Friday 25 December 2026, at night
El Topón in La Pintada
Two religious images meet in the plaza of La Pintada on Christmas night, after separate journeys through the countryside.
On the night of Friday 25 December 2026, La Pintada holds El Topón. Two images meet in Plaza de La Cruz: the Virgin Mary, called La Pascualita, and the Christ child. Each has been carried through the countryside on a separate route. The municipality describes it as a long-standing tradition.
The images arrive with the stewards, with violins or Christmas songs. A mass follows. They are then walked to the parish church of Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria, where they stay until the next year. The municipality also describes a short nativity play, La Estrella de Belén, by children of the parish.
The municipal page does not publish a clock time, only that the meeting is at night. It does not list an entry fee. The 2026 festive calendar of Panamá Típico lists El Topón on 25 December 2026.
La Pintada is north of Penonomé, the provincial capital, which lies west of Buenaventura on the Pan-American Highway. A driving route on OpenStreetMap, from the resort to the town, is about 50 km and about an hour and ten minutes. The time is approximate. Christmas Day is also a national rest day. Earlier that month the district holds the XIV Festival Nacional del Sombrero Pintao, on 4, 5 and 6 December.
← All events- When
- Night of Friday 25 December 2026
No clock time published - Where
- Plaza de La Cruz, La Pintada, north of Penonomé. About an hour and ten minutes by car from the resort, approximate.