Aparthotel Torres de Alba (Avenida Eusebio A. Morales, tel. 300-7130, www.torresdealba.com.pa, US$97.90 s/d) offers what are essentially small modern apartments, each of which has a bedroom, sitting room, fax machine, full kitchen, safe, and washer and dryer. The place consists of twin 13-story towers and is mainly aimed at short-term residents. But even tourists who don’t need all that stuff might consider staying here; it’s simple but quite nice. There’s a small gym, a pool that’s borderline big enough for lap swimmers, and a parking garage in the building.

Rooms at Sevilla Suites Apart-Hotel (Avenida Eusebio A. Morales, tel. 213-0016 or 213-1312, fax 223-6344, www.sevillasuites.com, US$132 s/d), built in 2000, are smaller and darker than those at the Torres de Alba, but the furnishings are quite nice. Accommodations lie closer to the hotel end of the apartment-hotel spectrum, but all the suites have mini-kitchens and wireless Internet access, and some have terraces. There’s a small gym and pool. Two of Panama’s best restaurants, Restaurante 1985 and Rincón Suizo, are right across the street, and several others are very close.

Coral Suites Apart-Hotel (Calle D, tel. 269-2727, fax 269-0083, www.coralsuites.net, US$132 s, US$154 d including continental breakfast) is a modern, nicely maintained place built in 2001. It features 63 rooms with very firm beds, full kitchenette, 125-channel cable TV, in-room safe, ironing board, and a sitting area with table. There’s room service but no restaurant. There’s a decent-sized rooftop pool without much of a view and a small but reasonably equipped gym. Service is rather disorganized, but this is otherwise a good place.

The Suites Ambassador Apart-Hotel (Calle D, tel. 263-7274 or 263-6068, starts at US$121 s/d, including continental breakfast) is right next door to Hotel Marbella and has some of the same pluses and minuses (e.g., on a pleasant and centrally located street, but in the shadow of neighboring buildings). The 31 suites (US$132 s/d) and eight studios (US$121 s/d) are well maintained and have kitchens, but the beds need replacing. The suites are good-sized apartments with sitting room, bedroom, and kitchenette with fridge, oven, and microwave. There’s a small rooftop pool without much of a view, coin-operated washers and dryers, and a cafeteria. Rack rates have doubled here in the last few years: Ask for the corporate rate to get a discount.

The newest addition to the row of business hotels on Calle D is the six-story
Toscana Inn (Calle D, tel. 265-0018 or 265-0019, www.toscanainnhotel.com, US$121 s/d, including breakfast). The rooms are decorated simply with a rather old-fashioned aesthetic, but the furnishings are new and each room is equipped with a flat-screen TV, a mini-fridge, a safe, and firm beds. The corporate rate is about 10 percent cheaper; be sure to ask. Service is friendly and attentive. The Toscana opened in late 2009 and it still has that pleasant “new hotel” look and feel that makes it a top choice, at least until the next new kid on the block comes around. There’s a small restaurant and bar, but no pool.