New 2 Celebrity-Panama Canal Suggestions

[Carole_T]

Hi All,

 

We're in the early planning stages of a Panamal Canal trip. Never sailed with Celebrity, but hear cabins are better sized and some ships have a better space per passenger ratio?

 

I tend to like smaller ships whereas DH likes larger/more activities ships! Neither of us like the mega ships:eek:

 

Kind of looking for a place to start with a cruise line we are totally unfamiliar with. Any suggestions , recommendation, ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

Carole

[jelayne]

The only Celebrity ship scheduled to do the Panama Canal between Nov 2014 & Nov 2015 is the Infinity. We have not sailed on her or any of the M class ships yet. They are mid sized ships with a listed passenger capacity of about 2100. There are a lot of regular Celebrity cruisers who love the M class ships. Hopefully some will reply and give you more information.

[Cruise Raider]

It just so happens that the mega ships don't sail through the canal -- Celebrity sailings through the canal for the next year or so seem to be on the Infinity -- oh, and she is just the right size if you don't like the mega ships.

 

We've been on the Infinity several times and have two more bookings with her, one of which is through the Canal next year.

 

If you like the idea of the beverage package without breaking the bank, there are several oceanview rooms that are kind of special. There are several cabins at the very front of the ship that are extra large and also some nice rooms on deck 3 mid to aft that used to be conference rooms so have a little more space and x-large windows.

 

If you are not in need of the beverage package and really want to save some money, there are also a few inside cabins that were added several years ago on decks 6 and 7 that are pretty large and in a great location midship.

 

Having a balcony or better is always preferable but those Panama Canal cruises can be a bit pricey, especially once they add those taxes in. I don't really think the Panama Canal is best viewed from your balcony and depending on the time of year, it may be too hot to sit out there all day during the transit.

 

I don't really think you would be disappointed with this ship -- we haven't been. But no chance of one of the really big ships going through the canal anyway...so no need to worry about avoiding that, they already do that for you.

[tn1728]

Cruise Raider gave you excellent suggestions. We did the canal on a sister ship to the infinity, and found that there was plenty to do on board for two weeks, and while we did have a balcony, we did not stay there for the whole transit. Thete were times that we went on various decks to get a closer view when going thru the locks, and never had trouble getting good viewing areas.

[need2bespoiled]

We've sailed 2 M-Class ships and three S-Class ships. My partner prefers the M-Class, I don't really care either way, each has advantages, and if I'm cruising, I'm happy. All of our current bookings are on M-Class because they sailed the itineraries we wanted. Until we head back to Europe, I suspect this will be the case unless we find a cruise included Venice, which the larger S-Class will have a harder time doing.

 

Each ship has its advantages, but for now, you'll be on M-Class for the Panama Canal. They're a bit older, but well maintained and all have been updated in the last few years. They still won't have the specialty dining options of bigger ships, but they have other advantages like nicer seats in the theater, with drink tables, easier to navigate, more elevators, T-Pool in the solarium.

 

As was stated, the M-Class Infinity is the only Celebrity ship scheduled to sail the Panama Canal through the end of the published itineraries. Sometime are the end of these sailings (Spring 2016) the new canal will open, and it will be possible at that point for the S-Class ships to get through the Canal. How this impact the future is unknown.

 

There are two types of Infinity panama canal sailings, FL to California (or reverse) or FL to South America (or possibly reverse). These cruises generally occur from Nov - April, with a month or so in December and January of South American Sailings. We were (still are actually) book on the March 27, 2016 sailing, but found a good rate on the Dec 5, 2015 sailing, so we booked that. It may be interesting getting home as it ends on Dec 20, which could mean more expensive travel home as this is the weekend before Christmas. I hope to use miles, we'll see.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[alcpa1]

The Infinity sails several routes through the Canal Zone. They sail westbound from Ft. Lauderdale to Valparaiso, Chile (repositioning.) They sail eastbound from Valparaiso to Ft. Lauderdale (repositioning.)

In March or April they will sail several east and west itineraries from California to and from Ft. Lauderdale.

The repositioning cruises leading you to and from South America are novel and far more interesting than the east and west that stop along Central America and Mexico.

Since you did not give us a line, or lines, to compare cabin sizes and amenities it's kind of hard to expound on these points.

The advantage of any M class ship is the availability of balcony cabins of varying sizes excluding the suite categories. Even within the classes there are a number of cabins that are special. Some may have a larger balcony, and some may have a larger cabin (and balcony), and two will fall in between but have the look and feel of the adjoining suite. The majority of the M class balconies are either a little larger or have more covering than a couple of the Princess ships, for example.

It is almost possible to touch the walls of the locks on the M class ships. It's an exciting transit.

Hope this helps. Please ask any additional questions. Our last two cruises have been on the Infinity.

[omeinv]

We've done Panama Canal three times. Once on Mercury, and twice on Infinity, the most recent this past Spring. Both the Mercury and Infinity are considered "Panamax" ships, although the Mercury left a tad more room at the ends, both filled the locks side-to-side.

 

I like all the itineraries Celebrity offers for the Canal, and we're likely to do it again in the fall of 2015. It just never gets old. Celebrity now has a full port day in Colon either before or after the ship's transit. This allows you to take a nice shore excursion, seeing the canal up close if you choose, then be aboard the ship for its transit. In earlier days, they would disembark passengers for excursions mid-transit at Lake Gatun, so you'd miss half the canal if you did an excursion.

 

Since the Infinity for the moment is as big a ship as can go through the canal (This will change with the expansion presently estimated for completion in 2016), and since Celebrity will shortly have no smaller ships, there's not much to be done differently regarding ship size. :)

 

If there are specific questions I can answer, feel free to click my email link below.

 

Harris

Denver, CO

[Jenna109]

We went through on the Infinity and had a wonderful cruise - possibly our best. We had an inside cabin, as at the time we booked the balcony cabins were so expensive. No problem. Actually worked out very well as we went on the back of the ship, top deck where there was a party atmosphere as we went through - all day! With a balcony we would have been on our own.

Early morning staff brought hot drinks and pastries round and later drinks and snacks.

The ports of call were very interesting and we joined many private tours from our forum.

During the passage we were given information from the Bridge - very interesting. Planning to do it next year.

[4774Papa]

We did the canal in December 2011 on Infinity (FLL to VALPO).

The cruise was great. We took the excursion at Colon that goes to the Gatun Locks.

 

Recommend reading the book "The Path Between the Seas."

[CHEZMARYLOU]

We are sailing Infinity in the spring of 2016 and looking forward to it. They have eliminated the day in Colon and are going to Curacao instead of Cartagena.

 

Mary Lou

[need2bespoiled]

We are sailing Infinity in the spring of 2016 and looking forward to it. They have eliminated the day in Colon and are going to Curacao instead of Cartagena.

 

Mary Lou

 

We have 2 Panama Canal crossings booked. One is FLL to Valparasio in Dec 2015 and the other is March 2016 FL to CA. Both have stops in Colon from 9am to 7pm listed. We may cancel the 2016 sailing, but will probably wait and see how we like the first one :)

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[alcpa1]

Mary Lou,

I'm so sorry you will miss Cartagena. We love Curacao but Cartagena was the second highlight of the cruise. Of course, the Canal is numero uno.

 

I'm not so sure the new channel will be complete by 2016. It was to have been opened this year and when we went through in 2013 it was far from a reality. The project has been plagued by labor issues and cost over runs that have stopped construction many times.

 

When you do go through stay at the rail as you enter/exit the western (actually southern) to see the original French cut. It isn't highlighted often but if you study the history it is mentioned. "The Path Between the Seas" is the definitive guide and history of the Canal. And the story of General Sibert is also quite fascinating.

[swedish weave]

OP -- Have you considered checking the Coral or Island Princess ?

 

They are sister ships and have several outside viewing decks both fore and aft which are great for Panama transit.

 

I have done the Panama transit on both of them and the Celebrity Infinity. I find the Princess ships provide a great viewing opportunity.

[Driveshaft]

We are doing the Feb 23 2015 Equinox that visits lower Central America. It has a day in Cartagena and one in Colon. Then Costa Rica and Belize, Also Grand Cayman and Cozumel. 11 days. That will be our introduction to the Canal

[ChiGal1962]

I was on the Infinity two years ago through the canal (San Diego to Fort Lauderdale). Loved it! Great ship, great experience, just plain great :)

 

A few recommendations:

 

* I had a balcony. It wasn't "necessary" for the canal part, since you can see just as well from up on deck. Actually looking ahead before you get to the locks is easier than looking down while you're in them. Keep in mind it's most of a full day to cross, and they go through three sets of locks, so you'll have plenty of time to move around. As someone mentioned, the Infinity is what they call a Panamax ship - the maximum size that can go through the canals. I think there is about 2 feet of clearance on each side. Crazy! That said, the balcony was awesome for the whole 14 days :)

* I think the best thing I did on that trip was to take a shore excursion the next day (while the ship was docked in Colon) which had us on a bus back to the west end of the canal, and then on a little ferry boat back through. MUCH different perspective. I could really see the operation much more clearly. Almost better than the original transit.

* It's slightly painful reading, but I recommend "Path Between the Seas" by David McCullough. It gives the history of the building of the canal, which I found fascinating. It's really long, though :)

 

Enjoy!

[wallie5446]

but Cartagena was the second highlight of the cruise.

What was it you liked and did there?