panama / transit visa

[lmapii]

hey,

i am currently looking for options to cross into panama and stumbled upon some texts saying that without a proof of onward travel (aka plain ticket) you only get a transit visa of 72h.

that is one text i got from a hostel doing all the boat bookings:

We have also recently been informed that people arriving in Porvenir for immigration, with the plane ticket, have been receiving a three day transit visa. This means that if you try to leave by land after this 72 hour transit visa you MAY be charged the $105 tax. This is not in all cases and many people have had no problems, but there are others that have been caught out by this. If you get this visa it MIGHT be possible to get an extension in Panama City. Please remember that we are not responsible for immigration and this is all out of our control. We can only go on our previous experiences.

i mean even if i'd fake a ticket that is just bullsh** for every overlander .. i won't fly out of panama if i'm crossing into it by boat and have my own vehicle but it is just yet another hook for some dodgy aduana officials to try get some bribes out of you.

anybody who done the crossing lately ran into this problem? i mean it is not a problem to cross panama in 3 days but still not something i want to do.

same holds for insurance: did you get any or did you fake your papers and then buy one in panama city ?

thanks so far,
martin

[lmapii]

for those of you who are interested: just got another reply as i was asking which boats would carry motorcycles. their response: currently NONE. only large cargo boats.

Hola Martin

Si esa es la parte complicada, pero lo mas complicado para ti es que ningun barco esta llevando motos ahora, asi que lo mejor que puedes hacer es enviarla en los barcos de carga...

Saludos

[BruceP]

Originally Posted by lmapii

for those of you who are interested: just got another reply as i was asking which boats would carry motorcycles. their response: currently NONE. only large cargo boats.

I believe that is now the case, IIRC they have classed motorbikes as cargo and therefore cannot be carried on the small boats. (But I could be wrong)

[BruceP]

Originally Posted by lmapii

hey,

i am currently looking for options to cross into panama and stumbled upon some texts saying that without a proof of onward travel (aka plain ticket) you only get a transit visa of 72h.

that is one text i got from a hostel doing all the boat bookings:



i mean even if i'd fake a ticket that is just bullsh** for every overlander .. i won't fly out of panama if i'm crossing into it by boat and have my own vehicle but it is just yet another hook for some dodgy aduana officials to try get some bribes out of you.

anybody who done the crossing lately ran into this problem? i mean it is not a problem to cross panama in 3 days but still not something i want to do.

same holds for insurance: did you get any or did you fake your papers and then buy one in panama city ?

thanks so far,
martin

Things change, but I think sense sometimes still prevails. As you turn up at the border on a bike they know you will be leaving with it (in all probability). Alternatively just book a bus ticket to Costa Rica and that (should) cover it.

[lmapii]

keep getting negative replies, also from colombia panama sailing, if even the stahlratte will no longer be carrying bikes (answer pending) that might be it. the prices of the sanblasferry are just way too high ...

y i might get a bus ticket. this seems to become interesting ...

[BruceP]

Originally Posted by lmapii

keep getting negative replies, also from colombia panama sailing, if even the stahlratte will no longer be carrying bikes (answer pending) that might be it. the prices of the sanblasferry are just way too high ...

y i might get a bus ticket. this seems to become interesting ...

Don't let the lack of the boats put you off, fly. It may cost more but in the wider scheme of things, measured against the cost of the entire trip, it is not that much.

When we were there in 2011 it was $902/bike to fly them and (IIRC) $450/bike by boat. We flew because Jean gets sea sick.

[lmapii]

thanks a lot for the replies ! currently not sure whether or not to fly, but seems like an easy option and a greater flexibility in dates

[Petrus]

Originally Posted by lmapii

keep getting negative replies, also from colombia panama sailing, if even the stahlratte will no longer be carrying bikes (answer pending) that might be it. the prices of the sanblasferry are just way too high ...

y i might get a bus ticket. this seems to become interesting ...

Stahlratte still takes motorbikes. We booked for end of july to Panama with two motorbikes.


www.amsterdamtoanywhere.nl

[lmapii]

haha guess i'll see you there then ! i'm on the stahlratte for the crossing of the 31st of july

[billkidd]

Thanks for this good advice.

Who did you fly with? How did you prepare the bike and where.

[BruceP]

Originally Posted by billkidd

Thanks for this good advice.

Who did you fly with? How did you prepare the bike and where.

Girag are the only option as far as I know.

Bike prep; all they were worried about was the screens needed removing

[Peter Bodtke]

Originally Posted by Petrus

Stahlratte still takes motorbikes. We booked for end of july to Panama with two motorbikes.
Amsterdam to anywhere

There has been a lot of speculation on this point, given that the smaller sail boats are currently barred from transporting motorcycles.

The Stalhratte is a much larger vessel at 124 feet in length. I am not surprised that the good Captain Ludwig will continue to move metal from Panama to Colombia and back for some time to come. Passage on the Stalhratte is more than transportation, its part of the adventure.



Be sure to use sun block! A fellow travel got really burnt swimming around while in the San Blas islands. Have fun on the beach BBQ!

[waterlilly]

We just crossed into Panama 2 weeks ago. There was no issue getting a visa for 90 days for ourself, however the bike only gets 30 days.
We went to the customs office yesterday, as our visa for bike expires July 2. We sail July 17 with the Stalhratte. Not an issue, the fellow at the desk said come back July 1st, and we will extend the permit. That they could not do it before then. We chat to a fellow who got his extension 8 days before it expired. So it is alway a conflicting tale.
but extensions are attainable.

got use the when it comes to aduanas. It is the only way to
survive. lol