Darién Province

Darién Province is a province in eastern Panama that covers dense rainforest, wetlands with mangroves, and mountain ridges reaching to the Pacific coast and the Colombian border. The region consists mainly of uninhabited jungle with few roads, crossed by rivers that lead to remote settlements and indigenous villages.

Spanish settlers founded Santa Maria la Antigua del Darien in 1510, the first permanent European settlement on the American mainland. The province remained largely undeveloped for centuries as dense jungle and disease prevented major development projects.

The name comes from an indigenous word for the bay early settlers found, and today travelers often interact with Emberá communities along the rivers, who offer handcrafts and guided canoe trips. Wounaan villages lie deeper in the forest, where visitors can see traditional basket weaving and carvings made from tagua nuts.

Travelers reach most places in the province only by boat or small plane, as paved roads end at the capital La Palma. The rainy season between May and December makes trails muddy and rivers difficult to cross, so many visitors plan trips during the dry season.

The province holds the Darién rainforest, which forms the only gap in the Pan-American Highway between Alaska and Argentina, an undeveloped section that no continuous road crosses. Travelers moving from Central America to South America must ship or fly their vehicles around this area.