Can you get off the ship at Cristobal, Panama?

[PRCruiser]

I am booked on the Coral Princess Panama Canal cruise from Acapulco to Fort Lauderdale this November 29th. Our itinerary says we will be doing the full transit from 7 AM to 4:30 PM and then it says Cristobal, Panama 5 PM to 8 PM. However, there are no excursions listed for Cristobal. A few Cruise Critic members (including myself) have tried to contact Princess to see if we will be able to get off the ship at Cristobal but we have been told it will just be an scenic cruise and we will not be able to disembark. Will that be the case? What has been the experience of past cruisers on the 10 day Coral Princess trans canal from Acapulco to Fort Lauderdale?

 

Andres

[GloriaF]

We did the 10 day from FLL RT thru the locks on the Atlantic/Carribean side to Gatun Lake and back on the Coral.

 

Our itinerary stated that if we did not take one of the ship's tours leaving from Gatun Lake that we would not be allowed off the ship.

 

BUT, there were lots of complaints to the CD and finally they announced we could go ashore for 2-3 hours while we waited for the excursions to return. There is a very large terminal there and a bazaar or market place set up inside with stalls offering all kinds of goods. Some native Indian tribes were there, as well as all kinds of people. It was quite interesting and much better than staying on the ship. We felt there was not sufficient time to go into the city of Cristobal, but some passengers did.

[fungirl76]

DH and I were on the Coral and did the same ship. What happens is that once in Gatun Lake only passengers with booked excursions may leave the ship. The rest of us stayed on for a couple hours and enjoyed the pool. Once in Cristobal you are allowed to get off the ship and there is a large market you can walk through. Other than that there is really nothing to do as there is no transportation to take you anywhere and there really isn't enough time to explore. The market was great though, it enables you to learn a great deal about their culture.

[MaryPoppinz]

Yes, you should be able to get off the ship there. I don't recall there being any excursions, so if you want to go beyond the pier/marketplace area, you'll need to arrange it.

[kendon]

If I were you, I'd get off and stay within the confines of the market. You'll know exactly what I mean when you get there. They have that craft market set up, not only for you to shop, but it's a safe place to be. It's large enough for you to spend a couple of hours there. The prices are good, too.

[PRCruiser]

Another question: were there ship sponsored excursions for Panama? Where you aware of them before the cruise (you could pre-reserve) or did you find out about them while on the cruise? Our list of ship excursions doesn't have a single one for Panama...

 

Andres

[GloriaF]

Since you are on the full-transit cruise, there may not be sufficient time in Panama for excursions. We were on a partial-transit and the excursions were limited to only a few that left once the ship reached Gatun Lake. Then the excursions were picked up at the terminal at Cristobal after we turned around and went through the same locks again.