Getting to Mexico from northern South America?

There is a section of land called the Darian Gap in northern Colombia into southern Panama that has no road. It is a wilderness area that some have gotten through, but is a place notorious for bandits,drug runners, etc. and would need to be gone around either by boat of by plane.

Jorge Daniel Barchi.
Buenos Aires.

Hi Justin,

as Jorge says there isn't any road between Colombia and Panama so your options are limited to flying or taking a ferry. I flew from Cartagena to Panama City in January, it worked out at around 300USD one way per person incl. taxes and as far as I heard the ferry isn't much cheaper, so it basically depends on how much time you have to spare I suppose. We flew with Copa. For cheap tickets try www.kayak.com or www.gohop.ie, I think flying from Colombia to Mexico is probably cheaper but I wouldn't be 100% on that so those two websites will give you a quick idea which is cheapest at that time of year.

It might work out even cheaper to stop at Costa Rica and fly from San Jose instead of heading all the way to Panama.

Hope that helps and enjoy the trip!

The area between Panama and Colombia is the Darien Gap. There is not road between them as it is a very dense and humid jungle, but it can be crossed by boat. Be aware that it is a potentially unstable area where guerrilla and paramilitary groups can be active so you need to check locally before travelling there. No incidents with tourists have been reported there though and these people seem to be far from the coast in the jungle.

You have to fly from Panama to Puerto Obaldia (www.aeroperlas.com - aprox 80 USD w/taxes). From there you get you Panama exit stamp and take a boat to Capurgana in Colombia, where you get you entry stamp to Colombia. It is a very nice, quiet and safe beach town where you can stay for a while. Then you have to take another boat to Turbo where you can catch a bus to Medellin. Make sure you do this bus ride during the day.

The following post provides detailed information on how to do it:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa?threadID=1288537&tstart=1380

I think it would be cheaper to fly back from Colombia to Mexico City, since there are 2 airlines doing direct daily flights, and 2 other connecting in Panama and San Jose. I am not totally sure though. www.despegar.com is a good website to check for flights in South America. I am guessing though that since you are going to Colombia before Venezuela. Then it would probably be more practical to fly back to DF from Caracas, the end of your trip. I am only guessing about your itinerary.

I'd suggest that the cheapest option for you would be to fly from Panama City to Medellin, and fly back to Mexico City from Caracas. Try to get a Hahn Airpass - this should be much cheaper than purchasing tickets directly from the airlines. See this guide to air passes in Latin America for some tips.