Visitanos: Plaza Herrera, Casco Viejo, Panamá
Contactenos: +507 383-3600 || +507 6681-4252
Beneath your feet, a tale unfolds, Of copper dreams and hands grown bold. Not tiles, not stone, but coins aligned, A floor composed with heart and time.
An Obsession Worth Every Cent
All great things have a story behind them. At Hotel Herrera, even the floors have tales to tell—ones of patience, vision, and a whole lot of pennies.
It all began while searching for the perfect flooring. Amid countless options, we stumbled upon images of penny floors — intricate mosaics crafted from actual coins. I had never seen anything like it. The uniqueness and visual texture screamed perfect for Hotel Herrera. I devised a method for matting them efficiently and naively thought the hard part was over. I had no idea what I was in for.
The Great Penny Harvest
In Panama, both U.S. and Panamanian pennies circulate — but only U.S. pennies would work. Turns out, they’re slightly different in thickness and composition. Thus began the great penny hunt.
We started with local chino stores, asking owners to help spread the word. Since counting hundreds of thousands of coins wasn’t feasible, we weighed them for exchange. But even then, we didn’t have enough. Local banks only had new, shiny pennies — which lacked the rich variety of color and patina we needed. So we started asking every visitor, friend, and family member to bring pennies from the U.S. Kids’ piggy banks were raided. Still, it wasn’t enough.
Eventually, I made two trips to the States, flying back with 30-pound fanny packs loaded with coins. TSA had a field day. “What’s in the bag?” they’d ask. “Penny floor project,” I’d reply. They shook their heads, never quite grasping the madness — or the magic.
Sorting, Cleaning, and More Sorting
Every single penny was touched—again and again. First, we sorted Panamanian from U.S. coins. Then, by color: rich browns, deep blacks, bright coppers. Older pennies oxidized differently thanks to higher copper content, so we saved those for artistic flourishes like decorative banding.
Next came cleaning. We tumbled the pennies in industrial alcohol for 6–8 hours, then rinsed, dried, and sorted them again. Some weren’t clean enough and needed repeating. Eventually, when a batch was ready, we hand-blended for color variation and matted them like tiles. We made heads-up and tails-up patterns, wrapped each in plastic, and stacked them away like treasure.
Installation: A Labor of Love
Three years and 350,000 pennies later, it was time.
The floors had to be leveled and drains prepped. Each “penny tile” was mapped and placed with interlocking precision. Groupings and color clusters were edited by hand—often penny by penny—until balance was achieved.
Once laid, the surface was given a final alcohol wipe. From that point on, no bare hands touched the floor. We grouted meticulously with black grout, cleaned behind ourselves constantly, and kept air purifiers running to avoid dust. Then came the epoxy—locking everything in place with a crystalline finish.
We even included a small adventure for our guests: a few reversed pennies are hidden in the floors. Those lucky enough to find one win a dessert on the house. It’s surprising how much time guests spend searching for them — and how much joy it brings.
Was it worth it? Absolutely. Would I do it again? Without hesitation.
El Hotel Herrera está ubicado dentro de un edificio de importancia histórica Clase II, meticulosamente
restaurado para preservar su grandeza colonial incorporando al mismo tiempo el lujo contemporáneo. Cada suite refleja esta herencia y cuenta con:
Cada THEsuite es un santuario diseñado para elevar tu experiencia con:
Tour 1: Canal de Panamá, Historia y Modernidad Urbana
Descripción:
Comunidad Emberá: Un Encuentro con la Tradición Ancestral
Descripción:
Cascada del Rio Chagres, Aventura en la Jungla Panameña.
Descripción:
Salida a las 8. am del Hotel, hacia la Cabima luego llegar al puerto Corotu a eso de las 9.15 am tomar un bote en el Rio Chagres en 25 minutos estaremos en la jungla para caminar un breve momento y luego llegamos a la Cascada donde nos bañaremos a eso de las 10.45 volveremos a la comunidad de los Embera donde hablaremos con el Cacique. Él explicara sus costumbres y tradiciones, bailaremos danzas con ellos y comeremos comida preparada por ellos ademas de recorrer la comunidad volveremos a eso de las 1.30 para estar en el Casco a eso de 3pm.
