Panama City
In this plaza, in the heart of Casco Viejo, Panama declared its independence from Colombia on November 3, 1903.
Must-see attractions in Panama
Darién Province
This wonderful waterfall that the agile can slide down can be reached in 45 minutes from Pijibasal.
Panama City
The headquarters of the Panama archdiocese. Construction started on this 1796 cathedral in 1688.
Portobelo
This small chapel is all that remains of a Catholic church dating back to 1589.
Península de Azuero
Some 26km northwest of central Chitré, Parque Nacional Sarigua is arguably the most important pre-Columbian site in Panama. The archaeological site has…
Museo de Arte Religioso Colonial
Panama City
Housed beside the ruins of the Iglesia y Convento de Santo Domingo, the Museo de Arte Religioso Colonial has a collection of colonial-era religious…
Refugio de Vida Silvestre Cenegón del Mangle
Península de Azuero
This 776-hectare refuge about 25km north of Chitré protects a mangrove forest at the mouth of the Río Santa María. It's an important wildlife area and…
Panama City
In the original settlement of Panamá Viejo, this museum traces the history from pre-colonial times to colonial life. There's an impressive scale model of…
Panama City
In 1826, in a schoolroom opposite this Casco Viejo park, Simón Bolívar held a meeting urging the union of the Latin American countries. Bolívar eventually…
Panama City
Once the headquarters of the First National City Bank of New York, this is where much of the financing of the Panama Canal took place. Today the American…
Panama City
The modest Museo de Historia de Panamá has a small selection of exhibits covering Panamanian history from the colonial period to the modern era.
Panama City
Sculpted by Miguel Blan and Mariano Benlliure, the Balboa statue overlooks the Bahía de Panamá and was inaugurated in 1924, a gift from Spain.
Península de Azuero
Playa El Agallito is a mudflat created by silt deposited by the Río Parita and the Río La Villa, 9km north of Chitré. At low tide, it stretches more than…
El Valle
Located in the northwestern corner of the valley, La Piedra Pintada is a huge boulder adorned with pre-Columbian carvings. Locals sometimes fill in the…
Península de Azuero
South of the main square is the former home of three-time president Belisario Porras, during whose administration the Panama Canal opened. The museum…
Península de Azuero
Set in the former residence of Manuel F Zárate, the folklorist devoted to conserving the traditions of the Azuero region, this museum is a good…
Panama City
Facing the Plaza Mayor in Panamá Viejo, these houses were built by Francisco Terrín. The better houses were usually built from timber and placed wall to…
Panama City
Panamá Viejo's center of power resided at Casas Reales, a complex ringed by timber ramparts and separated from the city proper by a moat. Within the…
Panama City
On the northeastern outskirts of Panama City, the white-domed Baha’i House of Worship is the mother temple for all of Latin America. It looms like a giant…
El Valle
El Valle’s peculiar árboles cuadrados (square-trunk trees) are located northeast of the Hotel Campestre. After a 30-minute hike through the forest and…
Museo Histórico Padre José Noto
El Valle
The most interesting exhibits in this small, very central museum divided into seven sections are the ones focusing on petroglyphs and ceramics produced by…
Panama Canal
This cemetery in Paraíso on the road to Gamboa about 5km north of the Pedro Miguel Locks dates from between 1880 and 1889. Though there are just 300…
Darién Province
Just across the Golfo de San Miguel on Isla El Encanto are the ruins of the Fort of St Lawrence slowing being consumed by the jungle. There's not much…
Península de Azuero
Ceramica Hermanos Calderón is where you can buy traditional painted ceramics at wholesale prices. These pieces are made on the premises in a workshop…
Península de Azuero
Unlike many cathedrals that impress through ostentation, this 18th-century number is striking for its elegant simplicity and fine balance of gold and wood…
El Valle
The most accessible of the waterfalls around El Valle is Chorro Las Mozas, located about 2km southwest of town; you can reach it on foot from the center…
Chiriquí Province
This long and lovely black-sand beach 25km southwest of David is a popular weekend escape for city folk, but you'll have the place all to yourself if you…
Isla Colón
French-Canadian Robert Bezeau crafted this four-story castle from 40,000 plastic bottles. The epitome of recycling, it's one of a kind and worth a good…
Panama City
Once the headquarters for the US Southern Command in Panama, ‘Ciudad del Saber’ is today a government-sponsored center for education, research and…
Refugio de Vida Silvestre Playa Barqueta
Chiriquí Province
The Refugio de Vida Silvestre Playa Barqueta Agricola oversees about 14km of eastern Playa Barqueta, where mangrove and scrub offer protection to four…
Darién Province
Yaviza's only real 'sight' (apart from the wobbly footbridge spanning the Río Chucunaque), the ruined Fort of St Geronimo, built by the Spanish to keep…
Isla Colón
Playa El Istmito, also called Playa La Cabaña, is the closest beach to Bocas town (2.5km away), but as it's on Bahía Sand Fly the chitras (sand flies)…
Panama City
At the end of Isla Flamenco, this complex contains a two-story shopping center, a marina, a cruise-ship terminal and a number of restaurants and bars. At…
Panamá Province
This island off Taboga’s northeast coast contains an English cemetery and a monument erected by the Pacific Steamship Company, which had its headquarters…
Iglesia y Convento de La Merced
Panama City
Erected by the Mercedarian friars in the early 17th century, these Panamá Viejo buildings survived the fire that swept the city following privateer Henry…
Bocas del Toro Province
This is a lush cloud forest covering more than 167,000 hectares set high in the Talamanca mountains. There are three trails maintained by MiAmbiente in…
Panama Canal
North past the Miraflores Locks, the Pedro Miguel Locks can be seen from the highway to Gamboa. One hundred meters beyond the locks there’s a parking…
Isla Colón
Further up the coast from Playa El Istmito and Sand Dollar Beach is Playa Punch (or Paunch), which is dangerous for swimming but good for surfing. It's…
Panama City
This esplanade runs along the top of the sea wall built by the Spanish to protect the city. From here, you can see the Puente de las Américas arching over…
Panamá Province
Located within the Parque Nacional Soberanía, this Emberá indigenous community has been receiving visitors for years. You can take cultural tours, watch…
