Gatun Lake excursion or stay on ship during partial transit

[kendon]

I recommend getting off and seeing something. There are so many tour options. Looking forward to going again to see the progress on the new canal.

[Host Jazzbeau]

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:

 

I read a lot of reviews about the ferry before we went, and found that people's experience varies dramatically based on two factors: how hot it is that day, and how long the line is for the Pacific locks. We lucked out: the day was hot but tolerable in the shade on the ferry, and the lock was open as we approached so we just sailed right in (and shared it with a small sailboat, which gave us a third perspective on how big those locks are!) -- because of the quick entry we got back to the ship early and still had time to poke around Colon. On a different week, people reported that it was so hot they melted and they had to wait so long for the lock entry that they were as late back to the ship as darienill reported above. So you don't know. I can tell you that we really enjoyed the ferry trip -- but we had the good-good combination.

[Darcy15]

Not to be a nit picker

 

Mmm.........:rolleyes:

[beaver]

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

 

I can't remember for sure how long but it was more than an hour. We had time for the DW to shop and time to watch the dancing entertainment.

 

This train tour set the bar. if there ever is a train tour excursion at one of our ports we want to be "all aboard"

[EGG]

First I was given the advice here that I had to have a balcony cabin. So we got a balcony but because it was a smaller ship by today's standards all we could see was the wall from our deck 7 cabin for most of the passage. Then they the people on this site said you have to get off. So what did I get a balcony for. See stayed on the ship and were able to get great seats to sit and watch the transit. Each transit has a different feel because of the ships you go through with. Will it be another cruise ship or a giant cargo ship.

We also preferred the partial transit because we feel the experience is better when you transit with other ships. On our full transit we did the locks on the Pacific side by ourselves.

 

Go to the port of calls board and read the pros and cons of the excursions before you decide.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Forums mobile app

[TW6cruiser]

We had a balcony on C deck on the Coral so it was larger, and we loved it. Mostly for other days on the cruise we were not on it much on the canal day itself. We did a partial cruise and had three sea days. On the day we went through the lock we went out to the front of C deck where there is a smaller public area and we could watch without any obstruction as we went thru the locks. We took an excursion off of the ship in Gatun Locks to the expansion center and enjoyed seeing the construction area of the new locks. We then went to the Gatun visitor center and were lucky enough to see our ship go back out thru the locks from the land. The only part of the excursion we did not like was having to wait an hour or so in Colon to get back on the ship but other than that we enjoyed it.

[Jetswdo]

After reading as many different opinions regarding Canal day, we have decided to stay on the ship. Here is why:

 

We are in our early 60's. Neither of us can stand severe heat and humidity. We can do short excursions and put up with the heat. Unfortunately from what I understand, canal day excursions means that one is off the ship the entire day as embarkation at Colon begins around 5:00 or later.

 

So we will get up early, watch whatever we can from the ship in air conditioned comfort. If we were in our 20's to 40's, I think we could have managed with the heat and probably done the ferry trip--

 

So I think people shouldn't generalize about the excursions being right for every one. You need to consider your age, health and personal comfort, and then pick the best excursion or not for you.