Casco Viejo with Kids: Exploring Panama City’s Historic District

Did you know that Panama City hasn’t always been where it is today? 

It’s true! Way back in the year 1671, the English pirate Henry Morgan sacked and burned the original Panama City after marching his crew all the way across the country from where their boats landed in the Caribbean. The ruins of the original Panama City are found at the nearby UNESCO world heritage site, Panama Viejo.

However, with their city burned down, the Spanish settlers in Panama had to decide where to rebuild. Instead of starting over in the same place, they decided to move a short distance down the coast to rebuild in a more defensible location. That second location is the area that is now known as Casco Viejo.

Where is Casco Viejo, Panama?

What is Casco Viejo?

Casco Viejo is the historic district of Panama City, and one of the most popular tourist locations in Panama City due to its combination of beautiful architecture, delicious restaurants, and spectacular views of the ocean. 

Alongside Panama Viejo, Casco Viejo is also a UNESCO world heritage site, and Panama is working to retain as much of the original feel of the area as possible even as modern shops and restaurants move in. 

Alongside historic buildings and church ruins, multiple different free museums are located on the peninsula making it a one-stop shop for diving deep into Panama’s past. 

For such a small area, Casco Viejo is packed with things to see and do, and you may find yourself returning several times during your stay in the city!

What should I do or see in Casco Viejo?

No matter your reason for coming to Casco Viejo, your number one priority should be taking a stroll around the area. Since the French canal workers stayed in Casco Viejo while attempting to build the first Panama Canal, the architecture is a unique blending of Spanish Colonial and French that isn’t seen anywhere else in Latin America. 

Balconies that would feel at home in New Orleans look out over the narrow streets, and brightly colored art can be seen all over the place. Small plazas pepper Casco Viejo as well. Each one is a welcome green space among the buildings. 

There’s not really a wrong place to start your walk as the entire district has things to see, but when my family visited, we decided to start at the furthest point away from the entrance and walk back into things. 

We began at La Plaza de Francia.

Historical Sites

Plaza De Francia

The Plaza de Francia is a small plaza dedicated to the 22,000 Frenchmen who died in Panama attempting to build the canal. The plaza sits in the open courtyard of what was once the city’s main square and is surrounded by el Paseo de las Bovedas, which is a wide sea wall with plenty of space to walk on top. The entire area is beautiful, with an excellent view of the Pacific coast. 

If you follow the sea wall path, you will come to a hanging garden filled with Bougainvillea flowers that makes a lovely place to take a stroll. Small artisan market stalls line the walkway, each one offering its own take on Panamanian arts and crafts. 

We browsed their selections before moving on. 

Metropolitan Cathedral

Our next stop was the Metropolitan Cathedral which overlooks la Plaza de la Independencia, which is one of the largest Cathedrals in Central America. The interior of the church is open for tourism and has a number of relics from its past on display. 

The Metropolitan Cathedral is one of the most beautiful buildings in the area, in my opinion, and is well worth the stop!

Church Ruins

Not far away from the Plaza de Francia are the ruins of the Convento de Santo Domingo church. The front gate to the convent is called the Arco Chato. It is a particularly unique arch due to its flattened shape. The arch itself actually collapsed back in 2003 but has since been restored. 

Convento de Santo Domingo also hosts the Museum of Religious Art, for those interested. The museum isn’t that large, but it is both free and rather interesting. 

If you’d like to see more church ruins in the area, La Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús is located just a few blocks away. It is a beautiful, if small, set of ruins dating back to 1741. 

Presidential Palace

There are also a handful of historic buildings in the area that we didn’t have a chance to explore, but which would still make great stops! 

The Presidential Palace, or Palacio de la Garzas (Heron Palace), is the official residence of Panama’s sitting president, as well as the building hosting Panama’s governmental offices.  In truth, many presidents choose to live elsewhere and commute in for work.

The palace is known as the Heron Palace due to the African herons that have wandered the grounds since the 1920s.  

Interestingly, the building has an elevator that was added in 1934 for the visit of Franklin D. Roosevelt so he could access his bedroom during his stay. 

National Theater

The National Theater first opened its doors in 1908 and was considered to be the height of luxury. It was restored in the early 2000s and now regularly hosts theater productions, ballets, and more! 

If you’re interested in taking in a show, be sure to call ahead for information. 

Phone number: +507 262-3525

Modern Conveniences

Cute Cafes

At this point, you may be feeling a bit hungry. I know we were! Luckily, Casco Viejo is filled to the brim with small cafes where you can grab a quick bite to eat. 

Try a traditional Panamanian tamale cooked in banana leaves at the Casa Sucre Coffeehouse for a taste of local flavor. (Technically a breakfast item, but tasty all day) 

Or try a spicy shakshuka with artisanal walnut bread at Ruigar Cafe for flavors that are definitely not local, but which are equally tasty. 

I can confirm that both are great decisions, but if neither one is what you’re after, start walking in any direction and you will be sure to find something tasty. 

Delicious Restaurants

After 5:00, even more, food options begin to open up! A lot of the evening restaurants are packed with fancy flavors, and it can be difficult to choose just one place! But I can attest that the Fonda Lo Que Hay is one of the best options for a delicious and family-friendly dining experience. 

Fonda Lo Que Hay is one of the restaurants run by Chef José Olmedo Carles Rojas, one of the finest chefs in all of Panama. The menu changes, so I can’t tell you what to get, but I had a short rib chili that was amazing, and my wife had some absolutely wonderful sea bass. 

Museums

Pro tip: the museums are air conditioned and free. 

While I loved Panama’s weather, it could get a little hot at times, so breaking up a visit to Casco Viejo with visits to its many museums is bound to keep everyone feeling cooler and more educated. 

Apart from the Religious Art Museum mentioned earlier, there is a Panamanian History Museum, a Panama Canal Museum, and Museum of Molas (a traditional Panamanian art style), and more!

Each museum is fairly small, so don’t expect to be inside each one for much longer than half an hour.

Tourist Shopping

And finally, the shopping! 

Casco Viejo isn’t my top choice for tourist shopping (that’s the Centro Artesanal para el Mundo), but it does have a ton of small shops spread throughout the whole area. Depending on what you’re looking for, it is quite possible that you can find it in one. 

Probably my favorite thing about Casco Viejo is how flexible a trip there can be. It doesn’t matter if you’re wanting to spend half an hour there or half a day, there will be plenty to see and do. The entire place is a unique blend of historical site and upscale hangout that has a little something for almost anyone!