Panama is safe.
Panama has the highest rating for tourist safety from the Pinkerton Intelligence Agency. In a Newsweek magazine article on tourism safety worldwide, Panama received same tourism safety rating as the USA. Foreign residents in Panama will tell you how safe they feel living in Panama compared to any other country in Central America.
Panama has a First World infrastructure.
Panama has a first-world infrastructure starting with a safe cosmopolitan Miami- style capital city with high speed internet, first rate hotels, fine dining and beautiful shopping malls. The highway infrastructure, medical care, telecommunications and business services are excellent-comparable to the USA as noted in the AARP's Modern Maturity magazine. Panama also has the second largest Free Trade Zone in the world and a banking sector with 100 banks.
Panama is close.
As part of Central America, Panama is just a short plane ride away. Eight major US cities offer direct daily flights to Panama City: Los Angeles, New York, Newark, Miami, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta and Orlando.
Panama has world-class medical care and a healthy environment.
Many Panamanian doctors speak English and are American-trained. Several hospitals have medical services on a par with US hospitals. Sanitary conditions are excellent- there is almost none of that tourism scrouge- "Montezuma's Revenge". You can even drink the tap water- a rarity in Latin America. An amazing abundance of fresh and inexpensive fruits and vegetables makes healthy living a pleasure.
Panama has the US dollar as its currency.
Panama's currency is the US dollar. That's right! What a great convenience. In Panama, there's no need for currency exchange. No need to be a mathematical genius to figure out what that meal just cost or how much to tip the bellboy. Your bank accounts and investments are also all of course in US dollars.