• Make the most of Panama's excellent shopping. Its position as a crossing point between oceans has made it a major commercial route. Panama City's Central Avenue, Colón's Front Street, newer shopping sectors and Tocumen's duty-free stores have grown as a result.

• Attend one of the many fiestas in Panama's various cities - in particular, Panama City‘s Carnival is superb. This is held on the four days before Ash Wednesday. Others are held to celebrate local patron saints.

• Witness Las Balserías, a Ngöbé-Bugle Indian celebration held in the Chiriquí Province every February, that includes feasts and a contest in which the young men toss balsa logs at one another; those who emerge unscathed may choose their partners.

• Go birdwatching: the country is considered one of the world's best birdwatching spots, with about 950 species. Recommended sites include Soberanía National Park (40km/25 miles north of Panama City), and the Baru National Park in the Chiriquí Province, famous for its Quetzal birds.

• Take a boat trip along the Panama Canal, 80km (50 miles) long. The scenery is beautiful, and the mechanics of the canal fascinating. Crocodiles, birds and other wildlife lives along the banks. Also recommended are bus or train rides alongside the canal.

• Enjoy some excellent diving and snorkeling locations, including: Isla Grande near Portobelo, where there are a number of dive centres offering excursions to the best reefs; the Bocas del Toro archipelago; and the San Blás Islands (off the northeast coast).

• Breathe in the sea air of the island of Taboga, where fine beaches and quality hotels abound. The main method of transport is by water taxi, known locally as panga. A longer trip by launch is necessary to get to the Pearl Islands, which are visited mainly by sea-anglers.

• Go surfing: good locations include Santa Catalina, Venado and Rio Mar in the Pacific and Isla Grande, Bluf and Careneros in the Atlantic; waves can reach 4.5m (15ft).

• Climb the dormant Baru Volcano (3,475m/11,400 ft) on horseback; it is located in beautiful Chiriquí Province, near the popular resort town of Boquete and the mountain resort, Cerro Punta.

• Embark on a tree canopy adventure in the El Níspero Botanical Gardens, where participants are fastened into a harness, pulled up to the treetops and swung from one platform to another in order to enjoy particularly ‘green' views.

See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.