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Why doesn't Carnival go through the Panama Canal?

tango55

By tango55,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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tango55

tango55

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we were searching for a cruise on the weekend - and tried to find a panama one with Carnival and there weren't any! Don't they sail through the canal - and if not - does anyone know why not?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Terry

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nwcruiselover

nwcruiselover

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Carnival does have an occasional Panama Canal sailing, but only when they're repositioning a ship and it has to go through the canal. I did one a year ago on the Imagination and it was wonderful. I don't know why they don't do regularly scheduled Panama Canal cruises. I guess it's just not one of Carnival's preferred routes.

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nybumpkin

nybumpkin

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Based on some things I've read in the past, the Panama Canal itinerary is too long for Carnival's target passenger group. They are experimenting with some longer cruises, but generally they aim at the people who want 7 or 8 days at most. Having said that, I understand that when they do the repositioning cruises through the canal they sell pretty well.

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AnonomissX

AnonomissX

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we were searching for a cruise on the weekend - and tried to find a panama one with Carnival and there weren't any! Don't they sail through the canal - and if not - does anyone know why not?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Terry

 

They don't really have ships that reposition that would require a Panama Canal sailing. The "Miracle" is already in Long Beach, CA, and she is the only ship currently that goes to Alaska for the season. All the other ships are on the East side of the canal, and don't have a reason to go through. Carnival is sticking to 3-10 day cruises out of the East Coast it seems.

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buddylover

buddylover

Posted
Posted (edited)

CCL used to cruise regularly to the Panama Canal......we did that cruise on CCL Legend in 2004, the ship did not go thru the canal.....Princess was the only ship at the time that did the transit thru the canal locks. We were told the CCL ship was too large to fit?? So we did an excursion thru the canal, it was wonderful, but would have preferred our ship to have made the transit instead.

Edited by buddylover
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justme_85

justme_85

Posted
Posted (edited)
we were searching for a cruise on the weekend - and tried to find a panama one with Carnival and there weren't any! Don't they sail through the canal - and if not - does anyone know why not?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Terry

 

 

CCL did this about 10 years ago. I went to Panama (not thru the Canal), Costa Rica and Belize on a 8 day cruise in 2004 on the Carnival Spirit. It was an awesome cruise and I have often gone looking to see if CCL will offer it again. Wish they would bring it back.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Edited by justme_85
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stargate fan

stargate fan

Posted
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we were searching for a cruise on the weekend - and tried to find a panama one with Carnival and there weren't any! Don't they sail through the canal - and if not - does anyone know why not?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Terry

 

We sailed Legend in August. She was repositioning from Tampa to Long Beach for her first leg (13 days) and Long Beach to Sydney for the second (23 days). We sailed the first.

 

Going through the Panama Canal should be on everyone's bucket list! It was truly amazing.

 

That said, there are a few reasons why, in my opinion, Carnival might not regularly sail through the Canal:

 

1) It's very expensive for the cruise line.

While we were sailing through, we were listening to commentaries. Carnival was being charged $330,000 for the ship plus $$ for each train that helped the ship pass through (The trains were located on either side of the ship and had tow lines that kept the ship centered.) There were 16 for the first set of locks, eight for the second and another eight for the third. That totals 32. We can't remember how much each was but it was in the thousands of dollars per.

 

2) It took all day for transit.

We arrived at the first lock in the Atlantic Ocean before 7:00 A.M. and were in the Pacific Ocean around 5:00 P.M. There really wouldn't be much time for seven and eight day cruises to do that.

 

3) Only Spirit and Fantasy class ships fit.

The good news is that new, wider locks are being built. They will accommodate wider ships. We saw the new lock doors and the construction that was going on. So, who knows, there might be more longer sailings on larger ships in the next two years.

 

This was easily the best cruise we've ever taken.

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Elaine5715

Elaine5715

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I also did the Panama, Belize, Costa Rica on the Freedom a few year ago. Did the excursions through the Canal. They did two locks before reversing. It was easily the best cruise.

Besides the expense of traversing the Canal, the dozens of Canal "safety pilots" they are required to hire, you have an appointment to enter the locks. If you miss your appointment, you are required to wait until they have another opening. That could be days.

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HawkIVette

HawkIVette

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The Pride is sailing to Colon, Panama in March. You can take an excursion through part of the canal. Not the same as full transit, of course, but if you want to go Carnival, it could be an option for you. Enjoy whatever cruise you take!

 

We did this on the Miracle in 2010. Did the excursion from Colon, where you went by bus over to the Pacific side to Panama City. Then boarded a smaller boat to go through 3 of the locks. Then reboarded the busses to go back to the Miracle. I thought it was well worth the money and was a highlight of all the cruises we have been on.

Other that a repositioning cruise, it was very resonable ($$$) and if I remember right it was an 8 day cruise.

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nybumpkin

nybumpkin

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We did this on the Miracle in 2010. Did the excursion from Colon, where you went by bus over to the Pacific side to Panama City. Then boarded a smaller boat to go through 3 of the locks. Then reboarded the busses to go back to the Miracle. I thought it was well worth the money and was a highlight of all the cruises we have been on.

Other that a repositioning cruise, it was very resonable ($$$) and if I remember right it was an 8 day cruise.

We did this as an 8-day on Liberty in 2007 out of Ft. Lauderdale, visiting Costa Maya, Limon and Colon. We opted against the small boat tour through the locks, instead opting for a visit to the Gatun Locks to watch a cargo ship lock through and a beach visit. We loved it - and we came home with out all-time favorite cruise purchase, a stone-carved Nativity set. It's in the living room right now.:cool:
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Clear Solution

Clear Solution

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I do Panama Canal transits about 4-5 times a year with work. We usually sit on anchor for 2-27 days (depending on traffic- we are towing ships with a tugboat). Pilot fees, lock fees, and canal fees are in exceeds of half a million dollars for a one way trip.

 

Could you imagine the outrage for that surcharge...

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Sparky2

Sparky2

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We did this as an 8-day on Liberty in 2007 out of Ft. Lauderdale, visiting Costa Maya, Limon and Colon. We opted against the small boat tour through the locks, instead opting for a visit to the Gatun Locks to watch a cargo ship lock through and a beach visit. We loved it - and we came home with out all-time favorite cruise purchase, a stone-carved Nativity set. It's in the living room right now.:cool:

 

We also did the 8-day on Liberty in 2008 and visited the Gatun Locks. If I remember correctly, we watched an MSC cruiseship traverse the locks. Very good tour.

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SeaPeaInn

SeaPeaInn

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We went through the canal a few years ago on a Princess ship. Through the first lock, anchored for the afternoon and back through the same lock. The toll was over 400 thousand and was the highest ever paid for any ship at the time.

 

Passages are booked many weeks in advance and must be paid in full two weeks prior to passage.

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SeaGoingDAD

SeaGoingDAD

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we were searching for a cruise on the weekend - and tried to find a panama one with Carnival and there weren't any! Don't they sail through the canal - and if not - does anyone know why not?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Terry

 

They do, when they need to reposition a ship, and it can actually fit in the canal. The Splendor could not, so it had to go all the way around South America. And then it had to come back, as the west coast does not apparently sell well.

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bbmom2boys

bbmom2boys

Posted
Posted (edited)

We also did the Freedom, Costa Rica 8 day in 2009 best cruise ever for excursions. We took a ferry through the locks and then were picked up by buses to take us back to the ship! We were so overwhelmed and unprepared that I so want to do it again after I have done the research I should have done before the first trip, but I can never find the itinerary. :(

Edited by bbmom2boys
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Velvetwater

Velvetwater

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Posted (edited)

Carnival did 2 Panama cruises last year.

 

One on the Imagination in January and one on the Legend in August (unusual summer timing)

 

We were on the August one and it was a blast,Although was mainly full of very experienced cruisers and if Carnival target new cruisers then it might not be the best route for the market.

 

 

I would like to point out thought that they are extending and widening the Canal so that bigger ships can fit through...this is expected to be done by 2016 (although who knows with such a project).

 

The new expansion means all Carnival ships will be able to pass (In fact all cruise ships except the top 5 biggest I think) which is good news for those wanting to cruise the canal in the future.

 

It really is wonderful...especially seeing the bridge of the Americas and realising you are in the Pacific.

Edited by Velvetwater
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