A highland town under Barú Volcano — Panama's highest peak, cloud forest strawberry farms, and the only place in the world where you can see both the Atlantic and Pacific simultaneously
Volcán is a highland agricultural town at 1,500m altitude in Panama's Chiriquí Province, in the shadow of Volcán Barú — at 3,474m the highest peak in Panama and the only place in the world where, on a clear day, you can see both the Atlantic (Caribbean) and Pacific Oceans simultaneously. The highland climate supports strawberry farms, coffee estates (Boquete gets more fame but Volcán produces comparable quality), and dairy cattle operations that supply Panama's excellent mountain cheeses. The town itself is functional and unpolished, which gives it a different character from the expat-saturat…
The Chiriquí Highlands were home to pre-Columbian Ngäbe (Guaymí) and Buglé peoples whose gold work — figures, plaques, and ornaments found in burial sites — shows a metalworking tradition connected to both Colombian and Central American traditions. The Spanish found the highland climate too cold for tropical agriculture and largely left the region to indigenous populations until the 19th century, when cattle ranching and coffee cultivation began. European immigrant farmers (particularly German and Swiss) settled in the 20th century, adding to the cultural mix.