It is along an old lava flow coming from the Caldereta (small caldera), a volcano just south of the city.

Santa Cruz de La Palma has the privilege of having the first democratically elected town hall in Spain.

The city, originally called Villa del Apurón, served as a port that connected routes to the Americas, exporting goods from the island such as sugarcane.

Santa Cruz de la Palma has the only major port in the island, serving ferry routes to Cádiz in Spain, as well as to Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote.

The football SD Tenisca rivalry with CD Mensajero is the most important derby of the island of La Palma.