tours on canal transit day

[poppan]

I have what is surely a stupid question, but I cannot figure this out. We're going on a full transit cruise. I had assumed that the day when we go through the canal, we would just stay on board and watch the locks etc. -- kind of like how it was when we did the Alaska inside passage. But when I looked through the excursions, there are all these different options for that day -- Gatun locks, fishing on Gatun lake, cultural tour of the Indian village and more.

 

I don't get it. How do you get off the boat and do the excursion but still get back on the boat and see the canal crossing? Some of these tours are 6-7 hours long!

 

If it matters, we are doing the 14-night westbound from Miami to San Diego on X.

[BillB48]

Just when I thought I had it all figured out;):). Up until your post I was not aware that they offered tours in this direction. In the past from my experience, they only offered tours on Pac-Atl full transits or on the partial transits. I know on some of Princess full transits they offer another day with a stop in Ft. Amador which you can use for tours. I too would be interested in finding out about tours in this case.

 

Just an opinion here, if you have not been through the Canal, I think you would be better off staying on the ship for the full transit. Not that Panama doesn't have a lot of things to see, but the Canal is what makes Panama a little unique. Take a tour on your next trip to the area.

[Richard in Panama]

If it matters, we are doing the 14-night westbound from Miami to San Diego on X.

 

It certainly DOES matter since cruises have very different itineraries in Panama including cruises of the same line. Check my page on Panama Cruise http://richarddetrich.wordpress.com/canal-cruise/ for a better idea of the types of cruises available and the options for tours in Panama.

 

I think you would be better off staying on the ship for the full transit

 

I think I disagree with BillB48 on this . . . I think you can get an experience of the Canal going through one set of locks and that you should take advantage of the opportunity, if you have it on your itinerary, to get off the ship and see some of Panama.

 

Regards, Richard

[Kamloops50]

If its your first cruise thru the canal I recommend staying on board.

Ships that stop at Colon or Fuerto Amador for a day probably have tours.:cool::cool:

[poppan]

Just when I thought I had it all figured out;):). Up until your post I was not aware that they offered tours in this direction. In the past from my experience, they only offered tours on Pac-Atl full transits or on the partial transits.

 

Yeah, I'm kind of doubting it myself... I see when you go eastbound that they do a "tour pick up" stop in Cristobal, but not when you go west. But there it was on the X website??? I guess their website could be wrong... I should ask our TA.

 

We have two very young children (twins aged 2) so perhaps we ought to stay on board anyway... but Richard, I will check out your page, thanks!

[BillB48]

Maybe their website is just painting pictures with too broad of a brush. If for some reason they are offering tours on the Atlantic-Pacific transits, my guess is they would tender you off the ship after locking through Gatun Locks. This is where Richard and I don't agree, usually we are pretty much on the same page or at least the same chapter, but that is what opinions are all about. Here are my thoughts if tours are indeed offered in the direction you are going. Leaving the ship after Gatun Locks you will miss the most scenic parts of the Canal. The ship channel through Gatun Lake follows fairly closely the old Chagres River, which was used in the creation of the Lake. The flooding of Lake has created many islands that are still covered in their natural growth. Essentially no civilization whatsoever, much the same as it would have looked a 100 years ago.

 

Then you enter Gaillard Cut where the builders did most of the digging through the Continental Divide. Even though the channel through the Cut is more than 500 feet wide in most areas, picture that the original Cut was only 300 feet wide. Then you can appreciate it's original name, "Culebra" (Snake) Cut, a narrow and winding channel. Just before arriving at Pedro Miguel Locks at the south end of the "Cut" you will see excavation for the new set of Locks. Three steps in the Locks that you went through at Gatun in one lock complex is accomplished on the Pacific side by two sets of locks. It is the same process but just more real estate to look at and you will get to sail under two impressive bridges.

 

Panama has so much history there is just no way to do it justice on one trip. It is a great place to have on your itinerary. If you have not been through the Canal before, you maybe able to tell, I think you already have a best spot on the best tour... the transit!

[poppan]

Thank you so much for the information Bill -- lovely to get a first hand description! Now I am reeeeally looking forward to the cruise :D

[poppan]

Just wanted to give an update and final answer. While the X "marketing website" (i.e. the portion you see when you go to http://www.celebritycruises.com) shows that there are tours on canal transit day going in both eastbound and westbound directions (it showed this even when I selected my exact ship, cruise date etc.), when I actually logged in with my registration number and did all the pre-cruise paperwork and looked at the excursions, there were none available on canal transit day. So BillB48, you were absolutely right, they are not offering tours in the westbound direction.

 

It doesn't matter to us as we've decided based on input here and the fact that we have two young children, to stay on the boat for the transit. But I would have been upset if I did want to go on an excursion that day and I booked westbound based on the incorrect info on their website. BTW I did ask my TA and he said "good question" and then said "their website is the bible". I guess I should send Celebrity an email and let them know about the error, in case someone else is using their website as "the bible"!

[BillB48]

Thanks for the update. There are just so many places you can get wrong info, but when the "source" has it wrong... yikes! Have a great cruise, hope you enjoy the Canal.

[drdaddy]

BillB48,

 

You seem to be informed on this canal thing. We are doing a partial, in and out, cruise on Princess. We cannot decide between the Deluxe train out to the Miraflores locks and back, or the ferry trip through the canal and back. I know of course some of the abvious differences.

 

Our question concerns what you might be able the see on the two trips. The train is going pretty fast to see much. If we did the train, what side would you sit on going to Miraflores? I would guess it did not matter that much. The ferry trip should be obvious what we would see.

 

Second part of question concerns what each trip does once we get there. Would you know whether the train or the ferry excursion includes any tours through the visitor center at Miraflores or just a wave by to the bus back to the ship? The descriptions on the Princess website is a but vague. It sounds like the train trip lets you stay a bit to learn more about the canal (the wife's desire) and the ferry is a little more up close and personal with the canal.

 

Any personal insights as to the differences between the trips would be a great help!

[BillB48]

Let me take a stab at the second part first. I did not take the train tour, but I have ridden the railroad many times. The train tour our traveling mates took did included a trip to the locks and out to the fortified islands which are off the coast of Panama City and linked by a causeway. Assuming the train trip is the first part of the tour, (to the Pacific side on the train) to see the most of the Canal you will want to be on the right side of the train. You will see a lot of the backwater areas of the lake and only see the Canal off in the distance, for the most part. The only times you are near the Canal proper is as you approach Gamboa and once again at Pedro Miguel, (all on the right side). In the past the train tour is one way by train and then return by bus.

 

As far as doing anything else while you are on the ferry tour, you really won't have time. The trip to and from the Atlantic side via the highway eats up about 3 to 4 hours of the tour with the remainder of the tour being the transit through the locks and Gaillard Cut. It's not all is wasted on the ride, you get to see some of the country and there should be someone on the bus to give you some history etc.

 

On either tour, you will see a lot of the same things since both the train and ferry tours will take you over the Isthmus by the same road.

 

In some ways the partial transit is even better than the full transit, maybe I should say offers some unique differences. It is really impressive in the morning when you head into Gatun Locks and watch them put all that ship into what will look like a small space in comparison to the ship. The operation seems so smooth, in fact you can almost seem detached from the process as most passengers like to view the process from the upper decks. It's good to move around a bit and see the operation from different vantage points. Here is where the ferry tour comes in, you will get to see the operation from a completely different perspective. You will be able to see things that are not as apparent when you are the large ship. Add to that, I believe the Pacific Locks and Gaillard Cut are more interesting visually. So if you combine your partial transit and the ferry tour, you will have been through a large part of the Canal!

 

I guess I'm a little skewed towards the ferry tour specially if you have not been through the Canal before. You get to see some of the country as well as a lot of the Canal. I'm not trying to sell the train short because it is a great tour as well, particularly if you like trains as I do. Between the narration on your ship in morning as well the information you will receive on the ferry portion of the tour, oh, and there should be a guide on the bus to give you some background as well, I think your wife will get a deal of history and a great overview.