Tocumen Airport in Panama City has 2 terminals and is the largest in Central America.
The signage is clear and the terminals are medium in size, so walking distances from security checkpoints to aircraft are no more than 7-10 minutes.
- Terminal 1 - Aerosucre, Air Europa, American Airlines, Avianca, Cayman Airways, Condor, Delta, Iberia, Sunrise Airways, Turkish Airlines, Wingo
- Terminal 2 - Copa Airlines*, Air France, KLM, United
* For Copa Airlines, Terminal 2 is exclusively used for check-in or check-in and check-out, i.e. for passengers starting or ending their journey in Panama.
Some Copa Airlines stand at the departure gates of Terminal 1, which can be reached from Terminal 2 by walking down a corridor (after passing through security) in 10-20 minutes.
Find a hotel near the terminal
Transfer between flights
Panama City is a major transfer hub for Copa Airlines and the airport is well suited to this.
If you are connecting on one booking, you don't have to worry about luggage and you don't go through security or immigration.
The connections are very well signposted.
Transfer within one terminal
If both of your flights stop at the same terminal, connecting is very quick and efficient. When you get off the plane, follow the signs that take you straight to the departure level without any checks.
- Average transfer time - 5 to 15 minutes
- Baggage on transfer - will be transferred automatically
Transfer between terminals 1 and 2
Copa Airlines has so many flights here that all their planes can't fit to Terminal 2, so sometimes you'll have to transfer between terminals.
Even this type of transfer is very easy, as both terminals are separated by a pedestrian corridor (about 150 meters long) through the transit zone.
You don't have to leave the airside and you don't go through any checkpoints.
- Average transfer time -15 to 30 minutes
- Baggage on transfer - will be transferred automatically
Overnight in the terminal - opening hours
Both terminals remain open 24/7 and there is no problem to stay overnight.
You can get through security up to 8 hours before departure and it is in the transit area where most of the overnight seats are available.
However, flight traffic is very busy throughout the night, so you won't get much quiet time here.
Hotels near the airport
For an undisturbed overnight stay before an early morning departure, we recommend one of the three highly rated hotels near the terminals.
All of the hotels listed below offer a free private airport transfer, with journey times between 5 and 7 minutes.
