Triple Experience in One Day!

Embera Indians / Gamboa / Summit Gardens

Visit:

A.) EMBERA VILLAGE AT GAMBOA (open link) Embera Ella Puru

B.) GAMBOA RAIN FOREST HOTEL

C.) SUMMIT GARDENS – (open link) Summit Botanical Gardens

Itinerary duration is approximately 7 hours. Departing from Panama City, you will return to your hotel at around 3pm
Tour begins at 7:30am from your hotel. The drive is about 75 minutes. You will get to see the Chagres River and the Gatun Lake because the road boarders the Panama Canal.
8:45am Outboard motor canoe from Gamboa pier to Embera Ella Puru Indian Village.
Embera Native Representative will pick us up at Gamboa Pier for a 7 minute ride with your bilingual guide. Life jacket and 1 bottle of water per person will be provided. Some species of birds and butterflies can be seen.

Arriving at the island where tour begins:
The Ella Puru village members will greet us with a traditional musical dance. After getting ourselves settled, they will be brief with a short talk about their traditions and Embera culture, lifestyle, and local Indian crafts. In the meantime we are fed a delicious traditional meal:

Fried patacones (green plantains) and Tilapia. We will provide one bottle of water per person. Desert will be pineapple or papaya or watermelon.

You are taken to a Botanical garden to learn about the medicinal plants. You can explore the village at your leisure so that you can get an idea of how the Embera Indians live and work, interact with local Indian natives and take photos. Then you can listen to the traditional Embera music. We will then give you time for shopping. Buying is not a requisition, but it will be a great to contribute to the community…..acquiring their amazing handicrafts: woven baskets, plates and masks from palm leaf fibers and carved Cocobolo. Bring some cash in small denominations.

If you want to, you can have a traditional, non-permanent, tattoo done. This costs $5.00. the tattoo is done with fruit juice dye that lasts only 10-12 days.

12:30pm Your canoe is ready to bring you back to the Gamboa pier.

12:45pm Your guide will then take you to the awesome Gamboa Rain Forest Resort to enjoy a fruit cocktail or lemonade with spectacular views of the Chagres River from the Corotu restaurant.

1:30pm We stop at Summit Botanical Gardens. Here you can use the bathroom, and here you can take a 60 minute walk Summit Gardens through a beautiful animal zoo surrounded by gardens. A unique experience.

On the walk you will see squirrels, alligators, owls, coyote, grey herons, gulls, parrots, jaguars, ocelots, margays, monkeys, agouti, pumas, doves, fox, lizards and harpy eagles….whatever nature wants to offer you that day!

2:30pm Drive back to Panama City arriving back at your hotel around 3:30pm.

Things to bring: