Is the time of year an issue?

I am looking at booking a full transit Panama Canal cruise with the following itinerary:

Depart from LA

Puerto Vallarta

Huatulco

San Juan del Sur

Puntarenas

Cartagena

Aruba

Ft. Lauderdale

Can weather be a real issue if we decide to go in the fall? I understand that weather can differ from year to year but would prefer to not take a huge risk if we can avoid it.

Thanks!

In the fall, you always run the risk of hurricanes...but your ship will avoid them,...change ports or course...or skip something that would be dangerous to the ship.

The weather in Panama and Central America, and S. Carib. is HOT/HUMID all year round.....

From what I've recently read, mid-December to mid-April is the best time to visit the Panama Canal. That's the dry season. The rest of the year can experience one to two feet of rain a month. Rains don't last long, but they can be intense.

I wouldn't say there is a huge risk in doing a fall Canal cruise in regards to the weather. Hurricanes are a possibility and they can occur in both the Atlantic/Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific in the fall... huge risk? I don't think so. The Canal cruise season generally starts up in late September with repositioning ships from the Alaskan market and runs to late April early May with repo cruises back to the Alaskan market. Early in the fall (Sept-Oct) the Rainy Season is still firmly in place in Costa Rica, Panama and Colombia. Rainy Season doesn't mean a daily, never ending all day torrential downpours, but it does mean you will have a better chance of rain at any of those stops or the day you transit the Canal.

Officially the hurricane season is over at the end of November in the Atlantic and Pacific and Dry Season in the areas mentioned above is in place by late December running through April. Keep in mind that the Dry Season doesn't mean no rain, just a lot less rain:)!

My last three Canal cruises were similar to the itinerary you are considering and they were all in the late October early November time frame. The weather (rain or hurricanes) was not an issue whatsoever.

From what I've recently read, mid-December to mid-April is the best time to visit the Panama Canal. That's the dry season. The rest of the year can experience one to two feet of rain a month. Rains don't last long, but they can be intense.

Yes, mid-December thru mid-April is their dry season.

We had great weather on our all of our full transits in the January/February time frame. :)

LuLu

Yes, mid-December thru mid-April is their dry season.

We had great weather on our all of our full transits in the January/February time frame. :)

 

LuLu

If I were going to choose a Canal cruise based on weather alone, January/February would be the absolute best time of year IMO.

It can be rainy in the fall during the transit but that would not stop me from doing this.

Keith