Review: The American Trade Hotel in Panama City

The American Trade Hotel

We stayed at the American Trade Hotel in Panama’s Old Town and loved every aspect of our stay.

The hotel is located right on Plaza Herrera in a restored landmark building and grounds the center of Panama City’s historic district.

We were so fortunate to stay here and really can’t recommend it enough – we took so many photos and will let those guide our review!

Keep reading for our hotel review with a look at their Garden rooms, restaurants, service and more!

Check rates: Hotels.com | Booking.com

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Where to Stay in Panama

Casco Viejo

Spanish for ‘Old Town’, this quaint neighborhood spans just three avenues wide and is entirely walkable in 15 to 20 minutes. We loved the colonial architecture on every block.

One of the interesting things about Casco Viejo is the city’s revitalization. Enterprising developers are transforming Casco Viejo, one grand building at a time, restoring old houses to their former glory. Most of the restoration is geared towards high end apartments, hotels and restaurants.

Panama City

Meanwhile, Panama City contains enough glittering skyscrapers to make you wonder if you’ve traveled to Dubai. It’s ritzy but in our 3 days in Panama, we didn’t set foot once in Panama City and in fact, saw many visitors come to Casco Viejo at night!

Casco Viejo or Panama City?

If you’re visiting Panama City, we highly recommend staying in Casco Viejo over Panama City.

Read more: Panama Should Be Next on Your Bucket List: Here’s Why

The American Trade Hotel

Every city has that one iconic hotel.

For Casco Viejo, it’s without a doubt The American Trade Hotel.

The lovingly restored landmark building dominates the north side of Plaza Herrera and is almost smack dab in the center of Casco Viejo, making for a great base from which to explore.

Book rooms: Hotels.com, Booking.com

Checking In

We flew from New York directly to Panama City. We weren’t expecting to find direct flights, but Copa Airlines offers them a couple times a week – amazing!

Because it’s quite far south from NYC, we landed very late at night so we grabbed a taxi and headed straight from the airport to Casco Viejo. The ride wasn’t bad.. maybe 30 minutes or so?

We checked in and then immediately went to order some comforting room service. Even in the dark, we could tell our room was something special.

We fell asleep immediately.

The king bed was so comfortable and there was even a vintage jukebox by the nightstand, which was a cute touch. Some day I want to get a king bed, we’re constantly fighting over the covers!

When the sun rose the next morning, we got up early to explore!

Garden Room

Our room was categorized as a Garden Room, and had more space than we could have imagined.

From the long entrance way, with ample room to store our luggage, to the separate sitting area and high ceilings, it was more than enough room for the two of us!

But why was it called a garden room?

Private Courtyard

These rooms come with a private, beautiful outside courtyard! It faced the back of the building, so it was nice and quiet – the perfect place to have drinks after dinner or breakfast in the morning.

Funny story about the courtyard…

Our room was at the end of the building, so next door was an entirely different property. After we went swimming one day, C washed his swim shorts and left them to dry on the white wall. Of course they blew away or fell over and we never saw them again.

Why did he do that??? Who knows.

I think he saw the sun shining right on the back wall and thought they’d dry fastest there, so he left them on the ledge. Oh well…

A View Over Plaza Herrera

Meanwhile, in the front of the room, we had a small balcony that looked on to Plaza Herrera. That’s right, these Garden Rooms span the full width of the building!

While the balcony isn’t huge, it was wide enough to walk out on and enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning!

The view was incredible.

Balcony

The front balcony was actually how we discovered a great happy hour spot. See that white building directly across from the room balcony?

One day we heard the sound of people having lots of fun, and realized that the rooftop has a bar and great views to watch the sunset.

So on our last day in Panama, that’s where we went! We grabbed light bites, some fresh mojitos and relaxed until it was time to head to the airport.

Read more: How to Spend 3 Perfect Days in Panama

The Bathroom

Anyway, back to the beautiful American Trade hotel room.

We have to take a moment to mention the bathrooms! The marble vanity, soaking tub and rain shower were straight out of a Restoration Hardware catalog – simply stunning.

Meanwhile the colorful blue tiled floor gave it a nice Panamanian touch!

Aesop Products

Best of all, the hotel offered Aesop bath products.

I LOVE Aesop so this was a treat.

We took lots of long baths, made liberal use of the Aesop bath products and cozied up afterwards in the Turkish bathrobes.

If you prefer a shower, there was a rain shower head too!

This hotel would definitely make for a great Panama staycation.

Cafe Unido

We had a couple meals at the American Trade Hotel restaurants.

There’s the onsite Cafe Unido, which is stunningly gorgeous in shades of white and deep blue. Its one of the few places in the city to stock Panama’s incredible small batch coffee roasts.

Make sure to stop by for a pour over and a pastry!

Read more: 20 Crazy Facts About Panama that You Never Knew

The Dining Room

We also had breakfast and lunch in the Dining Room.

I highly recommend the pancakes – they’re fluffy yet thin with a decadent rich ricotta flavor and topped with fresh strawberries. We also loved their fresh fruit juices!

How beautiful is the decor?

Even if you’re not staying at the American Trade, you can walk in for coffee at Unido or lunch / dinner at the Dining Room. There is a separate entrance straight into the restaurant at the back of the hotel.

We came for breakfast every day, it was so good! And for lunch, we loved their ceviche, tacos and burgers.

The Library

The second floor library and courtyard had some quirky books and decor and I loved the deep green bookshelves! The hotel is a member of the Small Luxury Hotels collection and every inch of the property reflects comfort and style.

Read more: Don’t Leave Panama Without Visiting the Iconic Panama Canal

If your room doesn’t have a courtyard, American Trade also has public courtyards.

The rooms are built on the perimeter, while the interior of the hotel has this gorgeous, airy courtyard space for everyone to relax in.

Read more: The 10 Best Things to Do in Panama

Rooftop Pool

We also spent a couple afternoons soaking in the sun on the rooftop pool.

It’s one of the rare hotels to have a pool in Casco Viejo and its vantage point on the 3rd floor offerings some stunning views of the neighborhood’s classic architecture and dramatic churches.

Make sure to go for a dip!

Check rates: Hotels.com | Booking.com

Is Panama on your travel bucket list?

Visiting Panama – Travel Checklist

Flights | Copa Airlines, the national Panamanian airline, offers non-stop flights from select US cities. We hopped on a direct flight out of New York City’s JFK Airport and arrived 5 hours later. Check for flight deals and routes here.

Accommodation | After arriving in Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport, you can opt to stay in Panama City or head to the Old Town of Casco Viejo. Check here for last minute hotel deals.

We found Panama City to be quite safe and would highly recommend staying in Casco Viejo for its charm and history. It’s approximately a 20-30 min taxi ride from Panama City Airport. Be prepared for a slower exit out of Tocumen International, as they scan all bags with your person (like in Mexico).

Currency | Panama’s currency is pegged to the U.S. dollar and therefore all prices are 1:1. There’s no need to change money and in fact, little need to carry large sums of cash. We were happily surprised to discover that credit cards are widely accepted at restaurants, museums, etc and all our bills were charged directly in USD.

Insurance | Be sure not to visit Panama without travel insurance. Whether you get injured and need to be hospitalized, or your phone gets stolen (C managed to lose his for the second time in 2 weeks), travel insurance will help when you need it most. Get a quote for your trip here.

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Travel Tips: The Ultimate Panama Travel Guide

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10 Fun Things to do in Panama

Activities & Where to Stay

20 Interesting Facts About Panama I Bet You Never Knew These!

Seeing the Panama Canal & Why It's Worth Visiting!

The American Trade Hotel: One of Our Favorite Boutique Hotels

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Review: The American Trade Hotel in Panama City

The American Trade Hotel