What's the best way to see the Panama Canal? I'm confused

[dotcruiser]

Been ready the boards and am somewhat confused. (NOT HARD TO CONFUSE ME!)

Some say to take the excursion to see the Canal (going on the Legend Nov. 26th) It's quite expensive but if it's worth it. Others say go yourself and find someone to take you. What's safer and which way can we get the most out of our excursion to see the canal? Thanks for all useful info.

[torpeedo]

You can take the ship's tour and you will be assured that the ship will wait for you. There are plenty of independent tour operators in the cruise terminal area in Colon who will take you and probably for less $$$. As far as how long it takes to get there, the carnival Panama canal tour is 7 hrs.. Depending on the length of time you are in Colon you might want to go with the ship to be sure you don't miss it.. Maybe others who have taken the tour operators locally and can tell you more about that possibility. We have seen the panama canal by cruise ship and we passed through the locks to Gatun Lake. It was a great experience and you should not miss them if it interests you.

[molme]

We did the Legend in Jan 03 with the same itinerary. We did the Carnival excursion through the canal and really enjoyed it. It was expensive, about $150, but worth it. Panama is not the safest country to be in and we were more comfortable being with the ships group. They bus you to Panama City from Colon and then you get on a small boat, about the size of a tender, and take you through the locks to Gatan Lake. There is a bus there that takes you back to Colon. You should have a couple of hours after you get back to the pier to do some shopping if you want.

 

Have a good trip.

[Maryandi]

We have been thru the Canal 2x-1 time partial (just Gatun Locks) but when you were in the lake, you could take tours to see the inner workings, etc. We, also, did a full transit.

 

Neither time did we feel the urge to get off the ship, if you are at the bow in the very early AM (think 5am)-as the dawn breaks-the view is wonderful-the ship gets into the locks, the narrator tells you what is happening-it is great.

 

All the details are explained, when you get into the lake-you turn around, await your turn to go back out again, eat lunch, and it's over.

 

Colon, etc. rounds out the day. It was plenty for us-if you need a more personal experience-do a ships tour-heard pros and cons on the train -check the ports of call board. MaryAnn