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PANACA is an agricultural based theme park in the UNESCO World Heritage listed Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia. It features several different species of domesticated animals and many that are exotic to Colombia.
PANACA is a great chance to get up close and personal with these animals and learn the importance of farming and agriculture. I’ve visited on two separate occasions and enjoyed it both times.
Admission
PANACA has a few ticketing options. Admission to all stations and five shows is COP$98,000, while admission to all stations and a nature trail is COP$148,000 (as of October 2023). There’s also an option to do some extreme sport activities. The shows are entertaining and well worth watching.
Organization
PANACA is very well organized. Once through the main gates, an employee will show you where the main path starts. There are different stations along the main path. Each station has a different theme and some of them have shows lasting between 30 and 45 minutes. When the shows finish, visitors have enough time, anywhere between 15 and 45 minutes, to walk to the next show and enjoy the animals and scenery along the way.
Food
There are plenty of opportunities to buy food and drinks along the way at reasonable prices. Everything from snacks to coffee and fast food to full meals is available. We sat down to lunch at the Equine Station and had a huge pork chop, although it wasn’t as satisfying as we expected.
When to Arrive
It’s best to get there early. I recommend starting no later than 10am because the park is designed for visitors to follow a loose schedule. For example, the first station’s show finishes earlier and ends for the day, while the last station’s show doesn’t start until later in the afternoon. If you miss the earlier shows, you miss a lot. There are usually two showtimes per station. NOTE: Shows change over the years, so the shows highlighted on this page may not be offered when you visit.
Livestock Station
The first station was the Livestock Station (Estación de Ganadería). Here we had a chance to visit with different types of cattle, sheep, goats, and llamas. It’s possible to feed the animals milk and carrots as well.
The show here was called The Future is in the Country (En el Campo Está el Futuro). There was a lot of audience participation involved, with guests learning how to milk a cow and goat.
The 30 minute show finished with a parade of exotic cattle from around the world with some more audience participation.
Minor Species Station
The next station was the Minor Species Station (Estación de Especies Menores). This featured several cages with smaller animals, such as birds, chickens, and rabbits.
The show was called Without the Country There’s No City (Sin Campo No Hay Ciudad). It was a comedy sketch about a country woman who wanted to leave for the city and was full of good old fashioned paisa (the people of the area are called paisas) humor. The show lasted 30 minutes.
Ostrich Station
From there, we made a quick stop at the Ostrich Station (Estación de Avestruces), where visitors were given the chance to feed ostriches. They could buy carrots for a small fee and hold them out for the ostriches to take them.
Pork Farming Station
Next was the Pork Farming Station (Estación de Porcicultura), where pigs reigned supreme. After seeing the cute newborn pigs, we saw the giant hogs resting and fighting each other in their pens.
The show was called Play it at the Pigdrome (Juégatela en el Cerdódromo), where kids raced against pigs and adults had a pig weighing contest. This show lasted 45 minutes.
The best part of this show was the completely improvised singing from the two hosts. They asked some visitors where they were from and some their jobs, and they battled it out with a song. For me it was probably the most entertaining part of any of the shows we saw.
Cats and Dogs
Next was a quick stop at the Feline Station (Estación Felina), where different kinds of house cats were on display, followed by the Canine Station (Estación Canina), which allowed visitors to play with several breeds of dogs. The show was called The Friendly World of the Dog (El Amigable Mundo del Perro), where dogs (and people) were able to show off their amazing skills.
Silk Station
The Silk Station (Estación de Sericultura) allowed a visitor to see how silk was produced. It was located in a small building.
Tibetan Bridge
It was a long walk to the next station, but those brave enough to try could opt to cross the Tibetan Bridge (Puente Tibetano). They were given proper safety items to cross. There was also a zip line in the park.
Equine Station
The Equine Station (Estación Equina) featured horses, ponies, donkeys, and mules. There’s even an area to see newborn horses.
We were able to catch the show, the Spectacular World of the Horse (El Espectacular Mundo del Caballo), which displays different breeds of horses originating from different countries.
Agronomy Station
The final station was called the Agronomy Station (Estación de Agronomía) and showcased 30 different species of fruits and vegetables grown locally on farms. There were a few gift shops on the way back towards the main entrance.
Resort
For visitors who wish to maximize their time, there is a resort hotel on the premises, Decameron PANACA. It’s attached to the park.
Getting There
To get to PANACA via public transport, there is a bus from the main plaza in Quimbaya. Coomodequi runs the buses. It takes about 20 minutes to reach the park and the bus stops at the main gate. Visit my entry about Quimbaya to find out where to catch the bus to PANACA.
Conclusion
If I compare PANACA to the other theme park in the area, Parque del Café, I would say overall PANACA is much better. For non-Spanish speaking visitors, however, PANACA is a little difficult to do. The majority is all in Spanish, so it’s much more enjoyable for Spanish speakers.
