Is it possible to go overland from central America to South America?

Question

time and comfort do not matter much, I'm just trying to cut down on costs and I figure it will be a lot cheaper than going by plane.

Thanks!

Answer 1

Yes it is. Start in Eagle Pass, TX. Cross the bridge and continue on Hwy. 57. Known as the Pan American Highway.

You're nuts if you do it alone! And make sure your vehicle looks like crap, can run on just about any fuel, and has 4 wheel drive! From the Panama Canal to ? is not known if the road is still passable.

Answer 2

First of all I must say that some of these answers are scary.
Parrotjohn2001 and mo_the_man are the only two with sensible and knowledgable advice. (although unlike Parrot, I would suggest you not miss Colombia. It is a jewel.
Is it possible? well... in theory yes. The problem lies in the Darien region which makes up the border of Panama and Colombia. It is possible to walk across the "Darien Gap" though it is also very probably that you will get either kidnapt, lost, or bitten by a poisenous snake.
I have no first hand experience in the Darien but I certainly did plenty of research on the area as it was a dream of mine to span the two continents. And in the end, I did so but not by land.
To make some corrections on previous answers here,
I don't think Paul Theroux actually bridged this gap by land either in his "Patagonia Express"... ( I may be wrong here but I believe he either took a boat or flew)
"The cheapest way to travel is to take the ferry from Colon to Cartagena." No ferry does this now.

So there are 3 possibilities of spanning the continents now.
#1 Fly from Panama City any where south (I'd suggest Cartagena).
#2 Pay for passage on a sailboat from Colon to Cartagena. Get info on this both in the Voyager Hostal in Panama City and at the yacht club in Colon. This costs approx. $250 and takes 3 to 6 days including stops in the San Blas Islands of Panama.
#3 You can fly into a small Kuna village in Panama near to Colombia and then by hop along the coast into Colombia by taking launchas and walking some... this way I believe you actually walk across the border..

I personaly ended taking the sailboat option. I did it in reverse from Cartagena. This was one of the top experiences from my 9 months in South America (plus 2 weeks in C.America). The San Blas are amazing.

Oh ya and finaly I must say that this is one of the few situations where flying may not be the more expensive options.

Answer 3

Yes it is. You can drive, take a bus, whatever and go from Panama into Colombia. Panama City (and Panama Canal are about 50 miles from the Colombian border. Spend a day in Panama City. Cool city and the Canal is an engneering marvel. If you take the bus be very careful. A licensed taxi is a lot safer. On the bus keep your belongings close to you, don't wear any jewelry, and act like you know whats going on. Lots of pick pockets and muggers on the buses. Negotiate a price with the taxi driver BEFORE you leave, write it down; because he will "forget" what he quoted you. Just got back from Panama and heading back to Colombia in a few weeks. Go to www.gov.org and you can contact the U.S. Embassy in the countries you will travel to. Good idea to send them your itinerary, pass port #, etc. Also enter the embassy phone numbers in your cell phone. Call your cell phone carrier and ask for world wide calling, it's cheap; but the roaming charges are not. Keep your phone off unitl you need to use it.

Answer 4

There are currently no roads across the Darien gap. This is one of the most dangerous places in the world and may be the most dangerous place in Colombia. Not only is it a roadless jungle but it is occupied by Colombian guerillas and drug runners. Robert Pelton he author of "The World's Most Dangerous Places" has ranked it among the world's 5 most dangerous locations (I think he was kidnapped there). The cheapest way to travel is to take the ferry from Colon to Cartagena. The Lonely Planet Guide to Colombia has information.

Answer 5

Yes it is, but get yourself a copy of the South America Handbook by Footprint before you do. Invaluable.

You can get as far south as Yaviza by road. From there it, most of it is by foot or small boat until you get to the Colombian border.

By the way, about the Colombian border. It is THE MOST DANGEROUS PLACE in the whole hemisphere, with drug dealers, para-militaries and revolutionaries who take turns kidnapping people, when they aren't shooting people for the fun of it. Save yourself a world of hassle and fly from Panama City to Ecuador.

Answer 6

Uruguay is the main secure by way of some distance in South united statesa.. In often happening united statesa. Costa Rica and Panama are very risk-free. Belize is quite plenty risk-free yet there are alot of crimes related to drug ttrafficking and stolen vehicles. the rustic is in a quite tight region between Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras and hence is serves using fact the crossroads to realize the Mexican Riviera and the Yucatan Peninsula.

Answer 7

going by plane is the cheapest and safest way to go.you can cross the darien gap but there are no roads and it is very dangerous, also you have to bring lots of cash to pay the village chiefs for letting you say and there help in crossing rivers and the likes. unless you have lots of cash and a death wish. then fly.

Answer 8

Yes its possible, in fact I have met a lot of people who have done it. If your interested in what it might be like read Paul Therouxs "Patagonia Express" where he travels from Boston to southern Argentina by train.....

Answer 9

it is possible the only water you have cross is the panama chanel.
I think the cheaper way is hichiking but if you love your kidneys maybe you should check train and bus options.

Answer 10

ferries. Also check kayak.com in case you can find a good plane deal. buena suerte y disfruta. te va a encantar suramerica y centroamerica.