Michael Douglas and wife Catherine Zeta-Jones were recently spotted looking hale and healthy in Panama, as they frolicked with their children Dylan and Carys on Playa Venao, near Pedasí on the Azuero peninsula. Mr Douglas showed no signs of his recent battle with throat cancer, taking in the sun at one of Panama’s most popular surfing beaches. There is doubtless no better place to relax and refresh than on one of the myriad sandy beaches that fringe the peninsula’s coastline, and few towns as authentically charming as those of the Los Santos province, where Pedasí is situated. Celebrity spottings in Keep Reading…

It’s been 12 years since Panama regained control of its canal, and the country’s economy is booming. Cranes stalk the skyline of the capital, Panama City, where high-rises sprout one after the next and immigrants arrive daily from around the world. Among those who have landed en masse in recent years are American expatriates and investors, who have banked on Panamanian real estate by building hotels and buying retirement homes. The passage of the United States-Panama free trade agreement in October is expected to accelerate this international exchange of people and dollars (the countries use the same currency). Among the Keep Reading…

Article from Latin Business Chronicle: Construction Permits: Panama Best Any visitor to Panama City these days will be awed by the number of new skyscrapers dotting the skyline as well as ongoing construction of future buildings. Apart from demand – current or estimated future – driving the building boom, another factor has been crucial: Ease of getting construction permits. Panama has Latin America’s best environment for dealing with construction permits, while Guatemala has the worst, according to a Latin Business Chronicle analysis of World Bank data… Read Full Article Here About Latin Business Chronicle Latin Business Chronicle, a division of Keep Reading…

Shedding its reputation as a sunny haven for shady characters, Panama is courting high fliers by giving everything an upgrade—hotels, museums, and even that famous canal. Solace seekers typically head to Panama’s Caribbean coast, leaving the Pacific beaches to the surfers. But boldface names—Angelina Jolie; Michael Jordan—have been spotted in the remote Pacific village of Pedasí, four hours from the capital. Read the Complete article here: Hottest Travel Destinations of 2012