Gatun Lake Excursions

My wife and I will be doing the 11-day Partial Transit of the Canal next March. Is it worth it getting off the ship at Gatun Lake for an excursion, or would we be better off staying onboard and just relaxing on the ship to go back to Colon?

We did that same cruise a year ago. We decided that the reason we took the cruise was for the canal transit itself, so cancelled the tour we had booked and stayed on the ship. They open the bow before they anchor in the lake so you can watch from up there, but the best viewing is either your balcony or the promenade deck. One tour that was taking people through the canal in a smaller boat was stuck behind freighters that had priority, so we had to wait at Colon for them to come back...a good 3 hours late. We brought lunch up to our balcony and just spent the whole day watching freighters on the lake and then close up of going back through the locks. Would do the same thing if we ever did it again

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We stayed on the ship...the canal transit IS an excursion unto itself! Then, about 1/2 of the passengers DID leave the ship, and it made for a most relaxing, uncrowded afternoon on the ship! The big benefit was leaving the lake and going back out of the locks....NO CROWDS! We got to see all the stuff we missed entering the lake, as the crowds were massive, and you couldn't get close to the railings!

If that happens on the entrance to the lake, just wait....you will have the ship to yourself (sort of!) on the trip out of the lake! And, you'll appreciate having AC to escape into....it's freaking HOT in Panama!

There is absolutely NO NEED to spend extra money to leave the ship!

It depends on what you want to see. If you just want to see the locks and the locking procedure, it's true that you'll get a good look on the way out because people are off the ship.

But if you want to see more than just locks, consider the excursion that goes through the rest of the canal. The "cut" is a channel literally cut out of the mountains. Going through that part gives you a greater appreciation of the challenges presented in building the canal. And the scenery is good, too.

Whether you stay on the ship or get off, do move around the ship while you're going through the locks. The bow isn't the only good spot to watch what's going on.

I agree with cb at sea. I think over half the people left the ship...it was practically deserted and it was fabulous. And we were so up close to the walls when the water went down we could touch them. And watching the "mules" do their work was so fascinating. And I forgot about the HEAT! So, so hot and humid. We splurged for a Neptune aft wrap for this fabulous trip and are so glad we did. We could get out of the sun and still watch the transit. Everything from sitting in the lake to going through the canal was an experience I would not want to miss by being herded around in a crowd in the heat. No way!

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We did a partial transit in 2014 and did a kayaking excursion on Lake Gatun. It included a tour of the Gatun Locks. If you are interested in doing something active, I highly recommend it.

We did a partial transit cruise a few years ago. Because we could not do a full transit cruise, we opted to do the excursion through the rest of the Canal on a small boat and it was wonderful. It began with a narrated bus ride to the ferry dock--both scenic and informative. The boat tour was also narrated and we learned a lot about the operation and history of the Canal. It was great getting a perspective of sailing through the Canal on a small boat as opposed to a huge cruise ship. In fact, at one point we were so close to one side of the Canal that we could touch the wall.

My vote would be for taking the small boat transit of the Canal.

We did a land excursion a few years ago from Gatun Lake, reboarded in Colon, since it was our second transit and wanted to see a bit more. It included a walk in one of the national parks and a stop at the Gatun Locks visitors centre, finished with a bus tour of a seedy area on the way to the Colon pier. All in all, it was disappointing. We wished we had stayed on the ship, which we did the next time.

Concur with GradUT. The contrast between being on a large cruise ship alone in the lock and being on a small tour boat was great. It was hot and long, but enjoyable.

The advice about moving about the ship to view the locking procedure and not staying in one place is absolutely valid. When the ship is in the locks going up or down, the experience of seeing this from a lower deck is different than when one stays on the top deck or at the bow.

We too did the partial transit a few years ago. Going through the locks the view from our verandah was beautiful, interesting and informative. But returning back through the locks again seemed to be a waste of a golden opportunity to explore inland Panama which isn't an option from Colon. So we had signed up for the Embera Indian trip which took us inland via the Embera Indian's canoes, quite a ride, and visit their village. It was the absolute best tour we have ever done except for the Tikal ruins trip out of Guatemala.

Would/will do both tours again.

Dan

There are a number of great tours that allow you to really see more of the Canal and more of Panama as well. I guess you have some interest in the Canal, what you see by locking through Gatun Locks is only around 8 miles of a 50 mile Canal. While Gatun Locks is an important part of the Canal, it really is just a piece of something pretty neat. By not taking the excursion that takes you to the Pacific side for a partial transit of the Pacific Locks and a passage through the Gaillard Cut, you will be missing the more striking parts of the Canal. Two great bridges across the Canal, a trip through the backbone of the Canal by crossing the Continental Divide in Gaillard Cut and the stunning skyline of Panama City.

If you are interested in other aspects of Panama, the excursion to visit the Embera Indians is a great experience and there are other historical types of excursions as well.

Gatun Locks is a great preview, go see more of the movie. Gatun Locks is wonderful, but I think there are other things worth seeing more than seeing Gatun Locks twice in the same day:D!

We love to experience new cultures so we opted for the Embera Indian Village. It was an amazing experience! I purchased an absolutely beautiful hand woven basket from one of the young ladies in the village. They base their cost on how many days it takes them to make it. The one I purchased took her 40 days to make and it is exquisite. If you enjoy, and are open to, new cultures this excursion is an absolute must!

We did a eco-cruise (?) of Gatun Lake when we did the 10 day partial transit back in 2010. The first stop on our tour was at the locks and watching the Zuiderdam come back through the locks from the land side was very cool and a totally different perspective. Then we went onto our boat tour and saw lots of local wildlife and learned about the area.

All in all it was a great excursion. But next time I'll stay on and watch us go back through.

Our partial transit last March was all about the Canal...but just a taste for us. Our plan is to do a full transit once we're both retired.

Knowing that we would be up before dawn to see us enter the breakwaters, and knowing how hot and steamy it would be, we chose to spend the day on board. I knew if we pushed our limit and did a tour in addition to rising at 5am, we'd both be completely wiped out and it could put a damper on an otherwise exciting experience for us.

We spent most of the entry into Gatun Lake up on Deck 7 at the front, moving a bit to the sides and Promenade Deck. Enjoyed a very nice lunch and relaxing time on our balcony watching ships while at anchor. Did the 'Swim the Canal' on board at noon, and then as we headed back out we moved ALL about the ship with ease finding open railing and excellent views just about anywhere. (the only spots you could not access were aft on the Promenade; it's where the mules were hooked to the ship and only crew was permitted back there)

I realize we didn't get to see a large portion of the canal...but this was a great introduction for us. It only makes us more excited for the full transit trip we'll plan in a few years.

The first time we did a partial Panama Canal cruise (we had already done a couple of full transits so saw the locks operating) there was a tour offered where we took the train over to the Pacific side, transferred to a bus, toured around Panama City, stopped at Miraflores locks, then got back on the train to return to the ship.

Now we just stay on the ship.

We also went to the Embera Indian village. One of the most interesting tours we've taken. I would add though that this is not the tour to take if there are mobility issues. It was a wonderful day.

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