What is so wonderful about a panama canal cruise?

Courtesy seems to have left the building with Elvis. But remember there are multiple opportunities for photos of the opening and closing of the locks. Everyone always wants the first one but you may find better photos later in the day after that wonderful sleep and leisurely breakfast.

I loved the canal trip (November 2013). But what was unexpected to me, was how much I loved the Gatun lake part. Nobody even mentions that. We glided through silently and slowly, for quite a while saw nothing else but unspoiled tropical nature, islands, etc. Not even other craft. It was amazing. A wonderful experience to sit on the balcony with the wonderful room service brunch. It felt like I was back at a time before man. How it looked for the first explorers. It also reminded me strongly of the Disneyland jungle ride!

You are absolutely correct! Usually the Locks are the star of the show with Gaillard Cut close behind and Gatun Lake gets no respect;)! As you sail across the Lake sometimes it is easy to forget that what you are looking at is basically as it was a hundred years ago. There are not that many places where there has been so much man made change and yet the area remains largely the same. About the only notice of civilization in Gatun Lake is the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute on Barro Colorado Island and even that is a little hard to spot all nestled in the old growth rainforest that surrounds the area.

What makes them interesting for us is we live in NYC and really do not like flying all that much. We can go to the west coast, and like in the upcoming trip spend some time in SF. Then take a 17 day cruise back, seeing lots of great stuff along the way and get off in FL with only a short hop home. Sometimes we can get off right in NY. The canal passage is just another great day along the way.

Go for the locks(don't forget the bagels)!

We've done the Panama Canal twice - both times from west to east. We were lucky enough to get an aft/corner balcony cabin and spent most of our time out on the balcony. If we can score another FV cabin on any future P C cruises I'll gladly sign up again.

I'm not a history buff but found the whole story of the Canal interesting - yes I did read The Path Between the Seas, forced myself at times to keep reading, and I enjoyed the five lectures given by the Canal expert on the ship. The transiting of the canal and the actual canal itself were nothing like I had imagined.

My favourite part of the whole cruise was going across Gatun Lake and how peaceful and calm it was when you were gliding through the water. I also liked all the different things we saw along the way from the start to the end - the landscapes on each side, birds, buildings, people, bridges, locks, etc.

I think back on the Panama Canal cruises as being peaceful and relaxing - the length of the cruise, the sea days, the different ports, some of which we spent very little time exploring and just an overall enjoyment of the cruise.

Have not been yet - but hubby and I are booked on the September 2015 transit from SF to FL (17 days total). Bought a couple of the books suggested - the McCullough book bought on CD so we can listen to it also. I am looking forward to the Sea Days as well as I like to include relaxation on my vacations - not just sitting on tour buses, or trying to see places way too quickly on intensive port days. Can't wait.:)

Have not been yet - but hubby and I are booked on the September 2015 transit from SF to FL (17 days total). Bought a couple of the books suggested - the McCullough book bought on CD so we can listen to it also. I am looking forward to the Sea Days as well as I like to include relaxation on my vacations - not just sitting on tour buses, or trying to see places way too quickly on intensive port days. Can't wait.:)

We are on the same trip. We have been in the canal before however took the trip for same reasons as you. We also want to see SF.

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We are on the same trip. We have been in the canal before however took the trip for same reasons as you. We also want to see SF.

 

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Did you join the Roll Call yet for this cruise - first time we are doing the roll call - new to cruise critic?

No, but when l looked I saw it was very large considering how far away the trip is. We will at some point.

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Because it is the only place in the world that I know of, where you can be about 30 feet above sea level on a cruise ship, instead at sea level. Seriously.

Great trivia question and, answer. :p

The best part for me was visiting Costa Rica and the rainforest there. Whilst the history of the locks is fascinating it just did nothing for me. Sorry, maybe I'm just a Philistine!

Because it is the only place in the world that I know of, where you can be about 30 feet above sea level on a cruise ship, instead at sea level. Seriously.

 

Great trivia question and, answer. :p

And you would have gotten that trivia question wrong. Seriously.

The water level in most of the canal is 85 feet (26 meters) above sea level, as explained by another member in post #24 above.

For CORRECT facts, see this source: http://www.pancanal.com/eng/general/canal-faqs/physical.html

I'm a little shocked and disheartened by people who say the Panama Canal is a bore! I just feel so fortunate to be able to take these cruises, I could never have such a blasé response. These people must have nothing but time and money to blow, that a cruise experience was such a waste of time for them. We are all very lucky to have the opportunity to see the world from these ships.

Whether one finds the Canal thrilling or not, I think everyone should just experience it at least once. I did 5 full transits by the time I was 22. I have recently added my sixth transit. I'm not going to say that I still sit out on deck all day and watch it minute by minute. But I have done it so many times, now I am to the point that I get a kick out of seeing other passengers on my trips experiencing it for the first time. I kind of live vicariously through their enjoyment.

It's a great trip that every cruiser needs to do once. I'm not a huge history buff, but still found my first couple of transits really special and I would hate for someone to miss out.

Michael

I'm a little shocked and disheartened by people who say the Panama Canal is a bore! I just feel so fortunate to be able to take these cruises, I could never have such a blasé response. These people must have nothing but time and money to blow, that a cruise experience was such a waste of time for them. We are all very lucky to have the opportunity to see the world from these ships.

 

Whether one finds the Canal thrilling or not, I think everyone should just experience it at least once. I did 5 full transits by the time I was 22. I have recently added my sixth transit. I'm not going to say that I still sit out on deck all day and watch it minute by minute. But I have done it so many times, now I am to the point that I get a kick out of seeing other passengers on my trips experiencing it for the first time. I kind of live vicariously through their enjoyment.

 

It's a great trip that every cruiser needs to do once. I'm not a huge history buff, but still found my first couple of transits really special and I would hate for someone to miss out.

 

 

 

 

Michael

Shocked ? Disheartened ? Lighten up.

Most ,including myself,said it was great for them the first time,but they did not need to do it again.

I felt the same about Mt Rushmore and Old Faithful.

There's too much else to see without repeating this experience.

Shocked ? Disheartened ? Lighten up.

Most ,including myself,said it was great for them the first time,but they did not need to do it again.

I felt the same about Mt Rushmore and Old Faithful.

There's too much else to see without repeating this experience.

Gawd, I hate it when people get sanctimonious and tell everyone else to "lighten up". :mad:

For your information, one person DID say the canal was a bore. See post #8. And no one said it needed to be done more than once, though a few have done it twice or more and enjoyed it. Everyone doesn't need to be just like you, in case you didn't know that. :rolleyes:

History

I'm glad this thread came up as the Panama forum is pretty quiet. Only 84 more days until Panama on the Infinity. Considering I booked the trip 430 days out, it's right around the corner. I think I will take RuthK's advice and hang out on the aft balcony and take it all in.

Still trying to figure out what excursions to do. Other than going through the Canal, I'm looking forward to the volcano hike in Guatemala.

David

Loved the pictures, thanks! I would add that going through on a cruise ship is very different from a smaller ship, I'd think. We went to different vantage points and watched the locks open and close, levels rise and fall, and the locomotives at their level.

I would think the canal would remain for the smaller ships, although I don't believe that was mentioned by our lecturer. You could see the new canal being built, but it seems years away from the looks of it.

Amazing that this was built when it was, while the Pan American Highway still has a place in Panama where one must take a ferry rather than driving through the jungle.

It's also a different view going from E-W and W-E. We especially liked the Gatun locks and getting up high on the ship and seeing all the levels with the sea beyond.

I'm glad this thread came up as the Panama forum is pretty quiet. Only 84 more days until Panama on the Infinity. Considering I booked the trip 430 days out, it's right around the corner. I think I will take RuthK's advice and hang out on the aft balcony and take it all in.

 

Still trying to figure out what excursions to do. Other than going through the Canal, I'm looking forward to the volcano hike in Guatemala.

 

David

David, choose the volcano hike carefully, particularly if this the one to the Pacaya Volcano!! I did this tour a few years ago with Royal. It seemed like a little more active tour than most and I was OK with that. The tour description was not entirely accurate however, other than the descriptions of steam vents and so on, the key element was a 2km alpine hike. Two kilometers... a mile and a quarter... for me that was just a warmup walk! What the written description failed to accurately state was the 2km was straight up! You climbed 2000 meters vertical, the 2km alpine hike was an 8 mile trek... 4 up and 4 down! I remember that excursion well as I gaze upon my token piece of Pacaya pumice on the desk and I now parse the excursion descriptions even more carefully now:)

BB,

Thanks for the heads up on the Pacaya Volcano. I think I'm up for the challenge. Will have to reward myself with an extra something for dessert that night.

How big was the group you were with? Did others have issues making it to the top?

Thanks,

David

A Panama Canal cruise is first on our bucket list for when DH finally is able to retire. He is very interested in the Canal itself. I am mildly interested in that as well, but more so in the fact of being able to take a nice, long cruise for a change after being limited to 10 day at the most due to time off work constraints. I don't care how long it takes to traverse the Canal itself - when/if I get bored with watching that I will just enjoy the time as a very relaxing and calm day at sea. I also love the west coast/Mexico part of the trip as well as Celebrity no longer runs pure west coast Mexico cruises now like it did in the past - I really miss those. It is also nice to be able to have a long cruise option out of a US port - those are few and far between with Celebrity. Not all of us have the funds to be able to take the longer cruises out of Europe or wherever, particularly with the high cost of airfare these days. All in all - what's not to like as far as I am concerned.

I want to say there were around 25 to 30 in our group and about 8 or 10 opted for a horse. Some took the horse at the start or you could decide later since a number of horses were brought along for the hike.

Enjoy the extra dessert!!

The information all of you have presented is invaluable, along with the photos and different points of view...we all see and experience things through different lenses and that is a good thing!:) How boring things would be if we all said the same thing...

I'm glad this thread came up as the Panama forum is pretty quiet. Only 84 more days until Panama on the Infinity. Considering I booked the trip 430 days out, it's right around the corner. I think I will take RuthK's advice and hang out on the aft balcony and take it all in.

 

Still trying to figure out what excursions to do. Other than going through the Canal, I'm looking forward to the volcano hike in Guatemala.

 

David

Since my husband and I booked the trip for Sept 2015 I would love to know how your cruise goes. Please post about your trip after, as well any excursions, etc that you feel were great (and those that were not so great).

If you get tired of reading and to be honest some books are pretty hard going (I read the Path between the Seas 700 pages) you might like to watch this.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/panama/player/

It's a very interesting documentary which shows the last part of the building of the Canal.

The first time we saw the canal it was from a land excursion and even though it was very interesting to look down at the ships passing through it was no comparison to being on a ship looking up!

 

Enjoy your planning whatever you decide.

Rosalyn

P.s. Just checked the link because it was a few years ago and it doesn't all work for my region, it might work for you but there are still some very interesting short films and info on it.

Thanks for the video link. It was very good. I read all about the Canal on our first partial transit there 12 years ago. I am really looking forward to our Westbound full transit in just 10 weeks.