Interesting. As I may have said already we booked a 7 nt 2bdrm GS on Navigator for 2024 on the phone with Royal about 2 mos ago and only paid: $250/pp deposit. Don't know why and don't care! Of course this was a cruise that was priced wrong, with our GS less than a spacious ov balcony!
Sounds very similar to our tour. What we also saw was that Panama is very depressed. They told us teachers come to the village and teach in Spanish, which most don't understand, only for the elementary grades. Getting off island to a public bus, which cost almost what the parents make and doesn't run on time to make it to school on time discourages most to not bother with school. Did you see the trash along the sides of the road? Told public garbage pickup was almost nonexistent.
You can't apply the value when buying online. Can only do it onboard. I do the math. Is buying the entire cruise at the sale price in advance less than buying the remaining days at full price on the cruise. Also I stretch out my free days, we're D+ so 4 days, before buying onboard. How soon do you need to sign on or can you wait until the next day, etc. Your decision.
It's a great trip. Felt sorry for the native people as it was January 2022 with covid restrictions so they had very few people to entertain. Served a great very fresh, i.e., caught while we watched the show, tilapia fish lunch. It was great per dh (I'm allergic but found other stuff to eat). Tour guide was great. Was from the village but had left and had gone to college. Enjoy.
I just checked. The card is ok to fly within the US as a Real ID. If you are flying internationally you still need a passport. So if you're sailing it will get you onto a closed loop cruise but if you are outside the US, even if in Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, you can't use it fly back to the US. Still need a passport to enter the US.