11 day panama canal from ft lauderdale

[Quahog64]

Wife and I are taking the 11 day day panama canal with partial transit this coming april.Any dos and donts would be helpful.

[Old Rocker]

Take the excursion thru the canal by boat. It was well worth the money.

 

Check out the Lotus (covered) pool. Nice loungers and normally very quiet. Ice cream bar and regular bar nearby.

[more cruises]

Use sunblock and hats - you'll be outside for a good portion of the day and the sun can be brutal that close to the equator.

[skynight]

Use sunblock and hats - you'll be outside for a good portion of the day and the sun can be brutal that close to the equator.

 

Ditto, the sun is pretty much directly overhead in April. Sunburn in just 20 mins. not just in Panama but at all ports.

We enjoyed the Embera Indian tour in Panama. No private tours allowed in Panama. Only passengers booked on Princess tours will be allowed to disembark in Gatun Lake. Book tours on line in advance.

[Old Rocker]

+1 on the sun block. I went in October this year and couldnt beg for a tan.

 

And yes the Embra indian tour is a good one too!

[lazyriver]

Did the same cruise this Jan. Took boat thru all the canals. Was great. We took extra water, snacks, chips so we snacked when we wanted- on bus on boat etc.

[stinky1]

Sign up early for the ferry through the locks, we had over 400 sign up for this excusion. We where fortunate that there was no other cruise ship in at the same time as us. Get to the front of the ship early to watch coming into the canal, then move to other places. Our fav spot was the back. Got amazing photos.

[satxdiver]

Popular tours fill up fast and long before the ship sails. The canal trip, train trip to Panama City and others fill very quickly. One good thing about Princess is that you can sign up before you sail and make no payment until you are onboard and they add it to your sea pass account. You can reject the tour up to 24 hours before in most cases so check your ticket once on board.

 

The ship will enter Gatun Lake through the Gatun locks and immediately go to the southern shore near the locks. Pax who have purchased a ship tour will be put on tenders and taken to shore. All others must stay on board. No private tours are allowed. You will return to the ship later in the day which will be at a port outside the canal having transited back through the locks. You will be able to walk back aboard.

[RLK33853]

One thing many people do is find a spot and stay in one place while transiting the canal. Make sure you move around - go to the front before the ship rises, the back once you are up, and the most important thing is go to Deck 7 to see how close you are to the sides.

 

It is a great cruise - one we have done three times. Each time is just as fascinating as the last.

 

Enjoy

[Host Jazzbeau]

Assuming that you will be on Coral or Island, remember that there are the well-publicized "secret" balconies at the front and four balconies aft, as well as the full promenade deck -- these are all better locations than the sun deck because there are no blue-glass walls ruining your pictures.