REVIEW - Island Princess Panama Canal - Jan 18-28, 2012

[BoopTennis]

GET UP EARLY! We woke up at 5 am and we were in line to head towards the locks! It was still very dark out, looking out from our balcony you could see the lights of the locks ahead, and the lights of lots of ships all waiting to line up to go through. This whole process was just fascinating and completely fulfilled my expectations. We picked this cruise because it was going to the Panama Canal. I had read the book ahead of time “The Path Between the Seas” by David McCullough, so had a lot of background on the history of the canal that made sense to me. But also on board they had Dr Thomas Ryan announce everything we were doing all the way thru the process; he provided lots of wonderful insight and comment and helped understand what you were looking at. You could hear him on the outside decks; also on your cabin TV if you were on your balcony.

 

 

There are a lot of places to watch the canal process from. Part of it we watched from our balcony. We were lucky because we were on the starboard side and our friends were on the port side so we could go back and forth. Both are great views! Most of the time though we watched from outside decks. One of the choices is thru the "secret door" on the front of both Decks 10 and 11. But you can see from the photo below that it is not so secret LOL.

 

 

Below you can see as our ship gets closer to the first lock. There are two canals next to each other so ships go thru both.

 

 

 

In the photo below you can see the big lock door holding back the water on the canal right next to us

 

 

the photo below shows our ship inside the first lock. The door will then open and let the water in and raise our ship up to that level. There are three locks on the way in to Gatun Lake that raise the ship up. Everything is very tight and close when the ship is inside the locks

 

 

 

 

The photo below shows the view from outside our balcony, you can see another ship beside us coming thru the locks

 

 

I will continue the Panama Canal review on the next segment....

[bigguy6]

Boop Tennis

 

What time was it when you actually got to the first lock and started to go into it.

[BoopTennis]

I think it was about 6:20 am, it was right about sunrise when we actually started going into the lock. There was a lot of activity all over the place before that but it was pretty dark until around 6

[BoopTennis]

And I'm not sure but I imagine the times vary by cruise, there were a lot of ships entering the canal that morning. Your Princess Patter the night before should tell you what time you will be arriving in the morning I think

[sunshine nana]

Loved all the ladies" dresses. Where was the white top one purchased? Loved it!

[BoopTennis]

Dear Sunshine Nana, -- thank you, that white top is mine, I wore it with a black skirt, but have had that top for 3 years or so now and don't even remember where I got it!!

[BoopTennis]

Panama Canal day was one of the best days ever. Simply fascinating from every spot of the ship. Here is a nice shot of the locks

 

 

Once we made it thru the 3 locks we anchored in Gatun Lake. Passengers who were taking Princess excursions here got off the ship. We elected to stay on, we wanted to relax and enjoy the trip back thru the locks again. Gatun Lake is huge and you could see several ships there.

 

 

 

 

After not too long, I think around 11 am or 11:30, ship turned around in Gatun Lake and started making its way back out thru the 3 locks it came in. I went down to Promenade Deck (another good place to watch). Here you are VERY close to the locks and at one point level with the ground as the water lowers you back down towards the Atlantic/Caribbean.

 

The photo below shows the outside edge of the ship in blue, within a foot or so of the lock wall on the right.

 

here is another view of the ship and the Promenade deck on the left, the lock wall on the right

 

 

 

 

While we were cruising back thru the locks on our way to Colon, Panama, there were more games on the ship. One game played was a ring toss game to try to ring and win bottles of champagne!

 

 

below another place to view the locks. I think this was on the top deck where the Splash Pool is looking out towards the front

 

 

 

 

there was no "bad place" to be for going thru the locks. Lots of choices and getting different views from different places was fun!

 

continue on next segment....

[BoopTennis]

After we cruised back thru the 3 locks we stopped at Colon, Panama. Here the passengers that had gotten off the ship for excursions on Gatun Lock could come back on the ship. We were allowed to walk off the ship here, we were there for a few hours, and there was a shopping area right close to the port.

 

Here is the entryway to the shopping area off the ship. The flags honor the various people involved in the building of the Canal.

 

 

A lady in the shopping area had this cute little monkey on a leash.

 

 

 

the shopping area at Colon was decent and allowed us to pick up a few souveniers

 

 

 

we stopped at an open air restaurant/bar for a beer before heading back on the ship

 

 

Back on the ship, sailaway, cocktail hour then dinner. Then finish off a PERFECT day with MUTS movie!

 

 

 

[BoopTennis]

we had a long day docked at Limon. We had pre-arranged an independent tour with Okey Dokey tours. I had emailed the owner Charlie and he was very responsive. We did the A-2 tour which included a banana plantation, zip-lining, tortuguero canal boat ride, lunch, and a bunch of other stuff. Our tour guide was Carlos, he spoke great English, took great, great care of us, had a nice air conditioned van for all 8 of us.

 

First we drove a short while and saw sights along the way then went to the banana plantation. Everything was here, where they grow them, cut them down, sort them and process them and ship them. We went to a Del Monte facility.

 

Here is our Guide Carlos showing how the bananas grew. When they cut down the bananas, they cut down the entire tree then it grows back up again in one year and 2 weeks.

 

 

 

the women sorted the bananas after they were sprayed and washed. Then they moved on a conveyor belt to be tags and crated and shipped.

 

 

 

 

next we went ziplining. I dont like heights and was pretty nervous. We had 7 ziplines that started out really high. It took me about 3 ziplines to relax and enjoy it but it was fun. We took our pic with Carlos before we headed up the mountain.

 

 

On of our zip line guides found these little poisonous frogs. They were so tiny and odd colors!

 

 

 

 

 

more Costa Rica adventure on the next segment....

[cr8tiv1]

Dear BoopTennis, Thank you for taking the time to share your photos and experience on the Island. I am traveling on the Coral in 10 days (yay!). You seem to be active on this site so I am going to address this question to you (or anyone else who may have the answer). Plus I am going to post it under Princess to open it up to all cruisers.

 

I read somewhere that Princess's Internet Cafe will allow you to send e-postcards without having a paid account. Is this accurate information? I just called Princess and the agent could not find anything about this.

 

Renee

[BoopTennis]

After ziplining we drove to the Tortuguero canals and had a boat ride. It was peaceful and quiet. We were to see wildlife, we did not see a lot but did see some, and it was fun anyway.

 

 

We saw many birds, some baby alligators, and sloths up high in the trees.

 

 

 

 

Carlos then took us to a beach side open air restaurant for a WONDERFUL lunch included in the price, traditional lunch of chicken and rice and beans and a beer included. It was yummy and we had an outstanding view.

 

 

We then went for some brief shopping, walked around a bit in the market area.

 

 

 

 

We got back to the ship in plenty of time for sailaway

 

Below is one of the pina colada drinks with the strawberrys in it, very good

 

 

 

 

I am not sure which night it was, but one night they had a dessert called Island Floating or something like that, very interesting, see below, very yummy

 

 

 

 

[JWJs]

I continue to enjoy your review and pictures! :)

[smcwhtdtmc]

We are headed out on the Island on March 8...I've been logging in several times a day to see if you have added more to your review! Your pictures are stunning! If my pictures don't come out as good, I'm going to show all my friends your pictures instead! Can't wait for the rest of the review!

[cruisingpeople]

Your pictures & review are wonderful. They are bringing back lots of memories.

 

We did this cruise back in October and are going to do it again this coming October with some friends that want to sail with us again. We also did the "Full Transit" the year before.

On the Full transit trip, we did the zip-lining on the western side of Costa Rica. After seeing your zip-lining pictures, I think I would like to try it again on this trip. How were you able to pre-arrange this? Did you find them on-line? Any help would be appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Joe

[BoopTennis]

Dear cruisingpeople,

we arranged the independent tour in Costa Rica from Okey Dokey tours. Look at the Ports of Call thread on these message boards, look up Costa Rica, and you will find some info on Charlie from Okey Dokey tours. They did an awesome job and took great care of us. I will write a review over there when i have time. They have a number of different tours to pick from depending on what you want to do. Email him and he will fix you up to your satisfaction and the price was very reasonable. okeydokeytours @ hotmail . com (without any spaces)

[BoopTennis]

Another great sea day! Even though we seem to have lots of fun in ports, I really love the sea days. So relaxing and you can find things to do if you want to, but you don’t have to! I love that!

 

Today was a special day as it was my Hubby’s birthday. Princess decorated our cabin door with a sign and balloons. You will also see on our door a sign I had made ahead of time---I made one for all our friends also. Its nice – fun way to decorate the door, and makes it easy to find who lives where! It was also funny because our next door friends’s door was visible from the stairs and elevator, and lots of people were using it to figure out which side of the ship they were on LOL. I also tape a pencil to our door and post it notes so we can write each other notes on where we are.

 

 

 

They had a nice mexican buffet outside on the Lido deck today. And later in the afternoon out on Lido deck they had an ice sculpture demonstration, this guy was amazing, in just a short period of time turned a block of ice into a beautiful sculpture.

 

 

This was the 2nd formal night so everyone got dressed up again. Guys in dark suits.

 

 

At dinner they had a special cake for birthday boy.

 

 

 

The waiters all did this really cool thing for birthday and anniversaries. They would all gather around your table and sing Happy Birthday. But then, at the end, they made it sound like fireworks! It's hard to explain in writing but a couple of them would whistle and make it sound JUST like fireworks when they shoot up into the air before they open up, they all the waiters would slam their menu's open and shut several times, it is great it sounds JUST like fireworks going off!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I don't remember which night it was, but one night at dinner they had a special drink called a lemon cello. It tasted sort of like lemon JELLO but had some sort of vodka in it and was pretty strong but of course I had to have a few. With the drink you got a free glass that it came in (there were free refills also LOL).

 

 

 

[cruisingpeople]

Thanks for the reply.

I will definitely check them out.

 

The Limoncello is something I always look forward to on Italian Night. DW thinks it's TOO sugary and would probably put anybody into a diabetic coma LOL :D

[Deeliteful]

Thanks for the review and great pictures. We are on the cruise on March 8th - getting really excited. My only ? is whether to brave a zipline or do the tram!

 

Pat

[BoopTennis]

Hard to imagine another perfect day but it was! For our stop in Ocho Rios we had planned our only Princess excursion, and it was a GREAT one! We did the OCJ-427 which was Dunns River Falls, Mystic Mountain and Bobsled. Here we are gathered in the Wheelhouse Bar waiting to be called for our excursion.

 

 

We boarded a bus and drove to Dunns River Falls. I had been told this was a "must do" in Jamaica and I now agree! It was SOOOO Fun. Unfortunately I did not have a waterproof camera with me so could not take pics of this amazing adventure. Below we are walking into the place. Go on line and google Dunns River Falls and check it out but its a huge waterfall like over 600 feet high, level after level after level of rocks and rushing water, and with the help of guides (and holding hands most of the time in a chain with the others with you) you make your way up from the bottom to the top. You get very, very wet. But it is SOO fun! Just a blast! I was afraid the water would be freezing cold but it wasn't, It was a bit chilly but not that bad at all. VERY VERY FUN recommend this!!

 

 

 

Next we drove a short distance to Mystic Mountain. the first thing we did here was get on an aerial tram, that is like a ski-lift chair, 4 people to a chair. It takes you up high over the top of the trees to the top of the mountain. Didnt see any wildlife but could see a long ways and was an enjoyable trip up.

 

 

 

 

Once at the top of the mounting they have several things to do if you want. One is a bobsled and this thing is AWESOME. If you want to see a live video of me going down the bobsled, go to YouTube and search for BettyKathy Bobsled. Not the best video but I was trying to film while riding this thing and it was so funny. Each person gets in their own bobsled but if you want you can join two together. So some of our group went on their own but I got hooked onto the back of my friend Kathy. I dont like roller coasters but this was hilarious and not that steep.

 

 

After the ride down, the system pulls your bobsled back up to the top so very easy.

 

More to come on the next segment....

[BoopTennis]

OK, so back up at the top of Mystic Mountain there is more to do. There is some shopping if you want. They have a camera posted along the bobsled ride that takes a photo of you as you drop down and I purchased mine because it was so funny.

 

They also have a waterslide that you can use for free, and it goes into a great infinity pool. From that you can actually see our cruiseship in the distance!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After done with all the stuff up on top of Mystic Mountain, you take the aerial tram back down to the bottom. This time the tram is lower in the trees than the one that goes up the mountain, so gives you a different view.

 

 

 

 

This was the end of the official Princess excursion, and plenty of fun, but we werent done yet. If you want, the bus will drop you off at shopping close to the ship pier. We were looking for margaritaville but instead found another fun open air restaurant that was just perfect. We enjoyed cocktails in the beautiful weather and could see our ship in the background!

 

 

 

 

 

 

After that we walked back to the ship, spotted this lady carrying a big package on her head. Got back on the ship and had a wonderful dinner (again) after another perfect day!

 

 

[BoopTennis]

I didn't even want to think about it being our last day on this wonderful cruise, but it was a sea day and again we fully relaxed and enjoyed it. This was the day they had the "Extravagenza Buffet" which I think probably takes the place of the old Midnight Buffets. It was lots of lots of beautifully decorated desserts. They allowed time to take pics before people were allowed to eat them so here goes

 

 

 

 

 

[Loonbeam]

Looks like the same head Pastry chef is still on board. He was amazing!

[PotatoBug]

I've really enjoyed your reports and especially the photos. Thanks so much for sharing!

[goldens4ever]

BoopTennis...thanks so much for the review!!!! Your pictures were perfect at getting me even more psyched for our cruise....we cruise March 28th!

 

This will be our first Princess cruise on one of the "smaller" ships....anything different or exciting to do on these ships?

 

Thanks again for taking the time to post this review!!!! Glad you had such an amazing time!

 

sybil

[Rosebery]

Dear BoopTennis, Thank you for taking the time to share your photos and experience on the Island. I am traveling on the Coral in 10 days (yay!). You seem to be active on this site so I am going to address this question to you (or anyone else who may have the answer). Plus I am going to post it under Princess to open it up to all cruisers.

 

I read somewhere that Princess's Internet Cafe will allow you to send e-postcards without having a paid account. Is this accurate information? I just called Princess and the agent could not find anything about this.

 

Renee

 

This is correct (of course you cannot get any answers) when you get to the computer click log in and to the right of the log in form is a button for something like community areas and then you get a list of things you can do for free one of which is send e postcards. This worked well for us on the Coral a couple of weeks ago. Sue