Which place is cheaper, Panama City or Split?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations. These travel costs come from the actual spending of real travelers.
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Should you visit Split or Panama City?
Which is cheaper to visit? Which is more expensive for vacation?
Which city should you visit? Read on to compare the activities as well as the prices of travel for Split and Panama City. We'll break down costs for accommodation, food, transportation and more to help you learn more about these two destinations. Then, you can figure out if either of these two places are accessible based on your travel budget, schedule, and interests. So, let's dig into it.
Where Should I go: Split or Panama City?
Split
Split is a historic city in Central Dalmatia with many opportunities to glimpse its fascinating past in its historic city center. Centuries ago the city grew up around a Diocletian palace that was used as refuge by the locals.
Today, as you wander around the historic center, you can see the remains of the Roman walls, temples, and squares. Despite it's appeal to tourists, Split is much more than just a tourist destination. It is larger than you might initially realize and it spreads well beyond the historic center. There is a population of about 300,000 in the larger area and it is an economic center for the region.
Split has a beautiful climate with mild winters, countless sunny days, and a generally pleasant temperature. As such, there are many opportunities to enjoy yourself outdoors, whether by participating in sports or walking around the city's quaint streets. Winters in Split are also quite mild, but there may be one snowy day, on average, every year. This rare snowfall can cause a significant disruption in the flow of traffic.
Panama City
Panama City is the cosmopolitan capital city of the country of Panama. With a population of almost 900,000 and almost 1.5 million in the metropolitan area, it's a very diverse city with expat residents from all over the world. You don't have to search far to find someone who speaks English, and many Panamanians are quite helpful and friendly.
For some great organized tour ideas, see The Best Walking Tours in Croatia, The Best Luxury Tours to Croatia, The Best Budget Tours to Panama, and The Best One-Week (7-Day) Tours from Panama City.
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Split Prices
Croatia PricesPanama City Prices
Panama Prices -
Average Daily Cost Per person, per daySplit €196Panama City €87
The average daily cost (per person) in Split is €196, while the average daily cost in Panama City is €87. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each destination. What follows is a categorical breakdown of travel costs for Split and Panama City in more detail.
Accommodation
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Accommodation Hotel or hostel for one personSplit €84Panama City €30
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Accommodation Typical double-occupancy roomSplit €168Panama City €60
Compare Hotels in Split and Panama City
Looking for a hotel in Split or Panama City? Prices vary by location, date, season, and the level of luxury. See below for options and compare which is best for your budget and travel style.
Kayak helps you find the best prices for hotels, flights, and rental cars for destinations around the world. Compare prices for multiple destinations when planning your next trip.
Our Analysis
We've analyzed the average and typical hotel prices based on guest reviews, star ratings, and hotel amenities here: Split Hotel Prices and Panama City Hotel Prices.
Local Transportation
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Local Transportation Taxis, local buses, subway, etc.Split €23Panama City €9.20
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Split
Also for Split, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
- Private Zagreb to Split transfer with Plitvice lakes & Wine: $1,004
- Split Airport: Speedboat Taxi transfer to/from Hvar: $700
- Airport to Hvar Town Speedboat Transfer: $700
- Private Transfer to Dubrovnik from Split with stop options: $572
- Zagreb to Private Transfer with Plitvice Lakes: $554
- Split/Trogir to Zagreb: Private Transfer with Plitvice Lakes: $554
- Private Boat Transfer to Hvar Island: $548
- From Private 1-Way Transfer to Dubrovnik: $491
- Private Transfer to Krka with Driver & Optional Guide: $466
- Private transfer from Split or Trogir to Dubrovnik: $443
- Private transfer from Split to Dubrovnik with 2h sightseeing stop in Ston: $300
- Private Transfer from Split to Dubrovnik with 2-Hour Sightseeing: $296
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Panama City
Also for Panama City, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
- Travel in Comfort Airport Transfer Pty: $30
- Transfers to Riu Playa Blanca, The Buenaventura Golf, Rio hato: $8.00
- Transfers from PTY Airport to Playa Bonita or Gamboa and Back: $27
- Transfers: $37
- Transfer to or from the airport / Min 2 pax: $20
- Transfer to Panama City, Hotel and City tour - 1 night: $266
- Transfer from Tocumen Airport to Playa Blanca Hotels: $85
- Transfer from Tocumen Airport to Panama City Hotels: $25
- Transfer from Tocumen Airport to Colon Cruise Port: $160
- Transfer from Playa Bonita or Gamboa to PTY Airport: $35
- Transfer from Panama City Hotel to Tocumen Airport: $23
- Transfer from PTY/Panama City to Cruise Terminal or Back: $32
Is it cheaper to fly into Split or Panama City?
Prices for flights to both Panama City and Split change regularly based on dates and travel demand. We suggest you find the best prices for your next trip on Kayak, because you can compare the cost of flights across multiple airlines for your prefered dates.
Food
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Food Meals for one daySplit €93Panama City €31
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Split
For Split, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
- Omiš: Sunset Boat Trip to Pučišća Brač island with Dinner: $59
- Split’s Ultimate Walking Food Tour with Full Meal & Drinks: $67
- Split Old Town Authentic Food Tour with 9 Dishes & Local Wines: $103
- Small Group Food Tour with Private Option: $104
- Split Food Tour: Discover Split One Bite at a Time: $140
- Split Food Tour: Discover Split One Bite At A Time: $141
- Private VIP Split Food Tour with Seafood, Wine and Local Bites: $183
- Split Cooking Class - Afternoon Edition Shared Activity: $206
- Vegan Cooking Class with Local Market Tour in Split: $207
- Cooking class on island Brac: $258
Typical Food Prices in Panama City
Here are some examples of typical meal expenses from previous travelers to Panama City:
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Sandwich€7.11
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Panama City
For Panama City, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
- Panama Evening Food Tour: $60
- Panamanian Dinner and Folkloric Show Ticket with Pickup: $65
- Panama City FOOD Tour: $65
- 3.5 -hour Afropanamanian Cooking Experience in Panama: $70
- E-Tickets Emotions Dinner Live Show Admission: $75
- Afro-Panamanian Cooking Class with Meal: $75
- Street Food Tour with 24 Tastings: $75
- Street Food Tour Panama (25+ tastings) By Paradox Experience: $90
- 4-Hour Guided Panamanian Cooking Class and Markets Experience: $95
- 4h Cooking Class in 10 Recipes & Bottomless Drinks: $95
- Panama: 10-Recipe Boozy Panamanian Cooking Class + Dinner: $95
- Folkloric Dance & Typical Dinner at Sabroso Panamá: $110
Entertainment
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Entertainment Entrance tickets, shows, etc.Split €11Panama City €57
Tours and Activities in Split
For Split, here are a few prices for actual activities, tours, and tickets provided by various companies:
- "Blue Lagoon" Half day Chill out tour from Split: $81
- "Not Today" - Game of Thrones and History of Split Private Guided Walking Tour: $92
- 2 Day Pass with Sightseeing Bus: $38
- 2 Hours Split Walking tour with free food tasting: $188
- 2-Hour Sunset Cruise Split: $135
- 2-hours Split Segway Tour: $95
- 3 islands Tour from Split and Brac: $175
- 3-Hour Via-Ferrata Adventure in Fortica Fortress: $41
- 4 Hours Blue Lagoon and Island Tour: $94
- 4-Hour Dalmatian Food and Wine flavors Experience in Split Patio: $141
- 4-Island Split Boat Tour (Brač, Pakleni, Hvar, Šolta): $160
- 4-in-1 Boat Party Experience Split, Croatia.: $80
Tours and Activities in Panama City
Also, here are some specific examples of entertainment, tickets, and activities for Panama City.
- “Bike Tour Casco Viejo and Panama City Discover the Essence: $40
- "Bridge of the Americas Stand-Up Paddle Private 2 hours Tour ": $100
- 1- or 2-Night Experience in San Blas Islands: $260
- 1st Mysteries and FreeMasons Tour: $38
- 2 Days Island Hopping Adventure San Blas Islands - Private Cabin: $265
- 2 Hours Private Luxury Tour in a Convertible Car in Panama City: $255
- 2 Nights in San Blas - Shared Cabin + Meals + Boat Tour: $179
- 3 Hour Airport Tour from Tocumen: $125
- 3 Hours Private Walking Tour in Casco Antiguo Panama City: $45
- 4-Hour Guided Tour of Panama Canal & Old Town & More: $150
- 4-hour tour in Panama: $105
- 5 Hours Private Panama City Tour: $200
Alcohol
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Alcohol Drinks for one daySplit €18Panama City €16
Sample the Local Flavors in Split
Also in Split, these are the prices for nightlife and alcohol related activities from various tour providers:
- Split Pub Crawl: Nightlife, Shots & Club Entry: $14
- Diocletian's Palace Walking and Wine Tasting Tour: $18
- Tower Pub Crawl in Split: $32
- From Krka Waterfalls, Food & Wine Tasting Tour: $53
- Dalmatian wine tasting by Bottiglia wine & deli: $53
- From Krka Waterfalls, Food & Wine Tasting Tour: $53
- From Krka Waterfalls day tour & wine tasting: $55
- Split/Trogir: Krka National Park Day Trip with Wine Tasting: $55
- Krka National Park Tour with tour Guide & Wine tasting from Split & Trogir: $55
- Olive Oil and Wine Tasting with Snacks: $57
- Split&Sip: Educational wine tasting: $64
- Educational wine tasting in Split: $65
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Split and Panama City, we can see that Split is more expensive. And not only is Panama City much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. Since Split is in Europe and Panama City is in Central America, this is one of the main reasons why the costs are so different, as different regions of the world tend to have overall different travel costs. So, traveling to Panama City would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Panama City and be able to afford a more luxurious travel style by staying in nicer hotels, eating at more expensive restaurants, taking tours, and experiencing more activities. The same level of travel in Split would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Split than you might in Panama City.
If you're trying to decide if either of these two destinations are within your price range, also see Is Split Expensive? and Is Panama City Expensive?.
Which is Bigger, Split or Panama City?
Panama City has a larger population, and is about 2 times larger than the population of Split. When comparing the sizes of Split and Panama City, keep in mind that a larger population does not always imply the destination has more attractions or better activities. So, always research the type of place that you want to visit along with the activities and attractions that interest you.
Budget Your Trip is all about finding out how much everything costs so that you can travel cheaper and longer. Created by avid travelers Laurie and Bryan, our goal is to help you plan your next trip on the right budget. With average daily travel costs that are calculated from the budgets of real travelers, plus an analysis of hotel and tour prices, you can find out how much money you need to plan your next adventure. We also have plenty of travel advice, accommodation reviews, and activity suggestions.