American Trade Hotel

Rooms and decor

Picture a three-story white colonial building on a tree-shaded square in the heart of Panama's old town, once an American-Panamanian trading house dating to 1917, then left abandoned for decades — until the Atelier Ace team, the design studio within the Ace Hotel family, took it on and restored it with real care. That is the charm of American Trade Hotel, the thing that stops most people the first time they walk in: the soaring high ceilings, the original tiled floors, the dark brown timber frame, and the long wood windows that open onto Plaza Herrera. All 50 rooms follow a modern-colonial concept in white, cream and soft green, with most of the furniture made from wood reclaimed from the original building, brass lamps, old-pattern rugs, and beds dressed in soft Frette linens. Many rooms have a small wrought-iron balcony jutting out over the square. Get a 3rd-floor room on the Plaza Herrera side and you wake to birdsong and the smell of coffee drifting up from the cafe in the lobby — like stepping back into 1920s Central America without any pretense.

Food and amenities

If this hotel has a beating heart, it is the way one building gathers all of the old town's creative projects in one place. It starts with Cafe Unido, the ground-floor cafe pouring Panama's celebrated Geisha coffee from the Hartmann and Lamastus farms in Boquete province, the variety coffee lovers fly in to find — the barista makes a slow pour-over right at the counter. Then there's the Lobby Bar, deep green with warm light, serving Panamanian rum cocktails in brass cups, with the feel of a members' club in an old novel. Further inside is Danilo's Jazz Club, run by Panamanian pianist and multiple Grammy winner Danilo Perez, open mostly Wednesday to Saturday, with artists from New York, Cuba and across Latin America taking turns on stage. Just being able to sit with a glass of rum and hear live jazz without calling an Uber back to your room is an experience you can't find elsewhere. There's also the American Trade Bookshop, a self-curated English-Spanish art bookstore, and a compact rooftop pool with a view over the old town's orange terracotta roofs, perfect for sunbathing in the late afternoon.

Location and getting there

Location is what sets American Trade apart from the international 5-star chains in Punta Pacifica on the new-city side. The hotel sits on Plaza Herrera in the heart of Casco Viejo, the old town founded in 1673 and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997. Step out of the lobby and you're on cobbled lanes lined with pastel colonial buildings, old churches, stylish restaurants and rooftop bars with live music every evening. A few minutes' walk takes you to Plaza de la Independencia, San Jose Church with its famous golden altar, and Panama Bay views where the Punta Pacifica skyline reflects on the water at sunset. To head out of the district for food or craft beer elsewhere, an Uber for $5-10 reaches anywhere in the city, and the new Cinta Costera coastal route connects into Casco Viejo easily. From Tocumen International Airport (PTY) it's roughly a 35-45 minute drive depending on traffic, and the hotel offers a paid airport transfer for guests.

Things to know before booking

Straight talk to help you decide. The most common gripe in reviews is the size of some room types — Standard rooms and some that face the inner courtyard are smaller than many expect at this hotel's 5-star price. If you're two people with big bags or need a work space, it's worth upgrading to a Deluxe or Suite up front. Another frequent point is noise: Casco Viejo is very lively at night, with live music and rooftop bars around the square open until 1-2 am. Rooms facing Plaza Herrera or the main street can catch some of that until the small hours; light sleepers should ask for a higher floor or the inner courtyard side. On the technical side of an old building, some reviews report that Wi-Fi and hot water are unreliable at times, a common limitation of restored historic buildings in this neighborhood, though the hotel fixes issues quickly when told. Finally, breakfast isn't included in every package, and drinks at the Lobby Bar and Danilo's are about standard for a hotel of this level, so check when you book.

Our take

After reading through hundreds of real guest reviews, American Trade Hotel is a hotel that doesn't sell all-out 5-star polish but instead sells the spirit of a World Heritage old town, in the best-balanced package in Panama City. If the trip in your head is waking up to a Geisha pour-over at Cafe Unido, then spending the day wandering the cobbled lanes of Casco Viejo, coming back for an afternoon dip in the rooftop pool, then dinner at a good spot around the square, and closing the night with live jazz at Danilo's Jazz Club without leaving the building, this is the answer. But if you expect a large, plush room, a full fitness center and a big resort-style pool, American Trade may feel too small and too distinctive. Overall we give it 9.0/10 — best for couples, design lovers, history and architecture fans, and independent travelers who want a deeper Panama experience rather than a night in a tower on the new-city side.