We booked to stay at the Canopy Tower as we wanted to do a specialised birding trip in Panama and see Mot Mots but we had no idea we would enter the incredible world of visionary and founder of the Canopy family- Raul Arias de Para. On the outskirts of Panama City in the Sobarania national park, Raul has turned a disused US tower into a spectacular place to see hundreds of species of birds while staying at an International level (quirky as well) eco-lodge. The humming birds around the garden, parrots on the tree tops, tamarin monkeys swinging around, howlers...... well, howling!! All of these wonderful creatures take you into a natural paradise to experience nirvana. Read up on the design and colour scheme of the tower on their website and you get a glimpse of the creative genius of Raul. The guides are extremely good at their jobs and clearly love it as most of them have grown up from their teens to young men with Raul, working in the Canopy family. They call birds out of a hat!! Okay not quite but nearly....... it is just mesmerising watching them call birds and know where to find each different species and identify all the 100's of birds you see. They are also friendly with a great manner and ability to keep you enthralled. The kitchen staff are superb at the produce they create out of a small and basic kitchen and are very friendly. Tatiana who manages the tower for Canopy family is great at her job, a friendly and welcoming face to meet when you get there and runs a highly organised and functional ship. As a quirky and unique place to visit, stay in and enjoy nature at, it is a place we highly recommend.
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Date of stay: September 2022
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:All the rooms are great
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette Maria Quesada Hidalgo, Other at Canopy Tower
Responded Dec 27, 2022
Thank you very much for taking the time to write this amazing review. We really appreciate it. We are happy to know you had a wonderful experience at the Tower, which is for sure a magical place. We will make sure to pass this message on to Raúl, Tatiana, and all the staff at the Canopy Tower. We hope to see you in Panama again soon!
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I would give this property 5 stars for the birding experience, The location is perfect beside the Panama Canal, and world famous birding hot spots like the Pipeline Road. Having coffee up on the deck, watching the birds in the canopy is a magical experience. The place is tailored almost exclusively for birders , guides are very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. Accommodation is clean but basic, and the food wholesome and just the right quantity. We met several other guests who were birders, Great hospitality , I will certainly go back.
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Date of stay: April 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette Maria Quesada Hidalgo, Other at Canopy Tower
Responded Oct 8, 2023
Thank you very much for sharing your feedback. We look forward to welcoming you back for another memorable stay and more incredible birding and nature adventures in the future!
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The Blue Contiga suite was a comfortable and roomy place to stay. The en suite was much appreciated when this senior couple had to get up in the middle of the night. The views are beautiful. The stars of the show are the guides. Many have been with theCanopy Family for more than 20 years. The supporting staff was also very accomodating. If you are a photographer, I highly recommend hiring a private guide for some tours. A boat trip from GAmboa is also highly recommended.
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Date of stay: June 2024
Value
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Location
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Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:The green season is wet and humid. Either bring more than one shirt per day or make use of the...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette Maria Quesada Hidalgo, Other at Canopy Tower
Responded Jul 19, 2024
Thank you so much for your kind words, we truly appreciate your reviews, and thank you so much for recommending us. We are looking forward to your next visit to the Canopy Family!
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Wonderful views of the Rainforest canopy. The Canopy Tower is a converted air force communications tower. It is a terrific place to stay for those who love wildlife. All the rooms look out on the forest and he bird guides are spectacularly good and keen to show both birds and mammals to all guests. The atmosphere is friendly and it is really like staying with a family. It is a basic but comfortable hotel with good hospitality. However, you must be able to cope with all the steps up the tower as the dining room and sitting area is on level three and the viewing area on level four, but it is so worth it.
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Date of stay: July 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I enjoyed my trip to Canopy Tower very much. The guides and staff were extremely friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. The guides we worked with were able to find so many different species and worked to help us see the ones we wanted to see the most. Every trip out we saw something different or got a better look at a reclusive bird.
The kitchen staff were really good with dietary needs (gluten free and vegetarian). They always made sure to have a replacement for anything we couldn’t eat. All of the food was amazing. It was so delicious and always too much.
All of the field trips were interesting and we saw so many birds. We also learned more about the Panama Canal and Pipeline Road. I really enjoyed the side trip to Cerro Azul in the highlands to see so many different species. I would definitely do that again.
The night tour was overpriced. Night tours we have taken in the past have been walking tours rather than riding on the truck and we have seen so many different insects spiders, birds and mammals, even the one we did in the pouring rain showed us so much more wildlife.
I really hope to return to the Canopy Family in the future and have nothing but praise when telling others about the experience.
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Date of stay: March 2024Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:I wouldn’t do the night tour. It is over priced.
If you aren’t going to the Canopy Lodge or the...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette Maria Quesada Hidalgo, Other at Canopy Tower
Responded Mar 28, 2024
Thank you for sharing your wonderful experience at the Canopy Tower. We're thrilled to hear that you enjoyed the abundance of bird species and the fantastic places you explored during your trip. We're glad our staff was able to accommodate your dietary needs with no problem. We appreciate your feedback regarding the night tour and will take it into consideration for future improvements. Your satisfaction is very important to us. We look forward to welcoming you back to the Canopy Family in the future, and we greatly appreciate your recommendation to others!
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There is only one Canopy Tower and it took a lot of imagination, ingenuity, and engineering to make it. Rooms are not luxurious but comfortable, showers are good. The view out the window into the forest canopy is great. Jorge is really hard-working, excellent guide that knows the area. the birds, mammals, reptiles, and most of the plants. Equally important he is enthusiastic about being a guide and helping you see and photograph them. The food is not fancy but very good, great fruit and salads. There is no elevator and there are a lot of steps to get to the rooms, dining area, and the roofs. Some of the off-site trails would be difficult for anyone with limited mobility but you can see a lot from the "Birdmobile."
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Date of stay: February 2020
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip:Rooms on the side away from the entrance are quieter.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette M, Resident biologist/communications at Canopy Tower
Responded Feb 24, 2020
Thank you very much for your kind review. We truly appreciate it and we are happy to know that you had a great time at the Canopy Tower. We hope you can visit us again in Panama soon!
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This tour was one of the best weeks of my life! I came to the Tower for a week of birding through Nature Ninja Birding. Carlos was our lead guide, and several additional Canopy Family guides joined in to support our group. Everyone on staff was dedicated to supporting the best birding experience possible: from the guides that can ID birds through sounds that no one else can even hear, to the food allergy accommodations that made the trip possible. Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!
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Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette Maria Quesada Hidalgo, Other at Canopy Tower
Responded Oct 8, 2023
We are truly thrilled to read your kind review. Thank you for visiting us during your birding adventure. We look forward to welcoming you back for more incredible birding experiences in the future! 🐦🌿
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This is such a unique place. An old tower station from the US when building the Panama canal. The rooms are in the towering in a circle as you climb the stairs. We had the blue contingua room with a balcony. Every morning you can go on top and view 360. You are above everything. You can see the ships in the canal. The big city of Panama from a distance. The guides come up with you and show you the birds deep in the trees and all the different monkeys and sloths. Just a paradise above the jungle. The meals are amazingly delicious and different each day. The bird guides are so knowledgeable and know the calls and can spot them from afar. So many birds so little time. Perfect place to visit and see amazing colorful birds with enjoyable guides, a must do. 5 star all the way.
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Date of stay: January 2022Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Jonathan Slifkin, Marketing at Canopy Tower
Responded Feb 20, 2022
Thanks so much for your reviews! We hope to see you again in Panama soon.
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This was the second time my wife and I had been to the Canopy Tower, and, as with our first trip, we saw plenty of birds and other wildlife. The tower itself is just a really good place to be, with a platform in the forest canopy giving a wonderful view. Plenty of birds, monkeys, and butterflies can be seen just from the tower. In the evenings we were fortunate enough to see, separately, a kinkajou, olingo, wooly opossom and night monkey at the feeding station. All the trips were great, again, plenty to see, and our guide (Jorge) is excellent - as are all of the Canopy Family staff.
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Date of stay: October 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette Maria Quesada Hidalgo, Other at Canopy Tower
Responded Mar 21, 2024
Thank you so much for your kind review. We are thrilled to hear that you saw that many birds and mammals. It was our pleasure to have you with us, and we can't wait to welcome you back for another unforgettable adventure in Panama!
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It is hard to beat Canopy Tower when it comes to birding. No luxury retreat, but clean rooms with a good bed and the most amazing birdwatching. All the personnel is passionate about the birds and wildlife. Food is very tasty and healthy (for healthy soup the gorgeous desserts). We only had two nights and spotted over 100 species thanks to the guides and other guests. Also when you are not on the hunt to complete your list, but just enjoy birdwatching, this is a must go place.
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Date of stay: February 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rosannette Maria Quesada Hidalgo, Other at Canopy Tower
Responded Mar 14, 2023
Thank you very much for these amazing words. We are very happy to hear you enjoyed your visit to the Canopy Tower and had a great birding time. We hope to see you in Panama again!
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I didn’t get any vaccinations or take malaria meds. Prevention is the best way to deal with this. Get repellent that rubs on instead of sprays, so as not to harm the butterflies and other insects. Have a great trip .... I myself will be in Portland over Christmas.
There are more places to choose from in the Panama City area.
ALSO KNOWN AS
canopy tower hotel panama city
LOCATION
PanamaPanama ProvincePanama City
NUMBER OF ROOMS
12
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