Canal by Boat

[kris816]

For those that have done partial transit to Gatun Lake and taken the canal ride by boat excursion that goes to the Pacific side, can you provide some insight about the light lunch and drink that are provided. Also, what is the restroom situation. It’s a rather long day; and, I want to be prepared. 

[phabric]

I did the boat excursion with Celebrity in 2019.  I am doing Princess excursion in Feb.

 

We took a bus from the dock to the ferry.  There were 3 buses (45-50 per bus) on the ferry so a large ferry.  There were open air seating upstairs and downstairs indoor seats with a couple of bathrooms.

 

 If I remember, they served your plate with chicken, salad, rice and a couple of items, free water bottles, can soda, bottled juice, $ beer.

 

Then a bus back to where the ship was.

 

We really enjoyed this excursion that is why we are doing again.

 

 

 

 

[azbirdmom]

Sounds like the Celebrity excursion is the same as the one offered by Princess which we've done twice.  Well worth it to experience the canal first on the huge cruise ship where you can actually feel the movement and touch the (slimy) walls if you wish.  Really a nice day.

Edited November 16, 2022 by azbirdmom

[suekel]

It was great.  

 

It's a very long day and most likely very hot day.  Take some money as the lunch won't keep you from being hungry towards the end.  They also sell soda and beer.

The start of the excursion is further from the ship than the description describes.  Pee before you go.  There is a bathroom on the boat.  

 

When we did this, it took approximately 10 hours.  Our bus broke down on the way back to the ship.  Good thing they have room service! 

[mdj59]

We did this excursion with Princess in 2019. Echoing the others, it is a long, hot day, but so worth it! The buffet lunch that was included was nothing special, but it will suffice. There was plenty of shade and sun on the boat, whichever you prefer. The restroom onboard wasn’t glamorous, but certainly was fine. Plenty of drinks were available and very affordable. The bus ride back to Colon was pretty quiet, as it was a long day, but we rode in air-conditioned comfort. Going through the canal on a smaller boat was spectacular. A wonderful experience that we highly recommend.

[indexcards]

WE took this excursion and it did not go smoothly as above reviews indicate.  There can be problems.   When we reached the location to board the boat (ferry?)  to travel the canal there was a large cargo ship blocking the whole docking area.   A delay of about an hour before an alternate boarding location was determined.  Bus transferred us to new dock and boarded very late.   

Definitely a trip to remember!  Canal is fascinating, scenic and many historical stories.   The food was as reported above,  adequate to quell the hunger but nothing to rave about.

After the long delay,no one was in the best of moods.   I need to sit in shade so found what i thought would be perfect location only to learn after a bit that the photographer was setting up right in the front of boat, just in front of where we were sitting,  so it was impossible to get any good photos of our own without moving away.  He was in the best location to take photos of people in front of the lock structures, but blocked such shots for everyone else.

Not sure if my final problem was for all these tours but on mine, the fumes from the fuel were overpowering,  especially when floating low in channel .

The cruise ship waited for our bus to return and left very late for next location.

It left me wanting to do canal all over again on a higher level of ship.  So new canal , ocean to ocean is on my bucket list.