"USA to Panama: Seamless & Punctual"

We booked a last-minute trip RIU Playa Blanca with a group of 5 of us early in December. This was our first visit to Panama so we were going in blind.

Amber Moon Taxi came highly recommended from the travel forums. We booked & scheduled everything online beforehand.

Our driver was excellent! He was waiting for us with our name clearly written on a piece of paper as soon as we cleared customs and stepped outside of the airport. (take an immediate right after you go through the automatic doors after the final bag x-ray)

Riu Playa Blanca (Rio Hato area) is a bit of a hike but as our driver spoke fluent English, it was both very informative & entertaining.

The return trip was equally as seamless. It happened to be our same driver again, and he arrived right on time at the lobby of our resort for our scheduled departure. I don't think it could have gone more smoothly considering we had no prior experience beforehand.

A few other things to note:

1. Definitely have WhatsApp installed beforehand (thankfully I already had this) as this is how all of your communication will occur. Basically Whatsapp is how most of central and south America texts via wifi. If you install it it will effectively just link to your phone number so there is not much you have to do to set anything up otherwise. PTY airport offers 30 minutes of free wifi and your resort will typically have wifi as well so as long as you have a wifi connection you can successfully use the app. I would say it was not critical to have it, but they do text you when the driver arrives so you at least know what going on at any given time or you can contact them if something changes with your flights.

2. Traveling to Rio Hato is about 2.5 hours. It is not so much that it is a long distance away, but the speed limit everywhere is about 45mph and you can hit some brief traffic in the little towns along the way depending on the time of day. We scheduled our return trip about 4 hours before our flight took off and that seemed about adequate but probably about the minimum I would suggest. There was not a whole bunch of spare time between clearing the first round of security and the beginning of our flight boarding.

3. PTY is a small airport, and even though getting into Panama through their customs & immigration is a breeze, leaving Panama is a different story. Unlike many international airports, there is a second metal detector / x-ray screening before you can get into your individual gate. No liquids are allowed in your gate area either, so even though it seems you have cleared security to get into the airport and that would normally be the end of it, this is actually not the case. In short, it is impossible to take any liquid you purchased in the airport on the plane with you as it won't be allowed through your individual gate's security checkpoint. (i.e. buy liquor at the duty-free, purchase a bottle of water, or even fill up your own water bottle)

"Good job"

It was nice to know that my ride was waiting despite the late arrival.

"Perfect service"

Perfect service. Our driver was so informative and very nice! Would use for future visits.

"great service"

great service

"Great experience"

Easy booking experience! Driver was waiting with a name placard when I arrived at Tocumen and was very professional. Would definitely recommend and use Amber Moon again.

"Fantastic"

Fantastic, thanks!

"Excellent service"

Excellent service. Our driver was waiting at exit as we cleared customs just as we were told. Very friendly well mannared and profesional. Vehicle was clean and in good condition.
Roberto was the driver of our vehicle and we hope to get him for the return trip to PDX.
Well done guys.
Tom

"I highly recommend"

I highly recommend! The driver was waiting for us at the airport. Our driver spoke English well and gave us lots of good information on Panama as he was driving us to our hotel. You will want to download Whatsapp on your phone, then use the free wifi at the Panama airport to contact your driver when you arrive. It was very convenient to have the service booked in advance.

"Amber Moon provided great services to…"

Amber Moon provided great services to and from the airport, the communication prior to arriving to PTY was very good the company is very reliable and professional. I will definitely recommend to anyone travel to Panama.

"Excellent service"

Excellent service. On time. Nice vehicles. Great drivers. Marcos was wonderful. Found our rental villa in David. Highly recommend.