Unless you have a reason to be out in the boondocks, on a very busy road, then there is no good reason to uses this hotel. Though the rooms were large and clean there is little else to commended this hotel.

It is a $30 taxi ride from both the city and the airport. NOTE: It is NOT an eco-lodge. It is a waterpark on a large piece of property. If you arrive after 9pm there is no restaurant for miles. Their restaurant´s food is sub-par and closes at 9pm.

The touted buffet breakfast consists of bread, fruit, day old pancakes and scrambled eyes. Save your money and get a nice hotel in the city, or, if you are arriving on the Delta flight (9pm) get the hotel next to airport.

After reading several reviews, I went with an open mind. (My trip to the Dominican Republic was hell so Panama couldn't be much worse.) I don't spend much time in my room...my wishes are simple. I need clean bedding, a warm shower, and a bug free zone. I chose the Avalon as a time-share exchange.

The Avalon is a distance from downtown Panama. This was fine with me. I came to see Panama, not highrise, tourist lodging. I appreciated the fact that each venture from the hotel was through the "real" Panama.

My friend and I rented a car--some thought this was a daring adventure--but otherwise, we would not have been able to do much other than stay at the resort. Cabs and buses are scary and would have cost more in fees than the cost of our rental car and required insurance. We traveled much of the canal zone, putting a lot of miles on our car.

The facility was clean and well maintained. I went to the pool, but didn't swim. Not because it was questionable, I just didn't have any desire to waste vacation time swimming when I can do that at home. There were very few visitors during our week stay.

There was a distinct smell when entering the main tower. It reminded me of the cat house at the zoo. I noticed the same smell while on a tour of Barro Colorado--just a persistently damp smell. Our room had an odor at first, but I ran the dehumidifier and the smell quickly dissipated.

I was dissappointed that there was no dishes for leftovers brought back to the room. (My friend eats them for breakfast!) We learned to wash our plastic forks, etc. and made do. Coffee was plentiful and greatly appreciated while getting ready in the morning.

There were condensation drips from the ceiling over the kitchen and bathroom sink areas. Nothing major--and a towel quickly cleaned the water drips from working areas.

The food in the dining room was not good. Breakfast was buffet style and edible, but nothing to brag about. We only ate there once--expensive for what was offered. We had to have dinner at the resort on our last night. It was very poor quality and had to be returned. Our chicken (or whatever the meat was) was chewy, the rice dry, the vegetables overcooked. The french fries ended up being the only thing we could stomach!

Some of the staff was bilingual--it was "hit or miss" as to whether or not the person was able to help. Drawing pictures helped!

Note: cell phones do not work and calling home from your room is extremely expensive. The best bet is to get rolls of coins and use the pay phone. A one minute call to the states is 30 cents versus $2-4.00 from your room.

Overall, we enjoyed our stay and would recommend to others as long as they were adventuresome and willing to leave the resort to see Panama. I wouldn't stay there for any period of time with the intent of never leaving the resort--there just isn't that much to do there!

We spent 2 weeks at the Avalon Grand in Panama City, Panama. The room was spacious, clean and offered a wonderful view of the Panamanian Hills. All rooms came equipped with a refridgerator and coffee maker. We would leave our balcony door open at night and be awakened the next morning by roosters and the plethora of birds!

We had never been to Panama before, except via cruise ship. As such, we entered the Country with open expectations. The Grand is approximately 11 miles outside of the actual city limits of Panama City. At first, we were disappointed at not being in the center of town. However, after just a few days, we think it was a blessing! While we were still at a resort, we were also with the Panamanian people. The natives proved to be kind and generous. More than one native offered his seat a me (a middle aged woman) and many natives gave their seats to nursing mothers. All of the horror stories we had heard about how dangerous Panama is proved to be exagerated. Panama is no different than any other town or city in the world -- some parts you just don't enter!

All parts of the city are easily accessable from the Grand via taxi or bus. You can catch a bus or taxi just down from the entrance of the Grand, or the hotel will gladly call for and negotiate a price for a taxi for you (they negotiated the price and length of time to wait for us when we visited the Bahai Temple, which is also easily visible from the Grand but not within walking distance). Buses in general are $0.25 to get you to the local "terminal". To get to the city then is maybe another $2.00. However, other than doing a "City Tour", offered from the Grand, we were more than pleased to do any shopping at the several malls, all less than 5 miles away and an easy bus ride. Taxis were usually $3.00 from the malls back to the hotel. We found plentiful shopping for anything imaginable, including a variety of restaurants. As long as it's not an American name/brand (Payless Shoes, Campbells Soup, etc.), we found everything very affordable.

From The Avalon Grand we were able to take numerous tours. One of our favorites was the Train ride along the Canal. Included in the price was a lunch and a trip to the city of Portabello, where we were able to see the Cristo Negro. A must see tour for anyone visiting Panama!

The Waterpark was fun but only open on weekends during our stay. However, as guests of The Avalon Grand, we were permitted to use the pools anytime. So, in addition to the waterpark, there are 2 other pools available to guests. We also enjoyed using the nature trail on the Grand's property. The swinging briges were fun and well maintained.

We usually ate dinner at the hotel. This is unusual for us, but we were made to feel so welcomed by the staff and the food was excellent as well as affordable, it became a no brainer to dine. Breakfasts and lunches were also quite good, but we frequently had other tours scheduled or opted to ride the bus to one of the malls where we found many food choices.

Panama is a wonderful country to visit. Full of fruiting trees and birds galore! Our stay at the Avalon Grand was exceptional and we are planning a return trip in 3 to 4 years. Most of the staff spoke English, but for the few who didn't, we were able to make ourselves understood via panamine and our pidgin Spanish. However, we never encountered a taxi driver who did speak Engish. I have so much more to say about the Country and our experience, but I hope that I've at least piqued your interest!

Read the negative reviews and so was prepared for the worst. However, I found the new tower (opened in November and connected to the lobby) to be beautiful, clean, spacious rooms and baths, cable tv and wetbar/refrigerator/microwave. It is located in an area about 30 minutes (traffic wise) from Panama City. But, for us, we loved the fact that we weren't in the center of the city and all the traffic. We have been to Panama before and always rent a car so we drove to the hotel. From there, we could go to the city, to the carribean side of the country, or take Corridor Norte to the canal zone or western part of the country (again avoiding the downtown area). Veronica and Estella (front desk) were beyond helpful. They made our trip, attempting to make everything enjoyable and convenient for us. Never were we approached by a timeshare rep. We were there on a timeshare exchange. Had we paid a room rate, I believe that might have been a little high with all the other hotels that are available. The hotel meals and drinks were a bit pricey (and there isn't alot of other options around), but I did find out from the manager that you could buy the whole buffet, the salad/desert bar only, or the meal portion thus reducing the meal to about $6 -$7. The other option is to buy off the menu. The water park was open the entire time we were there but we were visiting during the dry season. The grounds were lovely. Yes, the facility is a bit remote if you are dependent on public transportation and desire to spend your time in the city. However, if you are more independent, then this is definitely a beautiful location -- centrally located to a number of points of interest in the country of Panama.