All Taxis in Panama must now be painted yellow.

As we work to create one of the most amazing island getaways in the world, we pride ourselves in the attention to detail. As I returned to Panama after being in the states for the holiday, I noticed a few minor details that change daily life in Panama. On the surface they may seem trivial, but it’s these details that, as a whole, make noticeable changes. Here are a few things anew in Panama at the turn of 2010:

Painting the Town (Yellow) – well, the taxis, at least. Every taxi in the country must now be painted Taxi Yellow. It will help provide legitimacy to the business and a level of safety to the visitor.

Stop – a few other colors I have noticed lately are red, yellow, and green. The city has replaced all of its stoplights. The new ones are more visible and programmed to improve traffic flow.

Tourist Cards Are Out – prior to January, visitors from certain countries had to wait in a line before immigration to purchase a $5 tourist visa card. As I went to queue, the gentlemen behind the counter’s new job was to tell people the cards were no longer needed.

Even though Panama is pretty traveler-friendly, these few little details show that the government is working to make it even better.