12 Awesome Things To Do In El Valle de Anton (Anton Valley)

El Valle de Anton or ‘El Valle’ for short is a town I based myself in for a month. El Valle means ‘The Valley’, and this beautiful region just a few hours out of Panama City is much more than a valley, it is a volcanic crater from many years ago. There are plentiful hikes around the rim of the crater and in the surrounding region. As well as hikes you will find an abundance of natural beauty amidst canyons, waterfalls, and spectacular ridge trails. This blog post will include all of my favorite adventurous things to do in El Valle de Anton (Anton Valley).

In this blog post, I will share with you all of the best things to do in and near El Valle de Anton. I will also detail where I stayed for an entire month and other recommended places to stay in El Valle. I will also share information about transport, WiFi, and other tips you might want to know before visiting the valley in the middle of a volcanic crater that is, El Valle de Anton.

WHERE TO STAY IN EL VALLE DE ANTON

Bodhi Hostel: I stayed here for a month. It’s right in the center of the valley and has great vibes. Every morning starts with a free breakfast of fresh fruits and pancakes as well as free coffee and tea. They also serve machine coffee and the best real-fruit smoothies at the bar.

I think the other great part about Bodhi Hostel is that because it is in a small town with no nightclubs, the vibe is chill and the nights are quiet. Everyone is going to sleep early to wake up for sunrise hikes so it has this real adventurous vibe with everyone in a  positive mood, ready to enjoy nature.

The Golden Frog Inn and Caracoral Boutique Hotel & Spa are both beautiful hotels in El Valle de Anton if you are looking for a little bit of affordable luxury in Anton Valley.

TRANSPORT IN AND OUT OF EL VALLE DE ANTON

The beauty of El Valle de Anton is that you can reach all of the nearby hikes by walking. Cerro Gaital, Cerro Cara Iguana, Cerro La Silla, and La India Dormida are all within walking distance. That covers most people for their 2-7 day stay in El Valle de Anton. After that, the bus will take you on some other adventures.

If you do have a hire car it will make things a little easier on the legs but the local bus is great. You just stand out on the main road and jump in the local bus/van that has the name of the place you want to go. It’s a smooth system and you rarely have to wait more than half an hour. Bodhi Hostel rents bicycles if you just went to head around town checking out waterfalls and hikes.

WIFI IN ANTON VALLEY

As you can imagine, I quickly find out about the availability of WiFi in a new town. At Bodhi Hostel, the WiFi was great and I blogged every night about all of the places I was visiting. For $5 I also bought a DigiCell card at the grocery store, which gave me unlimited Data for 7 days. I topped that up every week and was connected all the time!

BEST THINGS TO DO IN EL VALLE DE ANTON (ANTON VALLEY)

With the logistics covered, it is now time to list my favorite hikes, waterfalls, and adventurous things to do in El Valle de Anton or Anton Valley as the ‘Gringos’ often call it (Yes, I’m well aware I am a Gringo!) This list is in no particular order but includes all of the memorable experiences I had in Anton Valley.

LA INDIA DORMIDA ‘THE SLEEPING INDIAN’ HIKE

La India Dormida hike is one of the most popular sunrise viewpoints in all of Anton Valley. The hike only takes about 45 minutes to summit from the town, making it a perfect way to start your morning. The loop trail takes you along the edge of the beautiful mountains of the crater, which resemble the body of a sleeping person. This is where the hike gets its name and we will delve into the Legend of the Sleeping Indian in this blog post as well as everything you need to know about hiking La India Dormida to enjoy an epic sunrise.

Legend has it that Luba, known as ‘Airflower’, was the youngest daughter of heralded Chief Urraca. Urraca was the leader of one of the many Guaymi Tribes in Anton Crater. Luba was a rebellious girl and despite her tribes fighting with the Spanish for years, she fell in love with a Spanish official who lived in the town. Yaravi was a brave warrior from the tribe who loved Luba but she didn’t love him back. Yaravi couldn’t handle this and took his own life, throwing himself off of a mountain while Luba stared in a perplexed fashion. Luba didn’t want to betray her town and in a desperate panic of crying and mourning she loses herself in the bushes and dies

Need more information? Full blog post: HIKING LA INDIA DORMIDA FOR SUNRISE

CERRO CARA IGUANA

My first hike in Cocle was a short, sweet, and eventually very wet trek to the summit of Cerra Cara Iguana.  Anton Valley is actually a giant volcanic crater. It is said to be the only volcanic crater, which is inhabited. It’s pretty crazy to think that at some stage a key decision maker decided that the best place to set up camp was inside a volcanic crater.

What you have now is a beautiful town surrounded by epic mountains. In short, the Anton Valley unintentionally placed itself as a future adventure tourism destination. Cerro Cara Iguana gives you a great view of this crater. The ridge of Cerro Cara Iguana extends out towards the middle of the crater, more than any other point and it was great to do this hike early in my stay in Anton Valley. It gives you a great idea of the layout of the town.

Need more information? Full blog post: CERRO CARA IGUANA HIKE

CERRO GAITAL

Often labeled as ‘The toughest hike in Panama’, the Cerro Gaital hike will definitely challenge you while making your way up to the epic viewpoint.

Cerro Gaital leads you through a tunnel of the dense forest before hitting you with intense vertical rock climbs into the foggy summit. The hike takes less than three hours depending on how long you spend at the top. It is possible to walk to the trailhead from Anton Valley Town or you can catch a bus to the trailhead for $1.

From the top of Cerro Gaital, you have views over the whole valley and beyond. I sat atop the small cement hut eating my lunch enjoying yet another empty mountain in El Valle de Anton!

Need more information? Full blog post: CERRO GAITAL HIKE

CERRO LA GAITA

Although it is not directly in El Valle de Anton, Cerro La Gaita is only a short drive or even a bus trip away from the town center. This makes it one of the best things to do in El Valle de Anton or at least nearby.

Every mountain in Anton Valley seems to surround you as you emerged from the jungle to rise above the canopy on a wooden platform. For an hour you trek up the slippery path and then the stairs that pierced through the dense jungle. You will reach the summit of Cerro La Gaita and the view over Cerro Picacho and San Carlos Lake is beautiful.

Need more information? Full blog post: CERRO LA GAITA HIKE

POZO AZUL WATERFALL CANYON

In what seems to be the middle of a quiet farmland region is one of the wonders of Panama. A lot of places around the world get hyped up but surprisingly Pozo Azul was spoken of as a nice spot but I didn’t expect to encounter such an epic location. In the depths of the jungle, a series of waterfalls flow down from one level to the next into crystal-clear azure pools. Rock climbing, cliff jumping, and the ultimate waterhole await you at Pozo Azul in Cocle, Panama.

Need more information? Full blog post: POZO AZUL WATERFALLS

CERRO LA SILLA

Cerro La Silla is a short journey to an epic viewpoint atop the mountains to watch the sun rise over the horizon with views of Valle de Anton and beyond! It’s interesting that Cerro Cara Iguana and India Dormida hike are the most suggested but you don’t hear a lot about Cerro La Silla. Having experienced all three I would say it is hard to separate them all but La Silla possibly has the best views.

Just before the sun was about to break over the horizon we made it to the summit where we sat down beneath the giant cross, which seems to be common at viewpoints in Valle de Anton. We could see all the way back into the crater of Valle de Anton but also out to Cerro Picacho.

Need more information? Full blog post: CERRO LA SILLA ‘THE ARMCHAIR’ SUNRISE HIKE

HOT SPRINGS (POZOS TERMALES)

The hot springs are an interesting one. I saw many people come into the hostel and the first thing they wanted to see was Pozos Termales. This is good for a rainy day but doesn’t pick it over anything else on the list. It is more a man-made spring that is a fun afternoon rather than a beautiful natural hot spring. Nevertheless, it is a great place to enjoy with some apparently great health benefits!

CHORRO EL MACHO

Chorro El Macho is the most popular waterfall in El Valle de Anton. It is a 35m high waterfall and one of the few easily accessible in the region. Many visitors to El Valle will visit the waterfall and do a hike all in one day. It wasn’t even in the top 20 of the waterfalls I visited in Panama for natural beauty but I was there for 100 days, so my standards were high. It is a good little adventure but don’t expect Niagara.

SEE THE NATIONAL FLOWER OF PANAMA AT LA ORQUIDERIA

Normally, I wouldn’t suggest orchards in an adventure blog. But the national flower of Panama is very unique. It almost looks fake. At La Orquideria, they have lots of interesting plants but if you are lucky they will have the national flower on display. It looks like a dove is blooming from within the flower. Definitely check it out if you have a spare moment between the hikes! It is a non-profit run by the organization Aprovaca which helped us run our Adventure Bag clean-up. They are great people and I believe the entrance fee is only $1-2.

CERRO PICACHO IN SAN CARLOS

Overlooking San Carlos Laguna, the Cerro Picacho hike in San Carlos (West Panama) is one of the best viewpoints in the region. It is a steady incline through the dense forest, which leads you over roots, through muddy paths, and underneath a beautiful canopy. The tropical conditions mean that as per usual you will be sweating, hot, and searching for air when you reach the summit.

There are two viewpoints on Cerro Picacho in San Carlos. The first is a really cool boulder that sticks out of the trail and gives a great vantage point of the lake and the other peak. The other peak is incredibly steep although I have seen a video of someone sitting on top of it. From the boulder lookout, we could see other hikes like the Cerro La Gaita platform. It is a great spot to check out the other mountains in the area.

Need more information? Full blog post: CERRO PICACHO HIKE IN SAN CARLOS

CERRO TUREGA HIKE

Cerro Turega is an epic trail that leads you past waterfalls before up an intense incline to reach the three peaks at the summit with panoramic views! The hike is only a 6km trail. However, the hike is regularly touted as a 4-hour journey and this is because the terrain is incredibly steep and slippery making it very slow going.

There are three epic peaks but as far as I know, you can only reach the first where you can see us standing in the photos. They are very steep and I would be surprised if peaks two and three are accessible. The views are beautiful and we got a few glimpses amidst the fog and stormy clouds.

Need more information? Full blog post: CERRO TUREGA ‘THREE PEAKS’ HIKE

ISLA FARALLON DAY TRIP

Isla Farallon is a unique island off the coast off of Farallon on the southern coast of Panama, only a couple of hours’ drive from Panama City. We ventured down on three buses from Valle de Anton in about an hour and enjoyed a day of soaking up the sun, exploring Isla Farallon, and beach volleyball on Farallon Beach. This is a family-friendly beach with nothing but chill vibes, sun, and salt!

It only took us just over an hour to reach Farallon Beach from El Valle on two buses. Farallon Island only takes another fifteen-minute boat trip from there. I thought it would be handy in this guide as sometimes in El Valle de Anton, you forget what the beach looks like when you go on daily hikes!

Need more information? Full blog post: ISLA FARALLON AND FARALLON BEACH

I hope you enjoyed this guide to one of my favorite places in the world. With all of these epic things to do in El Valle de Anton, you definitely need to spend a week to totally enjoy the region!

HAVE YOU CHECKED OUT MY OTHER PANAMA GUIDES

• 70 AWESOME THINGS TO DO IN PANAMA: The ultimate guide to exploring the whole country!
• 26 AMAZING WATERFALLS IN PANAMA: The ultimate guide to waterfall chasing in Panama.
• 6 BEST CLIFF JUMPING SPOTS IN PANAMA: The guide for thrill-seekers and adrenaline hunters.
• 37 AMAZING HIKES IN PANAMA: All of the best hiking trails. Many you’ve never heard of!
• 18 AWESOME THINGS TO DO IN BOQUETE: Hiking, waterfalls, and volcanoes.
• 12 AWESOME THINGS TO DO IN EL VALLE DE ANTON: My favorite place to base in Panama.
• 10 AWESOME THINGS TO DO IN SANTA CATALINA: Surf, hike, swim, kayak, and explore.

I hope you enjoy my guides and have a great time exploring Panama!

CONTACT JERRY THE LOCAL GUIDE (MY BEST FRIEND IN PANAMA)

If you need a local guide or are looking for tips to travel through Panama I suggest contacting, Jerry,  one of my best friends from Panama.  He runs group tours to off-the-beaten-path locations like Escudo de Veraguas and Bayano Caves. He is a local, indigenous guide who is incredibly funny, honest, and knows Panama by the back of his hand. We explored all of Cocle together and went on some insane adventures and he became like a brother to me. If you have any questions or want help, tours, guides, or tips he is your man.

• Instagram: @jerryfit
• WhatsApp: +507 6153 8924
• Email: [email protected]