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Colon - Tour or relax on ship?

sharkwl

By sharkwl,
in Panama Canal

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sharkwl

sharkwl

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We will be in Colon on Jan 29 aboard the Celebrity Equinox. From the reviews, would this be a good day to just relax on the ship? It doesn't sound like the greatest port city to shop in nor venture around? Yes or No?

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KAWS

KAWS

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If you take a tour here, take a cruise sponsored one. The people are very pushy there and I didn't like that at all. We had taken a taxi and did a bit of a tour and went shopping for emeralds.

 

We're going back next year and although I very rarely take cruise sponsored excursions (usually find my own) we'll take one at this port next time.

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BillB48

BillB48

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First of all I don't think anyone ever went to Colon to take in it's cultural beauty..... you know the place is going to be the pits when they filmed portions of the James Bond film Quantum of Solace there and Colon was used as the stand in for Port-Au-Prince. You can't take that as an endorsement:eek:! However Panama has things you won't find in a lot of other Caribbean ports, of course there is the Canal whether you just visit one of the locks or take a partial transit. There is also the Panama Railroad, the Embera Indians and so much history with the ruins of Spanish forts. Even a trip to Panama City contrasts like night and day with Colon. Don't pass Panama by because the welcome mat (Colon) looks a tad rough!

 

If you would prefer private tours then I would advise to pre-arrange that as opposed to trying to put something together at the pier. One tour operator that a lot of people on this board have had a positive things to say about is My Friend Mario, I have not used him. The only caution here would be if you decided to make a partial transit of the Canal, MFM probably would not be able to accommodate you as normally the cruise lines pretty much monopolize those resources when a ship is in port.

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rjscott

rjscott

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Isn't there shopping close to the pier area? And I thought there was a large "duty free" shopping area near by as well.

 

Thanks

Tom

 

There is a shopping center right as you exit the ship, and it is inside the terminal area. My husband and I browsed thru the shops there when we returned from our tour. The only place where we made a purchase was a grocery where we were able to buy cola to replenish our onboard supply. The other shops did not have, IMO, very good quality items for sale in general, although a couple did have a few baskets and such that may or may not have been locally made.

I would definitely recommend a tour here. There are some very good ones and the prices are well worth the money spent. We were on the Equinox as well and found that the few Celebrity tours we took (the rest were independent) were not overpriced.

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BillB48

BillB48

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Yes but no:D. It's complicated, there is the mall adjacent to the pier and they will tell you it's duty free, but who really knows. This area is fine to browse and shop a bit, not so elsewhere in Colon. There is the Colon Free Zone that is nearby and it covers a lot of territory, warehouses, assembly buildings and storefronts. The Free Zone is not really set up to handle the individual shopper even though there are what looks like storefronts and shopping areas. These are mainly for showcasing merchandise for customers who buying commercially for businesses or for export/import. You used to be able to go in there with a passport and look around. You were not supposed to take anything that you purchased from the Free Zone but the unwritten rule was anything you could purchase and take on your person was fair game. I do not know if this is still the case. While I have been in Colon recently I have not been in the Free Zone for many many moons.

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HatRez

HatRez

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I will recommend this tour for life. If your ship offers the Embera Indian village I would highly recommend it. This was the absolute highlight of our recent Panama cruise. A few of my pictures were just posted on the Holland America blog.

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Azulann "Live from...." Rare

Azulann

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I am interested in history of Panama city, its colonial roots.

 

Those you have been to Panama City what would you put on a tour of this city?

I will be on a full transit . Colon is the port day before we enter the canal for the next day of our curise.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Steeler Transplant

Steeler Transplant

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Colon, IMO, was the worst port on our itimerary. As another poster stated, the merchandise in the shops was a very poor quality. We only picked up a couple of items at the grocery store. The area closest to the ship near the escalators did have a couple of t-shirt vendors that were a decent quality.

 

I absolutely enjoyed the trip(s) through the canal. We were on a partial transit and opted to stay onboard. I'm really glad we did. I moved around the ship on the way back through, and even went down to deck 5 to look out of the windows to see the wall of the lock.

 

I spoke to a couple who had taken a tour to Old Panama City, but said they would never recommend it.

 

If you do take a tour, be sure to book prior to your cruise and use either a ship's shore excursion, or use one of the recommended local tour companies.

 

Enjoy your trip!

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Idahobaker

Idahobaker

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We will be in Colon on Jan 29 aboard the Celebrity Equinox. From the reviews, would this be a good day to just relax on the ship? It doesn't sound like the greatest port city to shop in nor venture around? Yes or No?

 

We did the canal by bus and train tour out of Colon. Train ride was a little over an hour to Panama City. Boarded a bus and did some touring of the outskirts of PC. Stopped at Miraflores Observation center. It's a different perspective seeing the canal with a ship in transit that you're not on. I think it was worth the money because a lot of information from our tour guide. Also, either by bus or train, you will pass the prison that Noriega is now in. It's an absolute dump.

 

Do NOT venture outside the pier security area. The place is very dangerous due to high unemployment. Traffic is also a nightmare. If you do tour, take the ship's tour so that, if you're late, they will wait. Another tour was over an hour late due to traffic (there are no stop signs or traffic signals).

 

Have fun!:D

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unclekritz

unclekritz

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We just got off the ship after visiting Colon. We had a great time looking around with My friend Mario....we did the rainforest, fort and canal, COO1 and we loved it. Look into My friend Mario, we had Alfonso as our guide and we can't say enough good things about this company

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The Floaties

The Floaties

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I will recommend this tour for life. If your ship offers the Embera Indian village I would highly recommend it. This was the absolute highlight of our recent Panama cruise. A few of my pictures were just posted on the Holland America blog.

 

 

Did you do only the Embrea Indian Village tour or did you see other things too? Did you do the tour through your ship or an independent tour?

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HatRez

HatRez

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We booked the tour through Holland America but I believe it's available through other tour companies...maybe Google it beforehand. And it was the only thing we did that day because the tour from Gatun Lake to the tribe and then to the ship in Colon was almost seven hours. We shopped around the little shop areas before we got back on the ship but didn't have much time.

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ducku2

ducku2

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If you have your heart set on the panama canal excursion, it's wise to book well in advance of your cruise. We just tried to book it and it's SOLD OUT:mad: I know it's our own fault, waited too long. We cruise in 2 weeks.

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BillB48

BillB48

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If you were booking an advanced excursion through the cruise line, often times they will close their advanced online bookings so that they can have some available to sell on the ship. Just go to the shorex desk as soon as you can to see if the tour you wanted may be available. Good Luck!

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Quasar1011

Quasar1011

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I have a transfer booked with My Friend Mario, from my Panama City hotel, the the port in Colon. Ship's board time is listed as 3:30 p.m., sail time 6:30 p.m. My concern is getting to the port too early. Will we just have to wait around in the port for a few hours? Or will Royal Caribbean allow us to board the ship earlier than 3:30 p.m.?

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BillB48

BillB48

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While I have not boarded an RCI ship in Colon, every other port we have sailed from we have been able to board before the actual posted time. I believe it is usually in their best interests to go ahead and let passengers on the ship as soon as practical.

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Richard in Panama

Richard in Panama

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Remember the crew has only a few hours to clean up from the last passengers and get things ready for you! A lot of ships that have 3:30 PM boarding time will actually start boarding at 12 N, let you check your hand carry luggage, explore the ship and have a Lido lunch and around 3:30 PM announce that the rooms are ready and you can proceed to your stateroom. Regards, Richard

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