miles and booked with Hertz at Tocumen International Airport. We had no problems with the reservation process, but at the same time, there were no notifications that this was not the actual price.
AT TOCUMEN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
As we left the hotel that morning, we had prepared ourselves for battle going as far as calling the credit card company to verify their coverage. We were ready for anything that the rental agent could possibly throw at us. There was only one problem… it was as easy and smooth as possible.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
LIABILITY INSURANCE IS MANDATORY IN PANAMA
It’s a national law that all rental cars must carry a liability policy of $20,000. After doing our research, we expected this to be the case and at around $22/day for 7 days, it was consistent with everything we had read. This is where most people get tripped up. Liability coverage isn’t mandatory in many countries, so it is not included in the rates you find on Kayak, Priceline, etc. It’s completely understandable why people get upset… if you expect to pay $75 total and get charged $200+ when you show up, that’s a significant change (especially if you’re trying to use points to cover the cost). Pro tip: Do your research ahead of time. Ask around and know what to expect.
HERTZ ACCEPTED OUR CREDIT CARD COLLISION COVERAGE
If you read through the thread, you’ll see many stories about companies forcing customers into full policies, telling them that their credit card coverage isn’t valid. I’m not discounting those people, however our experience was much different. We were offered full collision, partial collision, or no collision in addition to the required liability policy. We chose “no collision” and they accepted our credit card coverage, no problem. Pro tip: It’s a good idea to talk to your card company ahead of time and print out a copy of the policy.
BE “THAT GUY”
We’re not normally the self-proclaimed Sherlock Holmes kind of people, searching the car for every little scratch with a flashlight, but in Panama we were. The Hertz agent had a form marked up already with the damage they identified and gave us an opportunity to go over it ourselves (joke was on him). We took full advantage, trying to minimize the risk for false damage claims when we dropped the car back off. By the end of our inspection, the form looked more like a paint-within-the-lines picture. Front, rear, roof… we covered it all and they accepted it, no questions asked. Every. Little. Thing. There were A LOT of things.
DRIVING IN PANAMA
Traveling by car is by far our preferred method of transportation, and Panama was no different. We experienced roads that curved their way through the cloud forest, empanada stands at the top of mountain passes, and so much more. After all, the journey is the adventure! Driving is simple, easy and fun. Panama City is chaotic, but nothing more than you’d expect from an extensive urban area. Traffic can get backed up though, so plan ahead! Pro tip: Download the Waze app. The directions are accurate, easy to follow, and Panamanians are religious about updating police locations so you can be sure to avoid the speed traps. We drove from Panama City, up to Boquete, over to Bocos del Toro, and back down to Tocumen with no problems at all.
Driving from Panama City to Boquete through the mountains
RETURNING THE CAR
Beyond the fear that our credit card insurance would be rejected, this part was our second biggest concern after reading all of the information on Trip Advisor. As we walked back into the arrivals hall to return the keys, we again braced for a battle. In reality, it was the easiest part of it all. We were told that tolls would be billed electronically (all tolls in Panama are electronic, so every car is equipped with the proper technology to handle that), and that a receipt would be emailed. After a couple of weeks of holding our breath, the final bill came with no signs of “fake damage.”
Looking for ideas of things to do in Panama? Be sure to check out these other posts:
PRICE BREAKDOWN
Online booking - $85 for 7 days (credit card points used)
Actual cost - $345 for 7 days with 2 drivers and mandatory liability insurance
Tolls - $11.95 (Tolls are only present on roads surrounding Panama City)
All in all if you do your research, know what to expect, and make an effort to really evaluate the car before you drive it off the lot then you should have no problems! Keep in mind that like any other country, things are constantly changing in Panama and although our experience was smooth and stress free, yours might different!
It’s my goal to provide you all with information to help you get out and see the world. Did this accomplish that? Let me know in the comments below and I hope you enjoy your Panamanian adventure!