Can I buy good clothes in the Panama City, Panama area of Casco Viejo?

While shopping for clothes in not central to the Casco Viejo lifestyle, there are some notable places in this area of Panama City, Panama:

While shopping for clothes in not central to the Casco Viejo lifestyle, there are some notable places in this area of Panama City, Panama:

There are a few smaller boutique or tourism focused shops in Casco Viejo, so buying clothes in Casco Viejo isn't the easiest task. You are more likely to find a wide range of options in the malls dotting the city (Multiplaza, Multicentro, Albrook Mall) and in areas with decent foot traffic such as Obarrio, San Francisco etc. 

For those looking for a bargain or wear-and-forget pieces, they can wander from Casco Viejo into Avenida Central and check out the large number of cheap...

There are a few smaller boutique or tourism focused shops in Casco Viejo, so buying clothes in Casco Viejo isn't the easiest task. You are more likely to find a wide range of options in the malls dotting the city (Multiplaza, Multicentro, Albrook Mall) and in areas with decent foot traffic such as Obarrio, San Francisco etc. 

For those looking for a bargain or wear-and-forget pieces, they can wander from Casco Viejo into Avenida Central and check out the large number of cheap and cheerful stores that line this pedestrianized area. It's well worth checking out for the uniquely Panamanian experience it provides as well as some affordable vestments.

Casco Viejo is mainly a tourist area in Panama City, Panama, with little arts and craft shops, and lots of restaurants.  In addition you find the Presidential Palace, the National Theater, some nice government office buildings, excellent old churches including the gold altar with lots of history, the "Bóvedas", and charming little cafés all over the place.

 

But talking about places to buy clothes in general, the answer...

Casco Viejo is mainly a tourist area in Panama City, Panama, with little arts and craft shops, and lots of restaurants.  In addition you find the Presidential Palace, the National Theater, some nice government office buildings, excellent old churches including the gold altar with lots of history, the "Bóvedas", and charming little cafés all over the place.

 

But talking about places to buy clothes in general, the answer is no.  The stores in Casco Viejo sell only some folkloric clothes, especially shirts.

 

I understand the term "good clothes" to mean clothes with either high quality or brand names.  You can find these in the Multiplaza, Multicentro, Albrook, Metro or Westland (Arraiján) malls, in other parts of the city.  But there are also plenty of other single stores around Panama City with many shopping alternatives, as well as thousands of casual stores with very low prices.  Just be careful when choosing this as sometimes the size is not the same as US or Europe sizes, and quality could be poor, as could be the neighborhood you visit.  It is better avoid some of them, if you are not familiar. Your best options for shopping for good clothes in Panama City are the malls.

Shopping for clothes in Casco gives you the opportunity of knowing new designers and finding very unique pieces.  In addition, you can find places where you can buy second hand clothes in perfect condition.  Your experience will depend on what you are looking for.

 

There are places like Diablo Rosso where you can find unique clothing pieces from different designers, some of the more expensive ones.

 

Also we have several...

Shopping for clothes in Casco gives you the opportunity of knowing new designers and finding very unique pieces.  In addition, you can find places where you can buy second hand clothes in perfect condition.  Your experience will depend on what you are looking for.

 

There are places like Diablo Rosso where you can find unique clothing pieces from different designers, some of the more expensive ones.

 

Also we have several galleries where people take clothes they don't need and exchange them for something you don't need.  For example, I took a shirt and left it there and in exchange I grabbed some pants I saw and liked or I could have gotten another tee shirt; it's up to me.

 

If you want to buy "mall clothes" the Multiplaza Mall is approximately 10 minutes away and Allbrook Mall is approximately 5 minutes away by car.

 

Casco has some local stuff, but is mostly tourist stuff.. Everyone shops at the mall.

 

Casco has some local stuff, but is mostly tourist stuff.. Everyone shops at the mall.

 

If you live in the Casco Viejo area of Panama City and want to go shopping, it is best to go to the mall. Shopping in Casco Viejo tends to be very expensive. I cannot recommend any clothing store in Casco Viejo. If you want to go shopping for clothes and you like high-end brands, you can go to the posh mall in Panama City, which is Multiplaza (10 minutes away from Casco Viejo by car). If you are getting off the boat with empty suitcases and you want to go shopping, like most...

If you live in the Casco Viejo area of Panama City and want to go shopping, it is best to go to the mall. Shopping in Casco Viejo tends to be very expensive. I cannot recommend any clothing store in Casco Viejo. If you want to go shopping for clothes and you like high-end brands, you can go to the posh mall in Panama City, which is Multiplaza (10 minutes away from Casco Viejo by car). If you are getting off the boat with empty suitcases and you want to go shopping, like most South Americans do, you can go to Albrook Mall (15 minutes away from Casco by car).

 

I routinely have groups coming in from the Cayman Islands and other South American countries that we have to factor in a solid four hours for the Albrook Mall. Albrook Mall has the best prices, which are actually similar to North America. I always tell people that Panama is not really a shopping destination if you are coming from North America, because we have the same prices, but if you are coming from South America, well then, you can bring an empty suitcase and enjoy shopping here.

 

Panama has just tripled in price under the last regime. Right now, the price of clothing here is the same as the price of clothes in the US. If you are coming from the Cayman Islands or any place similar to that where you do not have any mall like most places in North America do, then you can enjoy shopping in Panama. If you are coming from Canada or the US, you would be disappointed in the prices, because they would probably be even higher than what they are at home.

 

You can go to Colon, where the Free Trade Zone (pictured here) is the second largest Duty Free Zone in the world. It is one of the largest distribution and logistics centers of the world. The  largest Duty Free Zone is in Hong Kong and it is really cheap; anybody can go shopping. Here in Panama, the Free Trade Zone is set up for people from South America to come here to shop. They sell goods to Colombians and Brazilians. Taxes are so high in Brazil.

 

Products in the Free Zone are, however, cheap if you buy in bulk, or if you are buying for a business.  For example, if you are buying one million tee shirts and you go to the Free Trade Zone, you will get a good deal. If you are buying one TV for yourself, it may not be worth it because you will realize that you have to pay US $10 of tolls each way, plus the amount you spend on gas and the travel time, and you will only save around $20 on the TV. It actually turns out that you spent more to go to the Free Zone than if you bought your TV at a regular retail outlet. 

 

The prices in the Free Zone on the shelves are set high. For example, I bought a blender in Panama City that costs me more to buy in the Duty Free Zone but less than in the US. So the Panama Duty Free Zone is really geared for people to buy in bulk because then they can take the price down compared to what it would be in Panama City, which would still be more expensive than the price in the US.