Infinity Panama Canal Advice

[MarkE]

The Infinity is sailing out of San Diego today heading to Fort Lauderdale via the canal, if anyone onboard could update us on tours they take while sailing and rate them we would appreciate their suggestions and ratings. We will be on the return trip back to San Diego on 4-26. Any reviews of excursions or programs on board looking forward to hearing from you.

[4774Papa]

The Infinity is sailing out of San Diego today heading to Fort Lauderdale via the canal, if anyone onboard could update us on tours they take while sailing and rate them we would appreciate their suggestions and ratings. We will be on the return trip back to San Diego on 4-26. Any reviews of excursions or programs on board looking forward to hearing from you.

 

We did the canal on our repo from FLL to Valpo, Chile and transited the canal from the Caribbean to Pacific.

 

We took an excursion at the port of Colon (on Caribbean) to see the locks at Gatun as well as a boat ride to see wildlife. Being able to see the Gatun locks in acton from the viewing stand, with ships going through was great, even though you will see it while on board your ship. The boat ride on the lake was ok, we did see some wildlife, but no so many monkeys.

 

There ia an interesting tour you can take on the train that goes from Colon to Panama City. Since you are transiting the canal twice, consider that.

By the way, don't plan on DIY at Colon, the city doesn't look safe at all.

[photomikey]

We're just off the Infinity cruise through the canal. I can't see what your ports are but here's what we did:

 

Miami, hung out in south beach (this was cool, there is a huge nighttime scene here), drove through the Florida keys (this was kind of lame, despite it being a string of islands it is really hard to see the ocean from the road, and there is very little to pull off and do).

 

Cartagena, Columbia: we took a taxi (it was cheap) to the old city and walked around. From the old city there are tour guides walking around who will give you a walking tour for a few bucks, or you can pretty much figure it out yourself. The whole of the old city is walkable. For another few bucks, take a taxi back.

 

Colon, Panama: Take a taxi (outside the cruise dock gates) or a white tourist van (inside the cruise dock gates) to Gatun locks, they drop you off at the old visitors center, you hang out and watch a ship pass through (which is super cool), get back in, take a short drive through the area, and back to the ship. Taxi will be cheaper and not speak much English. White tourist van will be more expensive. We took the white van. The guy started at $50/person and I beat him down until we got it for $20/person (for 4 of us). I had to walk away and have him chase me down twice.

 

Cruising the canal, find yourself a seat on the rails on deck 4 and just watch it happen. From deck 4 you will be at eye level with the ground and you can literally watch the ship rise. It's incredible. If you are the low-pressure type, you can sit there all day. The passing area is beautiful.

 

Puntarenas, Costa Rica, we took an 8-in-1 with GioTours (google it) and were relatively satisfied. White tourist van, us and 10 others, intimate tour, saw lots of cool stuff.

 

Guatemala, we took the ship's transfer to Antigua, which is pretty much the only thing to see near the port. Ship's transfer is way more expensive, but it's 90 minutes and it seemed like the possibility of a taxi (much cheaper) breaking down or getting lost or not being able to hail one was much higher, so we paid the fee. Walked around Antigua. Again, there are gov't licensed folks walking around that will give you a walking tour for a few bucks.

 

Puerto Vallarta, we did the Extreme Zipline thing, which was fun, but maybe not your speed. PV has a nice boardwalk you can stroll up and down.

 

Cabo San Lucas has glass bottom boats everywhere. The tour is 45 minutes and costs $10/person. There are dozens (hundreds?) of people hawking these tours. I like to keep walking until I find someone who is not completely annoying selling them. We walked most of the way around the harbor (past the dolphin experience) until we saw the Super Mario boat (you'll recognize it), and took that one. Despite the fact that the tours are given by hundreds of different operators, they are all mostly the same, and pretty good overall. When you come back, either have them drop you at a beach and hang out, or back at the dock and boardwalk back to the ship. Buckets of beers are 5/$10, it's an easy way to catch a cheap buzz before getting on the ship. ;-)

 

Best of luck. I am also a "figure it out when we get there" guy.

[Photo_Traveler]

The Infinity is sailing out of San Diego today heading to Fort Lauderdale via the canal, if anyone onboard could update us on tours they take while sailing and rate them we would appreciate their suggestions and ratings. We will be on the return trip back to San Diego on 4-26. Any reviews of excursions or programs on board looking forward to hearing from you.

 

We took the Infinity in 2014. If the ship goes "Code Red" with Noro. My best advice is to make the best of it. As long as you and your traveling partners follow common sense processes and use their special blend of Purell (frequently) life will be good and only slightly inconvenient.

 

With that out of the way, you are sailing on a fantastic itinerary!!! As another photographer, I enjoyed:

 

Panama Canal transit on the Infinity: https://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-X7vbp9/

 

Celebrity Panama Canal Ferry Tour from Colon ($$$): https://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-S5qwRM/

 

Cartagena - Dora The Explorer was our independent Tour Guide. Marelvy Pena-Hall is another great guide.

PIX: https://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-ZcGJNv/

 

Costa Rica: The Celebrity Poas Volcano tour out of Puntarenas was very good. However, the mountain was obscured. The Ox cart factory was a fun side trip on the tour. Beautiful grounds and colorful ox carts.

 

The tour up to Antigua, Guatemala was fabulous. Like Cartagena, there are a lot of street vendors. The streets of Antigua are cobblestone. The sidewalks are very narrow. It is not a good environment for motorized chairs or wheelchairs.

 

Enjoy!!

(Another) Mike

[Photo_Traveler]

We took the Infinity in 2014. If the ship goes "Code Red" with Noro. My best advice is to make the best of it. As long as you and your traveling partners follow common sense processes and use their special blend of Purell (frequently) life will be good and only slightly inconvenient.

 

 

In Puerto Vallarta, the tour to Mama Lucia's Tequila Distillery was quite entertaining and educational. Their Leyva brand Tequilla was very good. So good, that it could be part of a new food group. :) You might only be able to reach this via a cab or private tour. The Leyva Tequila is pricey. It was easy to see why.