Booking fee
The booking fee includes the costs of booking your tickets such as charges for payment processing. It also covers the provision of our customer care center for processing your order, and all charges imposed by our suppliers.
* This tour requires at least one of the following per booking: Adult, Senior
Leave behind the exhausting noise of cities and escape to the stunning natural beauty of the Chagres National Park. This unforgettable adventure includes hiking, rafting, camping and transportation on indigenous Embera motorboat. The Chagres River is virtually unseen in the trek trough the Chagres National Park due to the lack of access roads and protection against settlers. This part of the river, characterized by currents alternating with backwaters, is considered as class II, although several rapids are considered Class III by the International Classification of River Navigation. Although it's the natural habitat of big mammals such as tapir and jaguar, it is much easier to spot several others samples of the fauna, such as monkeys of the rainforest, sloth, river otter, iguana, tucan, and plenty of fish.
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Hotel pickup and drop-off
Bottled water
Rafts and gear
Professional guide trained in white-water navigation skills, first-aid and CPR
Lunch
GST (Goods and Services Tax)
Breakfast
Gratuities
Departure Point
Traveler pickup is offered
We pick up from any hotel within Panama City. Also some outside Panama City with an extra transportation fee.
Chagres National Park, Colon, Panama Start at 5am after your picked and taken in an all-terrain vehicle from your hotel to the remote village of San Cristobal.
After enjoying a typical Panamanian breakfast, visit a campesino survival agricultural farm in the Chagres National Park.
Next, hike for about 2-hours up to Rio Piedras. This area is a Chagres River tributary, where you will get into your rafts and begin to float downstream, (Class II-III rapids) floating into the untouched jungles of the Chagres National Park. Keep an eye out for wildlife such as monkeys, sloth, river otter, iguana, toucan and fish.
From late February through early June you might have to hike all the way to the Chagres River (which takes 3-hours) because Piedras River might be to low to raft on.
After lunch, continue rafting further downstream passing an impressive granite canyon with some white water rapid action, and ending just before encountering Madden Lake where you met by a "piragua" (native wooden canoe equipped with outboard motor). Ride in the piragua further downstream to the nearest road where a driver will be expecting you and ready to bring you back to civilization, and to your hotel in Panama City around 7pm. 720 minutes
7F6M+P28, Chico, Panama we will paddle by it at the end of the day
9F89+VFM, Quebrada Candelaria, Panama We will navigate along it at the end of the day
6FG6+MV6, Colón, Panama We will navigate along it at the end of the day
5HJR+WGH, Panama City, Panama we will drive next to it at dawn
Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
A minimum of 4 people per booking is required
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
Sean C
06 Jan 2023
Very challenging and rewarding adventure. Admittedly, it kicked my butt, but I am super glad I finished with my family and friends. Please remind Javier to bring his canteens and water the day prior to the trip as we had to improvise and get containers and coconut water from the locals.
ARBenedetti
21 Dec 2021
Awesome! Due to the river’s history and wild and scenic beauty, rafting the Chagres has been on my bucket list for quite some time and the experience has left me seriously stoked. Our guides were on point with safety throughout the journey and all our transport transitions were smooth and on time, along with the celebratory cold ones at the end!! Thank you Aventuras Panama very much for making this such a memorable adventure.
Crystal_G
06 Dec 2021
Our Chagres Challenge experience was incredible! We saw parts of Panama that we would not have seen any other way. It really was an expedition.
Our group was picked up in the early morning and we drove into the mountains to begin the trip. After a nice breakfast, we enjoyed some off-roading. Our driver was skilled and got us to the trailhead.
We began hiking through the jungle to the river. Our guide Javier had extensive knowledge of the flora, fauna, topography and history of the area. We were able to see lots of animals and learned about the many kinds of trees and plants that exist there. It was a beautiful remote hike in the jungle.
Bring shoes that can get really wet and are ok for hiking. Something like Choccos or Tevas would be ideal but, I wore water shoes with socks and was just fine. You will want something with some grip since the trail is likely to be slick. It is a rain forest.
When we arrived at the river, we relaxed while Javier's team inflated the rafts and prepared the equipment. After safety training we began rafting.
It had been raining more than usual and this made our rafting adventure even more fun as the river was running fast. Our raft operator Fabian was calm, skilled and exceptionally pleasant. We worked as a team with his guidance to navigate the rapids and nobody fell out.
We have all been rafting before and this was unlike any other. Seeing the jungle from the river in the rain was an experience that I will never forget in the best way. The launch point is extremely remote and this meant that we had the river completely to ourselves.
We had a nice meal along the river before transferring to motorized long boats that took us across Lake Alajuela where our van was waiting.
Everyone in our group would highly recommend this adventure.
This tour in
Panama City
is organized by
Adventures Panama
We always double-check the availability with our local partners for each booking. Even though this is usually a swift process, it can take up to 24 hours. Once this process is completed you will receive your voucher or ticket by email. If our local partner is not able to confirm your booking we will offer you the best possible alternative. If the new date and/or time doesn’t fit your itinerary, we will reimburse the full amount paid.
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