Recommendation on PC Cruise!

[ThePhysicsProfessor]

Hey Everyone!

 

I am planning on a full transit PC cruise with my college buddies in late 2017 or 2018. We are all in our late 20's, and know we will be cruising with mostly older folks. Any recommendations on a cruise line which maybe more oriented towards a younger crowd? I was thinking either Carnaval or Norwegian, would appreciate any input you may have.

 

Thanks!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Kamloops50]

Hey Everyone!

 

I am planning on a full transit PC cruise with my college buddies in late 2017 or 2018. We are all in our late 20's, and know we will be cruising with mostly older folks. Any recommendations on a cruise line which maybe more oriented towards a younger crowd? I was thinking either Carnaval or Norwegian, would appreciate any input you may have.

 

Thanks!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

 

Currently the cruise lines that offer the PC cruise on a regular basis are Princess & Holland America. Norweign and Celebrity have transit when ships are relocating to and from Alaska.

Withe new locks built Carnival and RCI might start cruises between the west coast and Florida.

Currently only HAL and Princess are doing cruise thru April 2018.

Carnival doesn't usually attract people that have time to do a 15 to 17 day PC cruise. The same for Norweign.

Edited September 24, 2016 by Kamloops50

[Clay Clayton]

We had a great time on Norwegian Sun but at 57 and 52 we were near the young end of the age range. That being said, there were some fun folks on board and because of the length of the cruise, all were able to find friends to hang out with etc.

 

It is a great cruise!

[ThePhysicsProfessor]

Thanks for the feedback so far! We are actually all civil engineers, so it would be an educational vacation! We definitely want to do the old locks over the new ones.

We are leaning towards a full transit, seems like all the partials are 10 days long while full are 14 days, might as well do the full length of the canal if it's just a 4 day difference.

I haven't seen any 7 day PT, any idea if they are even offered?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[BillB48]

The partial transits normally run 10 to 11 days and outside of one Princess partial transit cruise from CA, practically all of the partial transits operate out of FL. If you can swing it, a full transit is the best option. Since you are a bunch of CEs let me add another criteria into your planning. Look for an itinerary that includes a full port stop in Panama along with your transit, contrary to what you might think it's not that easy to find. Because of your profession you most certainly want see some of the Canal from shore side and a visit to the old and new locks would be great. Princess and HAL offer this option only on some of their full transit cruises. Celebrity offers it on almost all of their Canal cruises. The down side with Celebrity is they are not offering as many transits as they have in past years. They do offer a few Canal cruises at the beginning and tail end of the "Canal season". The Canal season being October through April where you have the greatest selection.

 

As far as the new locks go, probably won't see too many of the larger cruise ships announce cruises through them until the 2018 itineraries are published, probably sometime in Spring 2017. The Canal is not even accepting cruise ships for the new locks until April 2017.

[Turtles06]

Currently the cruise lines that offer the PC cruise on a regular basis are Princess & Holland America. Norweign and Celebrity have transit when ships are relocating to and from Alaska.

Withe new locks built Carnival and RCI might start cruises between the west coast and Florida.

Currently only HAL and Princess are doing cruise thru April 2018.

Carnival doesn't usually attract people that have time to do a 15 to 17 day PC cruise. The same for Norweign.

 

I'm afraid you have some incorrect info in your post. First, Norwegian does offer regular Panama Canal cruises during the season, not only as repositioning cruises. (The NCL Jewel, for example, is making regular PC transits between Miami and LA.)

 

As for Norwegian not attracting "people that have time to do a 15 to 17 day cruise," I have no idea where you are getting this info from, but my spouse and I are booked on the NCL Jewel's *16-night* Panama Canal cruise that leaves Miami in January, and we can't wait! Our cruise is virtually sold out, as are NCL's other PC sailings this season, most of which are two weeks long.

[Turtles06]

Hey Everyone!

 

I am planning on a full transit PC cruise with my college buddies in late 2017 or 2018. We are all in our late 20's, and know we will be cruising with mostly older folks. Any recommendations on a cruise line which maybe more oriented towards a younger crowd? I was thinking either Carnaval or Norwegian, would appreciate any input you may have.

 

Thanks!!

 

 

 

Particularly if you opt for a full transit, the length of the cruise (about two weeks) will mean that the passenger demographics skew older, as lots of young people can't take that much time off from work (and/or can't afford the trip). I see you are prepared for those demographics.

 

We love Celebrity but also enjoy NCL. Very different "vibes" on the two cruise lines. Celebrity is a bit more "refined" if you will. We really enjoy NCL's Freestyle Dining (eat when you want, wherever you want).

 

I think you should look carefully at itineraries, price, and ship and see what makes the most sense for you.

 

Enjoy whatever you decide!

[MJC]

Windstar has a 7 day full transit. They run weekly all season long. The ships are smaller so they don't have as many features, but they have an active vibe with a bit younger demographic. Aside from the canal day, there are lots of opportunities for hiking, paddle-boarding, etc.

 

IMO since you are engineers you'd much prefer the full transit, along with a visit to the Miraflores Visitor Center. We enjoyed the exhibits there very much, especially the ones about all the machinery that was invented to meet the extraordinary requirements of the project.

Edited September 25, 2016 by MJC

[pamssanity]

Royal Carribeans newer ships- Allure, Oasis,Anthem and Harmony are all geared for younger people ( we;re seniors and very active as well). There are a lot of sports activities and clubs so check them out.

[The Other Tom]

Most partial transit cruises offer an excursion where you go through the Atlantic locks, get on a smaller boat that sails through the Pacific locks, then back to your larger ship. So you do a "full transit" but you leave and return from the same city. These cruises are 10-11 days. Check the excursions for the partial transit cruises if you're interested in doing this.

[Kylie]

We are already booked on Princess for full transit PC in January of 2018 - Coral and Island both do this route. Deals are being offered so we were excited to book so early.