How long would it take to drive to Panama?

Border crossing tips from link above a do not miss...

Before Entering Mexico

Bajercito. To drive a car into Mexico, you are required to obtain a temporary vehicle importation form and a sticker for the car from a Banjercito office in the US or at the border. They have offices in Albuquerque, Austin, Dallas, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Francisco and most of the border towns. The border locations charge the smallest processing fee (USD 29), but since Tijuana is such a mess, we decided to do ours Banjercito office in Los Angeles for USD 39. Looks like now you can finally also do it via Internet (www.banjercito.com.mx or www.aduanas.gob.mx or www.serviciosdecalidad.gob.mx), but there is another USD10 online processing fee. Also, if you decide to do it online, remember to allow enough time for them to mail you the sticker and the form.
In short, this is how it works: you pay the processing fee to the Banjercito and also leave them your credit card information along with a promise to take the vehicle out of the country within the period of 180 days. They "secure" USD 200-400 on your credit card (depending on the year of the vehicle), but would only charge your card in case you failed to report to a Banjercito office and cancel the permit in 180 days. Keep in mind that you need to return the sticker when canceling the permit. Also, before choosing your border crossing point, make sure that there is a Banjercito office in that location. There are 2 Banjercitos in Chiapas: one in Tapachula and one in Ciudad Cuauhtemoc.

Very important! When getting the temporary vehicle importation form issued, do not forget to tell them that you are TRANSMIGRANTE, i.e. will be entering Mexico from the US and then will continue to Guatemala or Belize. For some reason the paperwork is different for tourists who enter Mexico through the nothern border and leave through the southern (or vice versa).

Also note that the temporary importation permit is not always required. It depends on the length of your stay in Mexico and the distance from the US border you intend to reach.

Tourist card. It is possible (and cheaper) to get it at the border, but we got ours in the Mexican Embassy in Los Angeles (if you want to complete the Banjercito procedures in LA, they will first send you to the Embassy for the card). Takes less than an hour but you need to book an appointment in advance. Don't forget to tell them that you are a TRANSMIGRANTE. Consider asking for as many days as possible - we didn't ask for more than 30 and got very close to running out of time. There is no charge for the tourist card, but there is about $22 departure fee, which you will be recommended to pay as you enter the country

US-Mexico Border Formalities and Practicalities

Don't forget to leave your I-94 departure card if you have one (non-citizens only). If you choose to cross the border at San Diego - Tijuana, you will see no US immigration office on the way out. After you get to the Mexico side park your car and ask oficers to show you the directions to the US customs. Its about 10 minute walk back.

If you have not obtained car insurance in the US, you will have to do it at the border. Civil liability insurance is mandatory for driving in Mexico. GNP is the most reputable insurance company in Mexico.

Overall Mexico's side of the border in Tijuana looks very orderly, with customs, immigration, and Banjercito offices all located in one buiding, clearly marked. Seams that it would have been easier to do all the paperwork here on the spot instead of dealing with the consulate.

Mexico-Guatemala Border Formalities and Practicalities

Fast and easy! Just don't forget to cancel your vehicle permit in Banjercito before leaving Mexico.

Expenses:
- 10 Quetzales (around USD 1.50) for each passport
- 41 Quetzales (or USD 7) for the mandatory insecticide spray on your vehicle,
- another 41 Quetzales for the car paperwork (US dollars no longer accepted, there is a bank in the customs territory, but it does not echance currency, so you will have to deal with local boys offering exchange service),
- 1 quetzal for each photocopy you will be required to make.
It is a good idea for the owner of the car to have a bunch of photocopies of your driver's license, your passport and the title of your car - you will need at least one of each at every border.
VERY IMPORTANT!!! Carefully check every number and letter in your car papers (VIN, license plate, make and year of the car, spelling of your name…) before leaving the customs. Guatemalan customs officials seem to be very absent-minded.

Customs fees. The further from the US, the more likely that the immigration, customs and other governmental agencies will expect payment in local currency, and in most of such cases there will be no ATMs or banks around. When crossing a border by car, have at least USD 50, better USD 100 in smaller bills and find out the official exchange rate from a reliable source (ask one of the immigration officers). At every border, you will see plenty of guys walking around with stacks of local bills and offering currency exchange service. Even though most travel books discourage from using their services to avoid being cheated on, sometimes these guys are the only way to obtain local currency. Of course, you will not get the best deal possible, but knowing the official rate you will be able to bargain and won't let them cheat too much. Also, if you are not too good at math, a tiny calculator won't hurt

Guatemala-El Salvador Border Formalities and Practicalities

Departing from Guatemala is fast and painless. Entering El Salvador without a vehicle is not a big deal either - all you have to do is fill out a tourist card. Make sure to have an address of some hotel in El Salvador to list it as a place you will supposingly be staying at. Simply putting down "hotels" is not enough

El Salvador - Honduras Border Formalities and Practicalities

Most importantly, avoid crossing borders on weekends, especially when traveling with your own vehicle. The immigration offices are usually open 7 days a week, so if you are going by bus or crossing on foot, you should not experience any problems either day. However, if you want to bring your vehicle into another country, you will also need to go through customs (aduanas), and all the associated payments will have to be made to the bank, which is closed on Sundays. It is very likely that the same rule applies to all the borders, not just El Salvador-Honduras.

Expenses: USD 3 per person for Hunduras tourist card and USD 50 for the car (This might be the "weekend special" though, regular fee may be lower).

Honduras - Nicaragua Border Formalities and Practicalities

Quiet, quick, clear, and simple - the easiest border crossing so far. No photocopies required, US dollars accepted everywhere. Took us less than half an hour to have both exit and entry paperwork done and get back on the road.

Expenses:
USD12 for the mandatory car insurance
USD3 per passport for the exit stamp
USD7 per passport for the entry stamp
The customs layout in Las Manos (the border town with Nicaragua) is a bit tricky: you start from the Honduran customs, which is a tiny obscure booth on the left side of the road, well-hidden in a row of multipurpose stands and kiosks, so you have to look very attentively for the sign that says "Aduanas". This is the place where you cancel your Honduran temporary car importation permit. About 50 meters/ 150 feet down the road there is another similar booth where you will be able to purchase car liability insurance ($12 for 30 days, allegedly mandatory). Finally, another 50 meters/ 150 feet further there is a much bigger building with Honduran and Nicaraguan immigration and customs offices. This is where you go to get your passport stamped and your car Nicaraguan car importation issued.

Nicaragua - Costa Rica Border Formalities and Practicalities:

Arrive at the border at Peñas Blancas early and have enough time and patience: most likely you will need lots of both.
Departing from Nicaragua is slightly confusing due to the awkward layout of the customs offices and lack of signage. Start from getting rid of the boarder guides (it's a plague of them at this frontier!) Then, even if you follow the existing signs carefully, you are very likely to get lost and miss the policeman who is supposed to inspect your car documents, verify the VIN and give you a little piece of paper stating that "this car may leave Nicaragua".
If you find yourself lost, the best way out is to consult the authorized customer assistant, whom you can find inside the emigration office of Nicaragua (look for his desk next to the passport control section, past the entrance to the bank). He speaks fluent English, is very knowledgeable, fast and organized, thus saves you lots of time, and has no obvious expectations to get paid for assistance (although rapidly accepts a tip

Passport control on the Costa Rican side is fast and straightforward. However, if you are bringing in a vehicle, be ready to spend 3 to 4 hours in a slow-moving line for processing of the temporary importation papers. Vehicle inspection will also be performed.
We had heard some claims that Costa Rica required all the vehicles to pass smog check (emission check) before entering the country, which turned out to be not true. The only required procedure was fumigation: they sprayed our car with an insecticide (free of charge).
According to our map of Costa Rica, the customs office of Las Peñas closes at 4PM, but this information may be outdated.

Expenses:
USD2 per passport for the exit stamp (on the Nicaraguan side)
USD13 for the 30-day mandatory car insurance (on the Costa Rican side)

Costa Rica-Panama Border Formalities & Practicalities:

Don't get alarmed if you see an enormously long line of vehicles when approaching the Sixaola-Guabito customs territory. Although the line looks far from reassuring, most of it consists of commercial traffic waiting only for the signal allowing them to pass through the weird-looking one-way bridge, which connects the two countries. While the traffic from the opposite side has a green light for moving into Costa Rica, the exiting vehicles must form a queue and wait. It may take quite some time (we waited for nearly an hour) because only one truck at a time is allowed on the bridge.

You can save some time by going to get the exit stamps for both yourself and your vehicle while your car is standing the line for the bridge. The Costa Rican emigration office is on the right hand side, right before the bridge.

Once you get past the bridge, both "Imigracion" (passport control) and "Aduanas" (car papers) are very straightforward and fast. However, there was one awkward moment for us just past the bizarre bridge on the Panama side. The customs offices of Panama are located immediately after the bridge on the left side of the narrow one-way road. Apparently, you are not allowed to pass the customs office without having your vehicle inspected at the checkpoint, and there is absolutely no place to park! If you stop for inspection, you better be comfortable with ignoring a long line of impatient banana-loaded trucks behind you. However, if you decide to do what you think is more rational and continue driving until you find a parking spot, you may be charged with illegally breaking through the border of Panama

Expenses. The only expense we had at this border was USD 1 for the mandatory car insecticide spray.

Tip #1: Don't walk straight through the vehicle spraying system, which looks like a big black gate, and, for some reason, it is truly tempting to walk through it! The system automatically starts spraying any moving object. If you get sprayed, all your pet insects will instantly die… providing you have any, of course

Tip #2: At the Panama customs, the border-guide like looking people wearing baseball caps with big white letters "DGA" are in fact the customs officers! DGA stands for "Direcion General de Aduanas" (Customs Authority), and it is in your best interest to cooperate, if you get approached by one of those guys. (Don't chase him away like we did thinking it was just another annoying border guide or car guard

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