Welcome to Santa Fe, Panama!
Magnificent Setting. Nice places to stay. Great food.
Santa Fe ranks as a Top "Off the Beaten Track" Destination by Lonely Planet
Explore the National Park
Explore the Coast
Visit our Farms
Our Village
Things to do in Santa Fe
Santa Fe is a small, authentic village located in the highlands of Panama surrounded by the rainforest of Santa Fe National Park to the north and indigenous Ngabe lands to the west and the beaches to the north. In the surrounding hills, small, family owned coffee farms participate in the Santa Fe Coffee Cooperative.
The town itself is one of the oldest communities in Panama, founded in 1557 by Captain Francisco Vasquez, to support the extensive gold mining on the coast. The historic trail at Chilagre, follows the Santa Maria River through Santa Fe National Park to abandoned mines.
Local villages in the surrounding hills are connected by 4×4 roads and trails. Exploring these rural roads by foot or horse is a fantastic way to experience the area and take in the mountain landscapes. Panama’s third largest river, Rio Santa Maria, flows through town, with beautiful swimming spots.
Santa Fe National Park surrounds the town, covering over 700 sq km of primary rainforest, with tens of waterfalls, and hundreds of species of birds, butterflies and orchids-and still more being discovered! Trekking to the top of Cerro Mariposa and Cerro Tute, and exploring waterfalls of Bermejo, Alto de Piedra, and guided off-trail trekking are beautiful destinations within the park. Outside the National Park, impressive waterfalls include Golondrinas Falls, a series of smaller but charming falls in the community of El Salto, and El Chorrillon, to the south.
Traveling north on route 33, for an hour, you cross through Santa Fe National Park, and enter into the newest National Park of Panama-Hector Gallegos National Park. Though there are no facilities at this time, you can enjoy the surroundings.
At the end of route 33, on Santa Fe’s caribbean coast you can reach the remote wind swept beaches of the Carribbean
Essentials - Hotels, Food, Activities, Transportation
Want to know where to stay, eat, or even buy real estate? Take a look at participating organizations.
Food
Lodging
Activities
Places
We are the Camara de Turismo of the District of Santa Fe, made up of 60 members, including owners and representatives of local restaurants, hotels, guide services, schools and other interested parties. Our objective is to promote tourism in the area,and oversee tourism development, ensuring what’s good for business is good for the community, and making sure we were speaking with one voice when it matters.We received legal recognition in 2018.
Take a Look at our Media Kit
BOARD 2018-2020
- President, Celestino Montes (Coffee Mountain Inn & Tours), 6988-0921
- Vice-President, Jose Palavacini (Hotel Santa Fe), 6836-9286
- Secretary, Rosinda Rodriguez (Fonda Rocio), 6500-8297
- Treasurer, Albertina de Castrellon (Naturarte), 6566-4387
- Fiscal, Alcida Solis (Alto de Piedra Cabanas y Turicentro), 6873-1248
- Vocal, Ricardo Herrera (Hostal Rainforest Yasmin), 6738-3010
- Vocal, Arquimides Pinto (Cafe Dorado), 6849-3465
What have we done?
During the past year, we have created a public website: santafepanama.org
We have applied for, planned, and received or executed:
- Directional Signs in Santiago, showing where the highway turnoff for Santa Fe is. (Funded by ATP)
- Informational Signs for local Destinations (Funded by ATP)
- Trail Signs for 19 local trails and swimming areas (Self Funded)
- A Parador Fotografo in Santa Fe (Funded by ATP and Municipio)
We have co-solicited an ATM and DSL internet, both are being installed this year for the community.
Initiated four community wide trash cleanups and cleaning and maintenance of area swimming holes and two trails
Initiated, funded, and currently managing beautification project, planting along the entrance to the town of Santa Fe.