Best Times to Visit

Weather

Panama has a tropical climate, with a mean annual temperature of 32°C. The rainy season lasts from May to November. The average annual rainfall at Colon, on the Caribbean coast, is 328 cm, whilst in Panama City it is 178 cm.

Visitors are advised to bring linens and lightweight cottons, with warmer clothes for the highland regions. Rainwear is recommended, particularly from May to November.

A more detailed look at the Panamanian weather can be found at Climate in Panama.

Festivals

The Carnival (Carnaval) held in Panama City on the four days before Ash Wednesday is superb, where the Panamanians dress in costume and parade through the streets. On the Peninsula de Azuero, re-enactments of religious events are held during Semana Santa, the week before Easter. Famous Corpus Christi celebrations are held in Villa de Los Santos, forty days after Easter, when masked people wear costumes depicting angels, devils and imps. A number of smaller festivals are held at a local level throughout the country.

Different ethnic groups organise their own cultural events. For example, Las Balserías, a Ngöbé-Bugle Indian celebration, is held in the Chiriquí Province every February. It includes feasts and a contest in which the young men toss balsa logs at one another; those who emerge unscathed may choose their partners.

Public Holidays

The following table shows the public holidays celebrated in Panama: