The Santa Maria

The Santa Maria sits in Juan Díaz, a residential district where Panama City's modern sprawl gives way to pockets of greenery and the calm of The Santa Maria Golf & Country Club just down the road. This is not the postcard Panama of Casco Viejo's colonial balconies or the glass towers of the financial district. It is a quieter remove, favoured by those who come for golf, proximity to the canal's Pacific gateway, and easy access to Tocumen International Airport nine kilometres east.

Panama City itself is a city of layered histories. Founded in 1519 by Spanish conquistador Pedro Arias Dávila, the original settlement became the staging ground for expeditions into Inca Peru and a critical node on the transatlantic trade route funneling Andean silver and gold through Nombre de Dios and Portobelo. When privateer Henry Morgan razed that first city in 1671, the Spanish rebuilt on a peninsula eight kilometres west. Today, the ruins of Panama Viejo stand as a World Heritage Site, their crumbling stone walls overlooking mangroves and the Pacific.

The property is a short drive from central Panama City's landmarks: the 1673 Palacio de las Garzas, the presidential residence whose white herons still stalk the courtyards, and the Panama Museum of Contemporary Art, which has anchored the city's cultural conversations since 1962. Tocumen International Airport is the nearest hub, with swift transfers into the city.

Golf defines much of the immediate experience here. The Santa Maria Golf & Country Club lies one kilometre from the hotel, its fairways carved through tropical green, while the Club de Golf de Panamá sits seven kilometres west for variety. Beyond the greens, the Panama Viejo Mangroves Marine Coastal Reserve stretches five kilometres north, where tangled roots rise from tidal flats and egrets pick through the shallows. The Bosques y manglares de Juan Díaz, less than three kilometres away, offers a closer encounter with coastal wetlands. Book a morning walk before the heat sets in.

For a taste of the city's artisan pulse, drive to Mercado de Artesanía, just over five kilometres distant, where molas (reverse-appliqué textiles) from the Guna people hang alongside carved tagua nuts and devil masks from pollera festivals. The beaches of the Amador Causeway, fourteen to fifteen kilometres south, stretch along a reclaimed roadway linking three small islands, with Playa de Isla Perico and Playita de Amador drawing weekend crowds. The causeway's marinas, including Flamenco Marina at fifteen kilometres, host sailboats bound for the Pearl Islands and beyond.

February and March bring the driest, brightest days: the Pacific gleams hard and blue, and the city's parks turn dusty underfoot. Temperatures hover near 30°C, the air crackling with low humidity. This is the season for outdoor exploration, golf rounds that finish before midday heat, and long evenings on waterfront terraces.

May through November is the rainy season. Afternoon storms roll in from the Pacific with theatrical intensity, drenching streets in minutes before clearing to steam and soft light. Mornings remain clear, temperatures dip slightly, and the city's green spaces flush vivid. The rain rarely disrupts travel, but carry an umbrella and expect sudden downpours.

December through April is high season for a reason. The dry spell stretches longest, humidity drops, and the canal operates under relentless sun. Even in the wettest months, rain tends to fall in bursts rather than all-day drizzle, leaving mornings open for markets and mangrove walks.