We are Lam Tours Panama, responsible for taking you to the sailboat where you booked your San Blas sailing trip.
We have been in the field of land transportation for many years for more than three decades, being the only pioneers in opening trails to reach what is now called San Blas.
Over the years, the Kuna Congress has had control of the vehicles that go up to San Blas daily, and we work like other vehicle owners for the Panama-San Blas-Panama route; all cars are 4X4, and they cannot be buses. Or vans, that’s why the luggage issue is stringent, and everyone should read it. Regarding the water taxis, they can only be Kunas, and they have their prices established for sailboat passengers; since we use Zone 2, further away from the area of the sailboats and Zone 1, they still charge the same.
The responsibility of the water taxi is solely of the indigenous; when entering their territories, there are already established laws for them. We help them collect their money and organize the passengers daily since they cannot communicate with foreigners because of the language.
The cost of the round trip shared ground transportation and shared water taxi from Panama City to your sailboat and from your bar to Panama City is $150 per person.
You will pay the driver of the vehicle when you enter San Blas $75 per person for shared ground transportation and shared water taxi, and when you return from San Blas to Panama City, you will pay the driver the same amount per person. (THESE PRICES ARE FOR ARRIVAL AND DEPART TRANSFERS OF YOUR SAILBOAT.) DO NOT INCLUDE ENTRY FEES TO SAN BLAS OR PORT TAXES.
Shared ground transportation is for six people plus the driver per vehicle.
One pax sits in the front seat, three in the middle seat, and two in the back seat.
If it is your case that you arrive from a flight after 6:00 am, you would have to pay for the transfer of private ground transportation plus a private boat because, by the time you arrive at the port of San Blas, it would be too late to take a shared boat. It is not profitable for a boatman to carry 2-4 passengers so he would charge you for a private trip.
If you want us to pick you up outside Kuna hours, you must contact us, and we will inform you of the steps to follow and the final price.
From the Tocumen Airport, the last time we can pick you up is until 6:00 am, ready to take our ground transportation to San Blas at a regular price; after 6:00, it has another cost. I think it would be preferable to travel to Kuna between 5:00 and 5:30 the next day so you can share all the transfers with others and thus save money. You can also take a plane to get there faster, but luggage is minimal. Therefore, you would have to book in advance.
If the vehicle is shared or private and you stay in these areas of Veracruz ($35), Playa Bonita Dreams ($35), Radisson Panama Canal ($10), Summit Rainforest & Golf Resort ($20), there will always be additional charges for pick up or drop off in those places from $10 to $35 one-time fee, each way for pickup in these areas that are out of town.
If you prefer a private vehicle, please let us know that prices start from Panama City to San Blas or San Blas-Panama City each way on San Blas schedules, including the water taxi for:
– 2 people $290
– 3 people $330
– 4 people $370
– 5 people $410
– 6 people $450
Note: If you have children under five, do not count them as extra children; they are only six years old.