Natá

One of Panama's oldest inhabited towns, Natá (officially Natá de los Caballeros) has a lovely central plaza with a restored colonial church, and is worth a quick stop on the drive to the Azuero Peninsula or Santa Catalina. Founded in 1522, Natá was a key Spanish outpost in a region dominated by Indian chiefs who organized stiff resistance to colonization. Caballeros (knights) were sent to pacify the Indians and construct a Christian enclave here in 1522.