El Valle de Antón is a weekend resort area only two hours north-west (70mi/120km) of Panama City. The valley's main town sits at the bottom of the crater of a dormant volcano. The high and massive rim of the volcano encircles the cool, green valley.
This paradisiacal place rises 600 meters above sea level, with a fresh and agreeable climate. Here exist a great variety of ecotouristic attractions, including its endemic species, the Golden Frogs and the Square Trees, unique around the world. The water falls are impressive, the most famous being El Chorro de las Mozas and El Macho. At the La Pintada suburb, a few minutes from the town, are located the petroglyphs, still undeciphered.
The main local activity is the Crafts Market. on Sundays, on the main road, at the center of the town. There you can find vegetables, plants, flowers, agricultural products, basketwork, the famous carved soap stones, ceramics, trays, wood furniture, bamboo cages, and orchids, including the national flower: The Holy Spirit. The sales start at seven in the morning and end at five in the afternoon.
At a short distance rise the mountains known as La India Dormida (The Sleeping Indian girl), they have inspired poets and writers to immortalize a legend from the colonial time.
There is also, in the outskirts, an excelient zoo and a plants and flowers greenhouse. For those who love long walks and hill climbing, the Piedra del Sapo awaits at the top of the cordillera. If you do not like to walk, we suggest you rent a horse to go for a ride along its beautiful trails, roads surrounded by fabulous mansions, excellent gardens, and an exuberant colorful vegetation.
El Valle is surrounded by hills: up North are located Cerro Pajita, Gaital, and Cara Coral, 1,000 mts. above sea level, to the South, Cerro Iguana and Cerro Guacamayo, (Cerro La Huaca) 800 mts. above sea level. To the West, La India Dormida and to the East, Cerro Tagua with 800 mts. above sea level. At its main church, honoring St. Joseph, is held the Annual Concert Festival of El Valle. Because of the excellent acoustic effects of the hall, it lends itself for the celebration of classical music concerts with the Symphonic Orchestra.
The town has good restaurants, hotels and cabins at reasonable prices. If you want to, you con also rent private houses at very good prices. Many local travel agencies offer tours on Saturdays and Sundays. If not, you can take the Public Transportation from Panama City at the bus terminals located at Avenida 'B' and for around $ 7.00 you can go round-trip all in the same day.
El Valle is known as the Eternal Spring place in Panama and some writers consider it a sanctuary for meditation.

Lodging in El Valle
Things to do in El Valle
Special events in El Valle

LODGING in El Valle

HOTELS
Hotel Campestre
Tel.: (507) 983-6146
Potosi Cabins
- Tel.: (507) 983-6181
Los Mozas Cabins -
Tel.: (507) 260-1592
El Greco Hotel
Tel.: (507) 983-6149
Santa Librada (rooms for rent)
Tel.: (507) 983-6376
El Nispero
Tel.: (507) 983-6142

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THINGS TO DO in El Valle
El Valle Museum
The chronological history of this region is shown in this museum, located near the San Jose church. 1,500 years old Pre-colombian art, clay pots, indian funeral urns, a lovely collection of Petroglyphs from the "Nispero" area; colonial religious art showing paintings and figures from the San Jose Evangelista art from Quito, a copy of Murillo's "La Virgen Alada"; folkloric dresses from the last century, among them the Cu-Cuas (costumes made out of bark, painted with vegetable dyes), the "polleras" national dress for women, domestic utensils, torch lights called "guarichas", rustic mills to extract the cane juice, primitive art and the geological history of the valley; aerial photographs and representative laminas of the area.
Open only on Sundys - from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. admission charge: $0.25 per person.
El Macho and Las Mozas waterfalls
The water fall El Macho is located on the road to the La Mesa town at about 500 meters from the Doña Chabela bridge. It is a spectacular water fall from the Quebrada Amarilla, 35 meters high. At the bottom forms a natural pool that, according to legend, is enchanted. Currently it is considered an ecological refuge because of its exuberant vegetation and the natural beauty it possesses. Fee $2.00 dollar.
Las Mozas water fall is another beautiful cascade from the Anton River and, according to legend there were three sisters that disobeyed their parents on Good Friday, went for a swim at the river and remain petrified forever.
Thermal Water Wells
These are located near the Anton River, with thermal waters of 40ºC product of the Caldera del Valle with a volcanic structure from the quaternary period with igneous rocks foundations and the peculiarity that its waters are reddish, white and yellow. They are supposed to cure arthritis, rheumatism, and skin afflictions. Fee $ 0,25 cents.
Petroglyphs
La Pintada town has stones hieroglyphs or petroglyphs that represent passages, anthromorphous and zoomorphous images, among many symbols that have yet to be deciphered by the archeologists. More on petroglyphs in hte special interest section: historical sites.
Crafts Market
The sale of Crafts starts at 7:00 a.m. every Sunday, when the adjacent areas' settlers come down from the mountains with vegetables, fruits, crafts, agricultural products, and flowers. At the center of the main road and of the town, sellers as well as buyers gather together. The activity continues on until 5:OO p.m., The carved soap stones, the adorned trays, fiber baskets and hats, worked wood, the famous terra cotta hens, and the painted "totumas" are the main crafts. The sale of curative plants has given the place pharmacological recognition at national level and its sale by bundles takes place at the Crafts Market and twice a week in Panama City at the Calidonia Market, since more than a decade. Orchids, among them our national flower the "Flor del Espiritu Santo" (Holy Spirit Flower), and a great variety of flowers and plants are exhibited for sale at the market. Across the street from the market there are also sale booths of foreign crafts, restaurants, super market, gas station, and a Post Office.
Sunday market
Plant Nursery and Zoo el Nispero
Since 1978, two Panamanian professionals started this plant nursery and zoo, where they planted and cultivated exofic plants and flowers and have kept several species of birds and mammals. Opened to the public since 1991, it is a place where to see a great quantity of ducks, among them the Wichiches and the Mandarin Duck from Japan. The also have other exotic animals such os "Spider" monkeys, "auyador" monkeys, and "titi" monkeys; "Jujunas", red turkey hens or "cimba" turkey hens, sparrow hawks, "guacamayos" in most of its species, black and brown peacocks, blonde turkey hens, "ñeques":, tapirs, black neck pheasants, Australian "pinches", Golden Pheasants from China, Golden "Cocalecas", exotic pigeons like the Carrier, Tamboras, Modena, Gazzi, Capuchino, Norwegian Crop, and "Barabaras:; English Crop and Kings. Among other species you will find White tail deer, sainos and turkeys, "cariblanco" (white-faced) monkeys, "manigordos" (fat hands) or ocelot. At the plant nursery there are more than 200 orchid species, native and ornamental plants, that you can buy. Towards the center of this beautiful and wonderful place, is located a fish tank with Japanese carps species and just across from it, boas in cages and the golden frogs. Fee: $2.00
The India Dormida (sleeping indian girl)
India Dormida is a baufiful mountain that stands out in the cordillera and looks like the silhouette of a sleeping indian girl. The legend goes that an indian maiden, the daughter of the Indian Chief Urraca, named Flor del Aire ('Air Flower'), fell in love with one of the Spaniards that conquered the area. Her lover, a strong and aggressive warrior called Yaravi, seeing that she paid no attention to him and fell in love with the Spaniard, committed suicide in front of her and the whole town. This situation motivated Flor del Aire to forget the Spaniard to avoid the betrayal of her own people and she decided to wander through the mountains crying the disgrace of her destiny. And, it is said, wandering through the mountains she died looking up towards the sky at the top of the mountains and immortalizing the feelings, her silhouette remains as a symbol of true love.
Square Trees
They are located to the North-west of the Caldera del Valle, exactly behind the Hotel Campestre. These trees are of the Quararible gender of the Bombocacea family and they grow up to a height ranging between 12 and 15 meters. Its peculiarity is that its trunk is totally square at the base.
Golden Frogs
These are a species of batracious "Atelopus varius" and they are endemic of the place. The precolombian inhabitants believed that when they died they turned into gold. There are some studies on them from prestigious universities around the world, with a particular scientific research. The Golden Frogs have been exhibited at the Calaveras County in California, Jubilee Frog Jump Course and were immortalized by Mark Twain in his famous story The Golden Frogs. You can watch them at the Hotel Campestre and at El Nispero, where they have them in captivity.

Canopy Adventure

SPECIAL EVENTS in El Valle
March - before ash wednesday - Carnival
Calypso dancing and songs
June 24: San Juan Bautista
Celebrated with canoe and swimming races
July 16: the day of the Virgen del Carmen
Land and and sea processions