Gatun Lake excursion or stay on ship during partial transit

[coach_cruiser]

I'm curious of the general opinion out there on if it is better to get off for an excursion at Gatun Lake during a partial Panama Canal transit or stay on the ship for the full transit

Thanks

Phil Stern

[Host Jazzbeau]

Whatever you do, don't stay on the ship. You didn't come all that way to see half the Canal! The ship will transit back through the locks you just saw, and then tie up in Colon -- which is the absolute worst port in the Caribbean! There is one strip of stores/casinos facing the ship -- go up on the top deck and you can see that it's like a Hollywood stage set: the back of those buildings is a terrible slum. There are several excursions you can take from the ship, and all get good reviews. We took the ferry boat through the Canal to the Pacific -- that way we saw the Gaillard cut (perhaps the biggest engineering feat in building the canal) and the Pacific locks and the Pacific Ocean; this excursion ends with a comfortable bus ride back across Panama, and you have bragging rights that you did the entire Canal.

[Darcy15]

I have a different opinion :)

 

Recently returned from a partial transit on Coral Princess

 

I stayed on the ship and hugely enjoyed the return trip through the canal in such peace and quiet. Essentially had the promenade deck to myself and had lots of waves and smiles from the canal workers along the way :)

 

Panama is HOT and the cool quietness of the ship was, for me, a much nicer way to spend the day :D

 

I agree that Colon is not a great place - so I didn't go ashore, and enjoyed the empty pool instead :D

 

Whatever you decide to do, have a great trip! :)

[AKman2495]

Not to be a nit picker, but one does not do a "full transit" on a partial canal cruise.

 

Also, you do not make a return trip "through the canal".

 

A full transit through the canal means you start in the Caribbean and end up in the Pacific Ocean or vice versa.

 

What you really mean is that you make a return trip through the Gatun Locks.

Edited December 10, 2015 by AKman2495

[MrPantsOz]

Get off and do a tour. Personally I loved and recommend the ferry through the other locks. I didn't go all that way to not go through both sets of locks.

[sptrout]

Look at it this way, the Panama Canal is about 55 miles long. When doing a partial transit, you will see maybe 5 miles of the Canal. However, with a partial transit, there are only one or two tours that will fill in the difference. We have done full, partial, and just dock at Colon, and the full transit was the best experience by far.

[hpeabody]

I am also recently off the Coral partial transit cruise. Don't stay on the ship if the Panama Canal is your reason for the cruise. I also recommend the ferry through the other 2 locks to the Pacific. Beware and be prepared, It is a really long day and can be hot and humid. (I was lucky and had a milder day)

[Merlinite]

The benefit of full transit, which takes about 9 hours, is that you go to some very interesting Central American ports. The coffee plantation in Guatemala being one... and Costa Rica is the Jewel. We finished in Acapulco and spent 3 days decompressing :)

[Colo Cruiser]

Not to be a nit picker, but one does not do a "full transit" on a partial canal cruise.

 

Also, you do not make a return trip "through the canal".

 

A full transit through the canal means you start in the Caribbean and end up in the Pacific Ocean or vice versa.

 

What you really mean is that you make a return trip through the Gatun Locks.

 

Oh come on you know what they meant. :(

[Colo Cruiser]

I'm curious of the general opinion out there on if it is better to get off for an excursion at Gatun Lake during a partial Panama Canal transit or stay on the ship for the full transit

Thanks

Phil Stern

 

 

I say get off and enjoy what you can of Panama. Its a beautiful country. ;)

[Sopwith]

I'm curious of the general opinion out there on if it is better to get off for an excursion at Gatun Lake during a partial Panama Canal transit or stay on the ship for the full transit

Thanks

Phil Stern

 

This is a bit confusing. If the ship is doing a full transit, i.e. one ocean to the other, definitely stay on the ship, especially if you haven't done the transit before.

 

If the ship is going to enter from the Caribbean side into Gatun Lake, then turn around and return to the Caribbean, you might consider a tour because you'll miss the best part of the canal works.

 

We have done the full transit twice. The second time we decided to get off while the ship anchored in Gatun Lake and do a tour. We were disappointed. It was basically a trek through the jungle where we did see some wildlife, but it was nothing spectacular. We reboarded at Colon, which, as someone said, is not the best neighbourhood.

[Times Prince]

I'm curious of the general opinion out there on if it is better to get off for an excursion at Gatun Lake during a partial Panama Canal transit or stay on the ship for the full transit

Thanks

Phil Stern

By all means, get off the ship. Almost all of the tours include a stop at the canal locks you just came through to get to Gatun Lake, and seeing a ship or two transiting the lock is fascinating.

 

On our first partial transit we observed the lock operations from the ship itself, then once on the lake I took a tour to see a monkey island (can't remember exact name). Then the excursion boat docked us near the locks and we got to see our own ship (Sun Princess) transiting the locks going back into the Caribbean. There is no experience like seeing your wife and your ship sailing off into the distance :eek:

 

We've had stops at the Panama Canal with ships too big for even a partial transit. All of those just stop at the Colon / Cristobal port, and the only way one sees the Panama canal is using an excursion. Do take some time to go into the port warehouse, where there is usually native music and dancing to be seen and a variety of souvenirs to be had. We bought a great basket for very little cost from the local indian tribe.

 

Just make sure you bring a good mosquito spray, DEET, with you (we use a pump spray, not an aerosol, to pass TSA going to the ship via air.)

[Potstech]

Also on a partial transit if you take the ferry to the Pacific Ocean you will get a totallt different look at the locks. Instead of being on a big ship and really not feeling or seeing the up and down as you move throught the locks you will now be on a smaller ship and actually drop below the rim of the locks and be able to reach out and touch them. Try it you might like it, And you will learn much more than staying on the ship.

[h20skibum]

Agree you should get off the ship and do an excursion. Why go all that way, just to stay on the ship.

 

We did the transit by ferry excursion to get the benefit of seeing all the locks. Plus, it gives you a different perspective than transiting on a large ship.

 

Whatever you decide, enjoy your trip.

[TracieABD]

Has anyone done the train?

[graphicgal]

Two years ago we did a full transit on a small tour boat with Road Scholars. It was a magnificent trip. In my opinion, the most interesting part of the canal is the Miraflores locks, where they have a visitor center that allows you to see how it all works.

 

Another interesting part of the canal is through the "Cut" where they had to do so much blasting to get through the mountain crest. We did the train ride from Colon to Panama and enjoyed it. From the train we saw the place where Noriega is/was. And we absolutely LOVED Panama and would go back in a minute!

 

If you have time, read David McCullough's wonderful book, The Path Between the Seas. It's a long book but it will give you a perfect understanding why this is one of the great wonders of the world.

 

PS--I agree with others about Colon. Nothing to see there.

[Colo Cruiser]

This is a bit confusing. If the ship is doing a full transit, i.e. one ocean to the other, definitely stay on the ship, especially if you haven't done the transit before.

 

If the ship is going to enter from the Caribbean side into Gatun Lake, then turn around and return to the Caribbean, you might consider a tour because you'll miss the best part of the canal works.

 

We have done the full transit twice. The second time we decided to get off while the ship anchored in Gatun Lake and do a tour. We were disappointed. It was basically a trek through the jungle where we did see some wildlife, but it was nothing spectacular. We reboarded at Colon, which, as someone said, is not the best neighbourhood.

 

 

The OP is on the March 4th 10 day partial transit.

[beaver]

Has anyone done the train?

 

We did the train and it was one of our most memorable excursions. Although some of the scenery is repetitive the atmosphere was great. The train was a restored 1950's vintage train cars. Sometimes we were serenaded by the beautiful attendants. The ongoing commentary kept us informed of what we were observing. There was enough time to enjoy the Pacific side, and watch the locks from shore. The return ride on the bus was also enjoyable. We returned to Colon and spent time in the terminal.

[Colo Cruiser]

Has anyone done the train?

 

 

We did the train too. I agree with the Beav. :)

[TracieABD]

We did the train and it was one of our most memorable excursions. Although some of the scenery is repetitive the atmosphere was great. The train was a restored 1950's vintage train cars. Sometimes we were serenaded by the beautiful attendants. The ongoing commentary kept us informed of what we were observing. There was enough time to enjoy the Pacific side, and watch the locks from shore. The return ride on the bus was also enjoyable. We returned to Colon and spent time in the terminal.

 

How long did you spend in the terminal before you could reboard the ship?

[TracieABD]

We did the train too. I agree with the Beav. :)

 

We have a reservation on the train in the dome car, but now I am conflicted if we should have gone with the ferry????:eek:

[Colo Cruiser]

We have a reservation on the train in the dome car, but now I am conflicted if we should have gone with the ferry????:eek:

 

 

There have been some reviews written on the ferry tour. We have not done that one. A great perspective from down inside the locks though.

[cb at sea]

The partial transit IS an excursions unto itself...no need to spend money to see what you've just seen....It's a hot and long day on excursions! There is navigator onboard to tell you about the canal...and while the others are off the ship, sweating...you can hit the AC...pool...whatever!

 

If you roam the ship during the transit, in and out, you will have all the perspective you need. Lower decks give you an entirely different "feel" than the upper decks!

Edited December 11, 2015 by cb at sea

[satxdiver]

Our first canal cruise was a partial. We got off the ship after entering Gatun Lake and took the train excursion to Panama City where they put us on a bus to tour the area. We were able to watch the Miraflores locks in use as they have a beautiful 4 story building with outside balconies. We rejoined the ship after it had moved through the locks back out to the Caribbean. They do have or did have an excursion on a smaller boat through the canal.

 

We later did the full canal from San Francisco to Fort Lauderdale. BTW the currency in Panama is the Balboa. ;)

[darienill]

we've been there twice. First time we stayed on the ship and got to see the ship going in and out of the Gatun locks. Had breakfast, sat in an A/C area of the ship,. Took a nap, had lunch and a beer. Went swimming.

Second time we did the ferry through to the Pacific. The first 5 hours was interesting then it got old, then hot , then dark. Sitting on a plastic bench for 9 hours. Got back to the ship about 9 PM. Ran down to the MDR just in time.

Our friends took the trip to see the indian village and enjoyed it.