Island Princess - October 10 Partial Transit - The Excursion Report

Island Princess Partial Transit - October 2011

 

Excursion Report

 

As promised, here's my report on our various excursions, if a little late...

Oranjestad, Aruba:

 

Excursion: Semi Submersible and Island Drive

Booked Via: Princess

Price Paid: $59 pp

 

Summary:

 

We booked this one with Princess because we were concerned about the relatively short time in port, a concern that appeared to be borne out based on seeing a number of people scurrying up at the last moment.

 

The tour itself consisted of a drive to several locations around the Island, with a trip out to the Seaworld Explorer semi-submersible to view the shipwreck of the Antilla. The first location was the California lighthouse. Honestly, they could have skipped this, its not in the best state of repair, and unless you climb it (no time on this tour) the view is not particularly engaging from there. After the lighthouse, we headed to a Holiday Inn (fairly nice one). We really wanted the dock behind it to catch a ferry out to the semi-sub. On the way out the water was so crystal clear you could make out starfish resting on the bottom and patches of seaweed. Upon arriving at the semi-sub we transferred over (mobility note - they have very wide gangplanks to connect the ships - even an older gentleman using a walker managed fine with a little help.)

 

One note about the semi-sub, they do pack you in there. Everyone gets a seat but the last person down gets a little fold down cushion on the steps. Don't be the last person, it did not look comfy.

 

Once all were settled, the captain took us closer into the wreck and moved in a circular pattern. Don't worry about what side you are on, the ship moves around enough so everyone gets good viewing opportunities. As you circle, the guide will explain the story behind the shipwreck as well as point out key features and talk about marine life. The fish come right up to the windows as well. Be sure to look for some cool coral formations on the wreck as well.

 

After about 45 minutes, we exited the explorer and waited on deck for the ferry to return, drop off more people and then pick us up. At this point the weather was getting iffy and we hit some rain on the ferry back, enough that everyone was huddled under cover.

 

Back on the bus after an extended bathroom break we headed over to the Casibari Rock Garden. Honestly, I could have spent the whole port time there. The gardens are beautiful and much bigger than you might expect. The guide did recommend not climbing the rocks due to rain and time, but everyone did anyway.

 

From the gardens we headed to the Natural Bridge. Also a very scenic area, and a too-short stop, but time was tight. From there, it was back to the ship. With the rain and extended bathroom stops, we were running behind, no time to shop except at the little mall inside the port. The wife did that, I just headed back on the ship.

 

Comments:

 

As I noted, I would skip the lighthouse on a tour itinerary. It's at the other end of the Island from some of the nicer stuff and really just ate up a bunch of time.

 

The tour guide was nice, nothing special to the point I can't recall her name at all.

 

In short, this was a standard ship excursion. Too many people, not enough time, but a decent option given the shorter port stay.

 

I really really wanted to like Aruba more, but I'm not sure if it was the short day, the weather or the meh tour, but it just never really connected for me.

 

Cartagena, Colombia:

 

Tour Name: Custom Itinerary

Booked with: Lee Miles

Price: $58 per person based on 8 people. Charge is by vehicle overall, split by number of passengers. Arranged the group via our Meet and Greet thread. Attraction admission included.

 

Summary:

 

Before the cruise, Lee and I worked out a schedule:

 

9:15 to 9:30 Drive to La Popa Monastery 0:15 H:Min

9:30 to 9:55 Visit La Popa Monastery (*) 0:25 H:Min

9:55 to 10:10 Drive to San Felipe Fortress 0:15 H:Min

10:10 to 10:25 Photo stop, San Felipe Fortress 0:15 H:Min

10:25 to 10:40 Drive to Plaza Bolivar 0:15 H:Min

10:40 to 11:10 Visit Palace of the Inquisition (*) 0:30 H:Min

11:10 to 11:35 Walking tour of Old City 0:25 H:Min

11:35 to 12:00 Visit Church of San Pedro Claver (*) 0:25 H:Min

12:00 to 12:15 Drive to New City and Pierino Gallo Plaza 0:15 H:Min

12:15 to 12:45 Shopping and rest stop at Pierino Gallo 0:30 H:Min

12:45 to 13:05 Drive to ship 0:20 H:Min

 

I want to start out by saying Lee was a true pleasure to work with. It was a tie between him and JJ on who was best overall, for different reasons. See Limon for notes on JJ.

 

Lee met us right at the gangway with a sign. Our minivan was parked just a few feet away. It worked out that our guide was the famous Claudia and she lived up to her reputation. Not only was she very knowledgeable and personable, EVERYONE knows her, and she knows everyone.

 

Our first stop was La Popa Monastery. This is a good point to start as the drive up is quite nice and the view from the top is spectacular. Once we had a chance to look around, we toured the inside, with Claudia pointing out various items of interest. From there we drove to San Felipe Fortress. We didn't have time to go inside here (and it was VERY crowded), we just walked around the outside and took photos as Claudia reviewed the history of the fort, then we boarded the van again.

 

The van dropped us off in the old city area (note that while our schedule says Old City was a 25 min walk, the last two attractions were in that area, so you also saw part of the old city on the way too and from. The Palace of the Inquisition was first, and while the stories were interesting, the exhibits were rather boring. I'm not sure I would recommend this stop. Personally, I got a chuckle when the area out back was described as the 'Vegetable Garden of the Inquisiton". We also had a random Sloth spotting in the garden. From there we walked through Old City to the Church of San Pedro Claver, a magnificent church with some spectacular stained glass windows. We walked around the Old City a bit more before rejoining the van and heading to Pierno Gallo for some shopping. This is also where my wife and I got our picture taken with a sloth, for only $2. Closer to the pier they wanted more and it was more crowded. Here we could hold the sloth as long as we liked.

 

Comments:

 

Lee, as I noted, lived up to his rep. I was particularly impressed that after the tour was concluded he requested feedback on the attractions, etc. I will also note for the record that we did by a very nice emerald ring from him, at a price I found more than fair.

 

Claudia was also such a nice guide. If you have the opportunity to tour with her, do so.

 

Vendors - the vendors were..pushy is a bit much but they weren't shy. A firm "No thanks" worked in 95% of cases. It helped that one of our party spoke fluent Spanish. The pushiest one was a 'fruit lady' in the same location as the sloth, who really wouldn't take no for an answer.

 

As disappointed as I was with Aruba, we really liked Cartagena and I wouldn't mind going back for a more relaxing visit. I wouldn't hesitate to engage Lee again to make arrangements while there.

 

The tour included a guide AND driver. The driver stayed with the van at all times, allowing us to keep bags, etc there.

 

Panama Canal:

 

Tour: Panama Canal Transit by Boat

Booked via: Princess (not a lot of choice)

Price: $159 pp

 

Summary:

 

 

When you do a partial transit, you really have about 3 options. Stay on the ship, do a tour related to the canal or go see the Embera villages. I thought it would be interesting to see the canal from two different perspectives, so we chose the small boat tour to the pacific.

 

After the ship arrives in Gatun Lake, you are tendered to a small dock about 10 mins away from the ship. The wind was up which made the tendering quite entertaining. From there you get on a bus to the ferry. It's about an hour's ride to the Ferry, which you will pick up a couple of miles upstream from the ship. The ride itself has some nice views but is not particularly exciting. Our tour guide was a little bland, but he was also the tour leader which meant we got out first and on the ferry first. Some of the other guides looked a little more entertaining.

 

He recommended the second deck starboard front so that's where we sat, just under cover in case of rain, which turned out to be a wise decision. Once all 6 (six!) buses had arrived, we departed. The first part of the trip consisted of crossing Gatun Lake, where the guide pointed out the various equipment used to maintain the canal system as well as the construction on the new locks. Upon arriving at the first set of pacific locks, the name of which escapes me at the moment, we waited for the cargo ship that would be sharing the locks with us each time. Once he pulled in behind us, the lowering process began. It's definitely a different perspective from being on the Island, as you can see everything up close and get a real appreciation of the construction that went into it. The ferry is tethered to the side of the canal during the lowering process, so you can touch the walls as it descends. When you are at the lowest point, the walls and doors of the canal tower over you, something you don't see on the bigger ship.

 

After another short cruise, you transit the Miraflores locks and are in the Pacific ocean. After they debark the pilot, you have another short hop to a breakwater to meet your buses for a 90 min drive to Colon and the ship.

 

Comments:

 

Let me start out by saying that this was a great tour, but I can't recommend it enthusiastically. The reason is (and there is really no way around this) it is LONG. Honestly, after the 4th or 5th lock of the day, you get it, and it becomes a bit repetitive (and so does the narration). It would be great if there were some way to just do one or two locks, but obviously that's not an option. It wasn't that hot the day we did it, but on a 90 degree humid day I could see it really wearing people out.

 

Also remember that you will be on a ferry not a cruise ship. The wave action in the Pacific that would have the cruise ship bobbing a little had us bouncing like a cork. It was raining at that point as well (we did avoid rain most of the trip) and some people started to look a little green.

 

Then again, that may have been from the food. Lunch was provided, buffet style, and lets just say it wasn't gourmet. There was some tasty but extremely dry chicken, crustless ham and cheese sandwiches, pasta salad and sliced hot dogs in tomato sauce (imagine beans and franks without the beans). It was filling. Dessert were some decent muffins and very tasty fruit. Large coolers of bottled water and local brand soda were available (complimentary) and beer was $2.

 

One note on etiquette. There are a lot of people on this relatively small boat. Please, take some photos and sit down! They had to announce this way too many times.

 

The ship has a photographer on board who will take photos and print out commemorative ones right on board. There is also a gift shop (table) which had some surprisingly nice little items at reasonable prices.

 

Overall however I enjoyed the trip . After the first lock, the captain invited a few people up to the wheelhouse deck, of which I was one. There's not a lot of room up there so we kept it quiet, he actually had me sneak my wife up there by bringing her in a window in the mid ship area and up the inside stairs. But the view was great. At one point he even let another passenger take the 'wheel' (actually a lever) for a moment. The canal pilot was up there as well and offered some insight since we could not hear the narration (not a big loss).

 

Limon, Costa Rica:

 

Tour Name: Tour #8 (Rainforest, Aerial Tram, Zipline, Lunch, Tortugero Canals, Shopping)

Booked with: JJ Tours

Price: $135 pp

 

Summary:

 

JJ was waiting for us when we got off the ship with Chavez, our driver. Once we were all assembled, we raced off to the Veruaga rainforest area to beat the crowds. The first thing on the agenda was a tour of the area followed by an aerial tram ride down to a waterfall. JJ turned us over to a guide at the facility named Carlos who took us through some exhibits featuring the local fauna including the amphibian house and butterfly room as well as the nocturnal amphibian area. It was very interesting and one thing I appreciated was that they had multiple staffers with flashlights available to help point out the sometimes very small animals in their enclosures. On the tram ride down we spotted a sloth in the tree. The waterfall at the bottom was nice, nothing special, and you climbed a lot of steps to get to it (we did see some really cool frogs and insects along the way). There is a botanical exhibit for those who want to take the tram down but can't handle the steps. (See some notes on tram in comments section)

 

After taking the tram back up, it was time to get geared up for zip lining at the same facility. This was a decision made to maximize our time in port, and not the zipline location JJ always used. This turned out to be a mistake. At this point I need to mention that I used to build zip lines, so I thought I had some idea what to expect. I was wrong. At this facility they did something I had never seen before, which is hand braking, where you use your hand to slow your approach. There are several problems with this method over either mechanical or gravity breaking, namely its counter intuitive, very hard for people with shorter arms, like my wife and if you break too much you stop early, necessitating a lovely hand over hand maneuver to get to the next platform (or the guide had to come out and get you). In addition, they didn't have enough guides for the number of platforms, so there was a delay at each platform while we waited for the guides to leapfrog over each group and stack up more people. More comments on this below, I am getting away from my narrative. The long and short of it was that what should have taken an hour, took over 2 putting us behind and very tired.

 

JJ did his best to catch us up. The original plan called for lunch then the canals, we adapted by stopping at the restaurant JJ recommended first and placing our orders then headed to the canals so that everyone who wanted could grab a beer or other beverage for the boat ride and JJ would call them when we were on the way back to start cooking. We then drove over to the canal and got in a small flat bottom boat and explored the canals for about an hour. No croc or cayman sightings (I was kind of relieved, this boat was really close to the waterline, but several bird and lizard sightings, and some including a Jesus Christ lizard (so named because they can run across the water's surface.)

 

We headed back to the restaurant for a late and tasty (in my opinion) lunch at the restaurant near Playa Bonita. I had the specialty, Casado, which was rice, black beans and a BBQ style chicken that was delicious. There was a mixup or two due to the unusual nature of the ordering, but everyone worked to get it settled. After lunch we headed back to the port so people had time to do a little shopping in the stores around the port and the craft market just inside.

 

Comments:

 

Before I get into some negatives, I want to stress that NONE of them were JJ's fault. In fact, he did his absolute best to deal with any issues that arose, we just hit a bad string. I'll give some examples as to why I would recommend him highly below. The first of which was after the meet and greet the number of people who wanted to come kept growing, and he was very accommodating (I can't wait to see my cell bill for calls from ship to Costa Rica. We went from 8 to 16 people. (It just occurred to me that may have affected our timing as well since the original plan was designed for 8. Ooops).

 

First, lets talk tram. When I set the schedule up with JJ, as I noted, we selected the tram and zipline close together to save time. I thought this was an excellent idea as I had no idea there were several different trams in the Limon area and the one I had read about was not the one we were doing. It just never occurred to me. If you want to do the hour long aerial tram with guide, make sure you specify that with your tour arranger. Then again, that tram would have never fit into our schedule anyway, since we were not in port that long.

 

The real disappointment here was the zipline. I noted above about the braking system and lack of guides, but I was even more disappointed in the lack of anything informational or educational along the ride. Yes, it was cool to be zip lining through a rainforest, but other than by the nature of the trees around you the course did nothing to reflect its environment. There was only one real scenic viewpoint, the rest was just, well, trees. Even some signs regarding things to look for would have been nice. Given the delays and the standing around on platforms that resulted, it became more of an ordeal than an adventure. While other people reported better technical aspects from other locations, no one mentioned any programs that really integrated the rainforest environment and that's just a shame. If it wasn't for the pre-zip walking tour and aerial tram, I really might have been zipping through somewhere in the US.

 

Again, I want to stress that none of this was JJ's fault, in fact when we finally got down to ground level at the end of the zips, he was getting ready to order search parties since we had been gone so long. At every point along the way, he was the consummate guide, even monitoring the cashier at the restaurant who tried to get a little creative in charging one of our party. Also, he has a heck of an eye for spotting wildlife. I will strongly recommend anyone considering a private tour to use his services.

 

Ocho Rios:

 

Tour Name: Dunns River Falls and White River Tubing with Scenic drive

Booked with: Trevor Hudlin (I did not make the arrangements)

Cost: $65 pp

 

Summary:

 

The van picked us up right outside the dock, there were only 4 of us in a 12 passenger van, so we had plenty of room. The driver was extremely friendly if sometimes a little hard to understand. From the docks, we headed right to Dunns River falls to beat the crowds (a wise plan as we found out later that Allure of the Seas and another ship were both in port further away and when we got off the falls it was PACKED with people coming in). We were the second van in the lot and we got our wristbands and were escorted directly to the falls group with a stop for one of our group to rent shoes. The driver stayed with the van so we could leave stuff there.

 

Digression: You will notice that I have not really mentioned vendors to this point. That's because for the most part other than I noted in Colombia, they were a non-issue. Not here. Wow, they were aggressive even as we were going in and it only got worse later.

 

Once our group of about 18 was assembled and our two guides and camera person gave us our safety briefing/very entertaining pep talk, we walked down to the base of the falls. The guides asked everyone to join hands, that was not always honored, but everyone kind of helped each other where needed. Climbing the falls is not easy, there are some serious currents and the water is quite chilly, but it was amazingly fun. The guides will point you to the safe routes and assist you as needed. One mistake I made was not carrying a lot of cash into the falls area, you cannot go back out to the van and I felt like I undertipped them for all their efforts. It took about an hour to make it all the way up and we were tired at the top. They have a videographer who follows you about 80 percent of the way up, you can buy the DVD at the end. He also doubled as a 3rd guide and cheerleader.

 

To get out of the area you have to go through the vendor area. Hoo boy. The place is set up like a maze and everyone is quite happy to tell you the way to the bus is right past their stall. Once out we got back in the van.

 

Our schedule called for a little scenic drive, unfortunately when we got near where a photo stop was supposed to be the road was closed for construction, so we had to turn around. On the way back down the hill, we stopped to look and take photos (with appropriate tip) at one of the, um, 'wooden' statues (those of you who have been will know what I mean) and one lady pushed the door open and walked right onto the van to try to sell us stuff. The driver gave her a minute then shooed her off, a little further down the hill he apologized and said if he tossed her out they would give him a hard time next time he was up there.

 

Our next stop was tubing. Our group was just the four of us and a guide. What a great way to end the excursion part of the cruise. The guide sang and told some off color jokes, we floated down over some rapids. One of our party was brave enough to jump off about a 15 foot high cliff, which our guide topped by climbing out on to a tree and doing a backflip. I could have done that all day. Of course, they took photos for sale and there was a gift stand at the break point and the end.

 

After we dried off, we drove back to Ocho Rios. The driver stopped at a jerk place at my request (the Jerk Factory?) and we got some food to nibble on in the shopping area. The driver dropped us off at Island Village, and we did some shopping and checked out Margaritaville (wasn't impressed but the food looked good) before rebounding the ship.

 

Comments:

 

Really, the pushy vendors (even bugging us as we ate) were the only negative here. My wife has long hair and every single woman saw $$$ as they asked her to braid it. We only got offered weed once.

 

I didn't make the arrangements with Trevor, nor did we see him, just his driver, so I can't speak to using him other than to say that his driver was just fine and we had no issues with admission, etc nor his choice of venue.

 

Vendors aside, I really liked Jamaica and am considering a return trip.

 

Thus endeth the excursion report. As always I will monitor for comments and questions. In a few days I'll post a short food report, and that will end my trip notes.

I will be doing this cruise in janauary so I have LOVED reading you very thorough and easy to follow reports. I have booked with Claudia so always like to hear positive feedback. It sounds like you have had a great trip.

 

How was it that you were chosen by the captain on the canal excursion for that Wheelhouse invite? Any tips.

 

I had to chuckle about your Aruba opinion. My DH and I were there first on a cruise where we did a snorkeling excursion. We returned to do a land vacation there last November and were sooooo disappointed. It rained the entire trip (which everyone will tell you it does not). So I appreciate other people who can see the downside of that paradise. Of course I would always be willing to give it another go!

 

Dana

The captain came down for a minute while we were tethered and on the way back up gestured a few people to follow him, I think because it was crowded at the front.. No great secret, just right place right time right captain.

 

I will be doing this cruise in janauary so I have LOVED reading you very thorough and easy to follow reports. I have booked with Claudia so always like to hear positive feedback. It sounds like you have had a great trip.

 

How was it that you were chosen by the captain on the canal excursion for that Wheelhouse invite? Any tips.

 

I had to chuckle about your Aruba opinion. My DH and I were there first on a cruise where we did a snorkeling excursion. We returned to do a land vacation there last November and were sooooo disappointed. It rained the entire trip (which everyone will tell you it does not). So I appreciate other people who can see the downside of that paradise. Of course I would always be willing to give it another go!

 

Dana

Thank you for another great post!

 

Do you know if your guide in Cartagena, Claudia, is the same one that does Tours by Claudia discussed on the Shore Excursion forum for Colombia?

 

Also--Jamaica--I have been there 3 times and to Dunn's River Falls twice. I would just as soon stay on the ship. My husband has never been there and would really like to walk up the falls. Is there anything to do if you aren't walking the falls? Is the beach still available?

 

Can't wait for the food post!

Claudia Vidal? Yes, that's her. She was excellent! I do not know if she has others working for her tho, and obviously she works with other companies.

 

 

As far as Dunns River Falls, there was a small beach at the base of the falls, but I didn't really pay a lot of attention to it. I'm sure he could find someone else to tag along with on the roll call.

 

Thank you for another great post!

 

Do you know if your guide in Cartagena, Claudia, is the same one that does Tours by Claudia discussed on the Shore Excursion forum for Colombia?

 

Also--Jamaica--I have been there 3 times and to Dunn's River Falls twice. I would just as soon stay on the ship. My husband has never been there and would really like to walk up the falls. Is there anything to do if you aren't walking the falls? Is the beach still available?

 

Can't wait for the food post!

Thank you for the quick response! Yes, perhaps there is another one to go with him, other than me!

 

Your wife wasn't offered sexual favors? I was the last time I was there and I was on a snorkeling excursion with my 12 and 15 year old!

Not that she mentioned at least!

 

Thank you for the quick response! Yes, perhaps there is another one to go with him, other than me!

 

Your wife wasn't offered sexual favors? I was the last time I was there and I was on a snorkeling excursion with my 12 and 15 year old!

Hi Loonbeam,

We leave in 3 weeks and I have loved reading about your experiences! My kids (11, 14) and I are planning on ziplining in Costa Rica. I will be taking a ship-sponsored tour (I know it is more expensive but I will feel more secure doing this one with Princess and my daughter is not old enough on the other sites I have looked). It sounds as if this was not your favorite part of your excursions but do you think for someone that has never ziplined before it will be a good introduction to ziplining?

Thanks again for all the effort you have put into your review, it has been wonderful!

Erin

Honestly, its going to depend on where they take you and if the same place we went whether they have corrected their staffing issue. I was very underwhelmed, but I had a lot of experience and my wife did not have a great time either, but ziplining CAN be a lot of fun!

 

Hi Loonbeam,

We leave in 3 weeks and I have loved reading about your experiences! My kids (11, 14) and I are planning on ziplining in Costa Rica. I will be taking a ship-sponsored tour (I know it is more expensive but I will feel more secure doing this one with Princess and my daughter is not old enough on the other sites I have looked). It sounds as if this was not your favorite part of your excursions but do you think for someone that has never ziplined before it will be a good introduction to ziplining?

Thanks again for all the effort you have put into your review, it has been wonderful!

Erin

Hey Loonbeam, once again, thanks for the excellent review!

Sadly, you have now created a little controversy in my home regarding what would be our ideal Panama Canal day??

It sounds like the ferry boat is a little tedious at best and I am not too thrilled with the idea of it being a rough ride? I have been on a ferry in Italy and Vancouver and both of those trips were not the best when it came to a lot of rolling and rocking. I am hoping that these are only short stints while making our way to the inlets and various locks?

In all honesty, did you find this excursion boring? Where you able to move around or did you fear losing your seating if you did so? Can you recall exactly how long you were on the ferry itself? I am calculating around 3 hours or so.....am I correct? Did you go under the bridge of Americas?

The other thing is that I read somewhere that you receive a certificate indicating that you have transited the entire Panama Canal. I am hoping this is true as it would be a wonderful commemorative souvineer.

Other members of the household are now leaning towards possibly doing the Embera Indian Village instead! The only thing is I have also heard it is hit and miss regarding which village you go to. They say the best is the Embera Puru, but, depending on the water level of the river etc. you may end up going to the village which is not near as authentic or as good an excursion.

Shoot.....I thought I had all of this arranged already! :confused::rolleyes:

 

Would you do the ferry transit trip again knowing and experiencing all that you have now that you have been on it? No Pressure!! Ha,Ha.

 

Thanks,

Connie

I'd say it was around 4 hours on the boat, maybe more. Seating wasn't an issue, people respected spots, and I was on the upper deck for a lot of it. But its not like theres a lot of places to move around too...

 

 

The rough water was only at the end, on the Pacific side, and that was exacerbated by the fact the launch to pick up our canal pilot was delayed and the rain and related wind.

 

That said, it was definitely a long trip. On retrospect, I would have brought a book.

 

I can't recommend it outright, it really depends on your interest in the canal moreso than anything else. It does offer the best possible view of the canal operations, at a cost of time..

 

And we did get a certificate from the tour guide, nothing fancy, you filled in your own name..

 

 

 

Hey Loonbeam, once again, thanks for the excellent review!

Sadly, you have now created a little controversy in my home regarding what would be our ideal Panama Canal day??

It sounds like the ferry boat is a little tedious at best and I am not too thrilled with the idea of it being a rough ride? I have been on a ferry in Italy and Vancouver and both of those trips were not the best when it came to a lot of rolling and rocking. I am hoping that these are only short stints while making our way to the inlets and various locks?

In all honesty, did you find this excursion boring? Where you able to move around or did you fear losing your seating if you did so? Can you recall exactly how long you were on the ferry itself? I am calculating around 3 hours or so.....am I correct? Did you go under the bridge of Americas?

The other thing is that I read somewhere that you receive a certificate indicating that you have transited the entire Panama Canal. I am hoping this is true as it would be a wonderful commemorative souvineer.

Other members of the household are now leaning towards possibly doing the Embera Indian Village instead! The only thing is I have also heard it is hit and miss regarding which village you go to. They say the best is the Embera Puru, but, depending on the water level of the river etc. you may end up going to the village which is not near as authentic or as good an excursion.

Shoot.....I thought I had all of this arranged already! :confused::rolleyes:

 

Would you do the ferry transit trip again knowing and experiencing all that you have now that you have been on it? No Pressure!! Ha,Ha.

 

Thanks,

Connie

Loonbeam

Thanks for your time and effort in doing your report.

My question is about the panama canal transit. We are signed up for it and I am having second thoughts. As far as seeing the locks operate I think I could do with seeing the Gatun locks only. With regard to seeing Gatun lake another, shorter, excurtion would probably be fine. The one thing I would like to see, however, is the Calibra Cut. My question is: do you feel seeing the Cut is worth the time and effort to take this long tour.

Staying on the ship and seeing the locks into Lake Gatun is fine and informative. You do need to roam about the ship during the passage, so you can see it from lower decks, upper decks and all sides of the ship.

Once the excursions folks get off, the ship is much less crowded and it makes for a really nice day.

Unless you REALLY want to do one of those LONG excursions, staying on the ship is great, and costs nothing!!!!!

Honestly? No. I don't even really remember it...

 

Loonbeam

Thanks for your time and effort in doing your report.

My question is about the panama canal transit. We are signed up for it and I am having second thoughts. As far as seeing the locks operate I think I could do with seeing the Gatun locks only. With regard to seeing Gatun lake another, shorter, excurtion would probably be fine. The one thing I would like to see, however, is the Calibra Cut. My question is: do you feel seeing the Cut is worth the time and effort to take this long tour.

Loonbeam

Thanks for the excursion report.

I may rethink our transit excursion and opt for. Stay on the ship.

It sounds like this is one you would not do again or recommend

I still have time to decide.

Loonbeam

Thanks for the excursion report.

I may rethink our transit excursion and opt for. Stay on the ship.

It sounds like this is one you would not do again or recommend

I still have time to decide.

You could also consider the Panama Canal Railway excursion in the Dome Car (the view from the dome car is worth the extra $30/person IMHO). The train parallels the Canal to the Miraflores Locks. A short bus ride from there takes you to the Pacific Ocean.

I can't say I won't recommend it, just not strongly. It really depends a lot on your interests.

 

Loonbeam

Thanks for the excursion report.

I may rethink our transit excursion and opt for. Stay on the ship.

It sounds like this is one you would not do again or recommend

I still have time to decide.

You mentioned you purchased an emerald ring? Can I ask you if you recall what you can get for about $800? Size, color? :)

Fun to read!

 

We are going on the same trip (also did it in 2001) this February. We've booked with Claudia in Columbia and are looking forward to it. We are also doing the same trip as you in Jamaica but we have booked it with Peat Taylor (we used him 2 years ago).

 

We also were not sure what to do in Aruba. My sister and her boyfriend talked us into a ship sponsored horse ride. I hope I like it!

 

I've done the Embera Indians in Panama. This time we are doing some kind of Princess monkey excursion.

To give you a ballpark, her ring was 9 small stones, all matched in a flower design and was less than $350. I don't know the total weight offhand, but I have no concerns about value..

 

You mentioned you purchased an emerald ring? Can I ask you if you recall what you can get for about $800? Size, color? :)

Thank you, Loonbeam!:)

Thanks again moonbeam, We are leaving on the 11/29 sailing. I will do my best to post our 11/29 review, here as well as our own thread

Just because its a pet peeve - It's 'Loonbeam' :)

 

Thanks again moonbeam, We are leaving on the 11/29 sailing. I will do my best to post our 11/29 review, here as well as our own thread

This should be a helpful post for those contemplating these excursions on a partial transit cruise.

 

Just a few comments based on our experience with some of these excursions (and others) from our Island Princess cruise last year:

 

1. Aruba--We did the "Sail and Snorkel" excursion since we are avid snorkelers. We had actually snorkeled both places that we went on the excursion (Boca Catalina and Antilles shipwreck) during a week-long stay in 2006. But, we can never get enough snorkeling and we thought this was a good trip. I do agree with your decision to book a tour through the ship for Aruba because it is a very short stay in port.

 

2. Cartegena--We booked a private tour with J.J. Taborda which was fabulous. It sounds like your trip with Lee Miles was well-planned and included what you wanted. I, however, would have been disappointed with just a photo stop at San Felipe. I thought the fort was fabulous and it was well worth our while climbing the steep entryway.

 

3. Panama Canal--We also did the ferry cruise and while I would recommend it heartily, I can understand why some people might find the trip long and tiresome. You did describe the tour accurately, but to us it was fascinating to go through the rest on the canal on a small ship. The commentary provided by the on-board guide was interesting and since the reason for this cruise was to see the Panama Canal, we would have been disappointed if we had not been able to take this ferry tour.

 

4. Jamaica--We did the same tour as you but we did it with Peat Taylor who provided both a driver and a guide (himself for part; his son for the rest). We managed to avoid the vendors at the end of Dunn River Falls through a method I had read about on this site before our cruise--just walk out of DRF the way you walk in and disregard all the signs pointing to the market or the "exit". We had several people tell us we were going the wrong way, but we just smiled and continued going. Nobody tried to stop us from exiting through the entrance. Also, Princess Cruise line advised the passengers before docking at Ocho Rios that a $1 per person tip at DRF was sufficient, so you probably tipped just fine.

Just because its a pet peeve - It's 'Loonbeam' :)

This made me smile -- don't like moonbeams, huh? :D

 

One stupid question, do you have to convert to local currencies at these ports, or will USD do? Thanks, Loonbeam.

 

(Finally, we're sailing next week! Woohoo!!)