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Live in Costa del Este / Panama

Panama: people, regions and places to explore

By a Costa del Este resident · Reviewed: · How we make the guide

Living in Costa del Este also means having Panama to discover: a history of encounters, neighborhoods with different rhythms, islands, highland towns and the Canal. Start with its people, then choose where to go next.

Panama City skyscrapers seen across the bay.
Photo: Dr. Thomas Liptak · Credit and license

Panama at a glance

INEC projects 4,645,375 residents as of 1 July 2026. That is a population estimate; the 2023 census counted 4,064,780 residents.

Spanish is the official language. The US dollar is legal tender, and balboa coins have the same value: B/.1 = US$1.

A bridge between the Americas, Panama has 10 provinces and 6 Indigenous comarcas. Its regions range from the Caribbean of Bocas del Toro, Colón and Guna Yala to the Chiriquí highlands, Azuero’s towns and Pacific beaches. The “Pacific Riviera” is a tourism name for a stretch of beaches west of the capital.

Panama basics for newcomers →

Panama in expat and retirement rankings

Panama ranks #1 in InterNations' Expat Insider 2026 survey.

Panama placed first among 31 destinations in InterNations' 2026 survey of expat satisfaction, its third consecutive first-place finish. The result concerns Panama as a country; choosing a neighborhood still depends on your budget, school and daily routine.

First place in 2024, 2025, 2026.

International Living ranked Panama #2 in its 2026 Annual Global Retirement Index, after ranking it #1 in 2025.

InterNations measures respondents’ satisfaction; International Living draws on its correspondents and experts.

Sources reviewed: 18 Oct 2026.

The people

In the 2023 census, 31.7% of residents identified as Afro-descendant and 17.2% as Indigenous. These identities can overlap: a person may identify as both.

The seven Indigenous peoples are Guna, Ngäbe, Buglé, Emberá, Wounaan, Naso Tjër Di and Bribri. The six comarcas are Guna Yala, Emberá-Wounaan, Ngäbe-Buglé, Madungandí, Wargandí and Naso Tjër Di; the first three have provincial status.

The census recorded 249,476 foreign-born residents, 6.1% of the population. The leading birthplaces were Colombia, Venezuela, Nicaragua and China; others included the Dominican Republic, the United States, Costa Rica, India and Spain.

Where the mix comes from

The isthmus route predates the Spanish and brought together Indigenous peoples, enslaved Africans and Europeans. Panama City was founded on 15 August 1519 at Panamá Viejo, destroyed in 1671 and refounded in 1673 at today’s Casco Antiguo.

Afro-Caribbean workers arrived for the 1850–1855 railroad, the French canal project in the 1880s and US construction in 1904–1914. Chinese workers arrived aboard the Sea Witch on 30 March 1854 to work on the railroad; Chinese Ethnicity Day is commemorated each 30 March.

Sephardic families from Curaçao, St Thomas, Jamaica and other islands founded Kol Shearith Israel on 14 May 1876. Colón has long-established Arab and Lebanese communities. The 2023 census counted 3,719 residents born in India.

The Torrijos–Carter treaties were signed on 7 September 1977. The Canal Zone ended on 1 October 1979, and the Canal passed to Panamanian control on 31 December 1999.

Other dates that help tell this history are 30 May, Black Ethnicity Day—a civic commemoration, not a public holiday; 9 August, National Indigenous Peoples Day; and 25 February, the commemoration of the Dule Revolution.

How Panama talks

Spanish is the official language. The 2023 census did not ask which language people speak, so we made an estimate: each resident gets the language of their Indigenous people or, if born abroad, the main language of their country of birth; everyone else born in Panama gets Spanish. This is our calculation from census data, not an official figure.

Belonging to a people doesn't mean speaking its language, so the Indigenous rows are a ceiling. And the table can't see people born in Panama who grew up with another language at home, such as English or Chinese. Even so, the picture is clear: about 8 in 10 residents would have Spanish as their first language.

Our estimate from the 2023 census (4,064,780 residents)
Likely first languageResidents (approx.)Share
Spanish3,324,00081.8%
Ngäbere (Ngäbe people)445,00010.9%
Guna (Guna people)112,0002.8%
Emberá52,0001.3%
Buglere (Buglé and Bokota peoples)24,0000.6%
Chinese (born in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong)15,0000.4%
English (born in the US, Canada, the English-speaking Caribbean, the UK and elsewhere)12,0000.3%
Wounmeu (Wounaan people)11,0000.3%
Naso Tjerdi (Naso and Teribe peoples)6,9000.2%
Indian languages (born in India)3,700<0.1%
Portuguese (Brazil, Portugal and elsewhere)2,800<0.1%
Bribri800<0.1%
Other or undeclared Indigenous people46,0001.1%
Other languages (French, Italian, German, Arabic, Hebrew and more)9,4000.2%

Phrases to get you started

Panamanian Spanish has its own flavor: it flips syllables (xopá, mopri), borrows from English (fren, priti) and has one word for everything (vaina).

¿Qué xopá?
Hi, what's up? It's «¿qué pasó?» with the syllables flipped.
'Tá bien
‘It's fine.’ It also works as a goodbye, and the tone changes what it means.
¡Ofi!
Agreed, OK.
Fren
Friend, from the English word.
Mopri
Buddy: «primo» (cousin) flipped.
Pelao
Kid.
¡Chuleta!
Surprise or admiration, like ‘wow!’
¡Ayala!
Surprise or annoyance.
Chantin
Home.
Parquear
To hang out. A ‘parkin'’ is a party with friends.
Una pinta, una fría
A beer.
Chen chen
Money.
Priti
Nice, cool.
Vaina
Catch-all word for any thing.
Juega vivo
Someone who thinks they're smarter than everyone and angles for an advantage.
Ñapa
A little extra thrown in when you buy.
Camarón
A side gig.
Diablo rojo
A brightly painted bus that started life as a US school bus.

Connected to the world

Tocumen handled 20,981,855 passengers in 2025, almost 21 million; 15,233,812 were transfer passengers. Its network had about 90 direct destinations in August 2026. Copa Holdings’ 2025 annual report lists a network of 84 destinations in 32 countries.

In October 2026, nonstop flights connect Panama with Madrid on Iberia and Air Europa, Amsterdam on KLM, Paris on Air France and Istanbul on Turkish Airlines.

For adult visitors, Migración requires a passport valid for at least three months, evidence of funds of at least B/.500, an onward reservation and a visa where required for your nationality. Its official ordinary-passport table lists visa requirements.

Getting around Costa del Este →

Visas by nationality: official table ↗

The Canal

The Canal opened on 15 August 1914. Panama took full control at noon on 31 December 1999. The expansion opened on 26 June 2016 with the Neopanamax locks at Agua Clara and Cocolí; the original locks still operate.

ACP recorded 13,404 transits in fiscal 2025, October 2024 through September 2025, in its preliminary figures. See the original locks from the terraces at Miraflores on the Pacific side, or the Neopanamax locks and Gatún Lake from Agua Clara near Colón. Miraflores also has an IMAX cinema.

Nature and more

Audubon Panamá records 1,030 bird species through October 2025. Smithsonian research in the country began with its 1910 Biological Survey; the institute took the name STRI in 1966.

Panama has five UNESCO World Heritage properties. They include Coiba, Darién, the Portobelo–San Lorenzo fortifications and the Colonial Transisthmian Route, which has included Panamá Viejo and Casco Antiguo since 2025.

Panama City has been a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy since 2017. Try sancocho, hojaldres and carimañolas; on the Amador Causeway, the Biomuseo is a work by Frank Gehry.

The only recorded tropical-cyclone landfall in Panama was Martha, as a tropical storm, in Veraguas on 24 November 1969. Cyclones can also affect the country without making landfall: Otto caused eight deaths in Panama in 2016.

Other areas to consider living in

City, beach or highlands? These areas offer different starting points for your search.

In Panama City

Outside the city

For walkable family life by the bay, Costa del Este is our pick. If you are looking for a house, start with our Costa Azul guide.

7 Panama City neighborhoods for families →

10 Reasons to Live in Costa del Este, Panama — and the Tradeoffs → · Costa Azul →

Places to explore

Times are estimates from the linked sources, not routes calculated from Town Center. Unless another starting point is given, they start in Panama City.

Caribbean

Pacific

Highlands

Canal and nature near the city

Make a plan

Looking for a house? Costa Azul Take a closer look at Costa Azul as you choose where to live. costaazulcde.com →

Questions

How many people live in Panama?

INEC projects 4,645,375 residents as of 1 July 2026. The 2023 census counted 4,064,780 residents: these are a projection and a census count from different years.

Which cultures come together in Panama?

Panama has seven Indigenous peoples. In the 2023 census, 31.7% identified as Afro-descendant and 17.2% as Indigenous; those identities can overlap. Foreign-born residents made up 6.1% of the population.

What languages are spoken in Panama?

Spanish is the official language. The 2023 census did not ask about language; by our estimate from its data, about 8 in 10 residents would have Spanish as their first language. Indigenous languages such as Ngäbere and Guna come next, and among people born abroad, Chinese and English.

How do you visit San Blas / Guna Yala?

Visit Panamá estimates about 2½–3 hours by certified 4×4 to Cartí, followed by a boat trip. Bring a passport and allow for community entry, boat and accommodation charges. The territory is administered by the Guna Congress.

Are Playa Escondida and Buenaventura public-access beaches?

This guide lists them as private resort communities, not public beaches. Playa Escondida is a residential and resort development in María Chiquita; Buenaventura is in Río Hato. Arrange access or a stay with each resort.

Sources (90)

Consulted in October 2026. Confirm hours, availability and requirements directly before visiting.

Photos

Resized WebP versions; framing is cropped to fit the screen. The sharing image is also cropped. The listed licenses are retained.

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