partial vs. full transit?

[sandiego1]

We are looking at 2 options on Holland America in Feb 2014. The Veendam does a full transit over 14 days. The Zuiderdam does a partial transit over 10 days. Duration and cost are not issues for us. If we choose the Veendam, we only need to fly to Ft Lauderdale since we end the cruise in San Diego where we live. However, we don't mind doing 1 way vs. round-trip flights.

 

One issue is that there a lot more At Sea days on the full transit (7 vs. 4, plus the 1 day transit through the canal). How do we keep ourselves occupied for 7 At Sea days? We've only done 1 wk cruises w/ 2 At Seas days max. Worried that we will get bored.

 

Another issue is that of the 5 ports for the Veendam, 3 of them are in Mexico and we aren't interested in visiting those ports again. So that's even more possible "boring" days.

 

On the other hand, the Zuiderdam stops at 4 ports. 3 are places we are interested in seeing (1 is new for us) plus Half Moon Cay which is always a nice relaxing time for us. BUT, and this is a big BUT, the cruise only goes to Gatun Lake. I checked googlemaps and it looks like you only go through 1 set of locks before the lake, then turn around and go back.

 

The Veendam doesn't have any of the private verandah cabins left. So we would have to do a cabin w/ a window. The only suites are over $8K and that's a bit out of our price range. Would we miss a lot by not having a Verandah? There are plenty avail on the Zuiderdam.

 

Will we miss a lot by not going through all the locks on a full transit? Is it worth the potential for boring ports (to us) and lots of At Sea days to do the full transit? I doubt we'll go on a 2nd Panama Canal cruise again so perhaps we should just suck it up and do the full transit? Oh and I should mention that we would be celebrating our 25th anniversary on board. That's the purpose of the vacation :)

 

I know I asked a lot of questions. I'd appreciate any feedback. Thanks in advance!

[CruiserBruce]

A little reading on this board will find this question asked frequently, and the answer is always the same- the full transit is always the preferred cruise. If a partial is all you can do...ok. But you say you can do a full. To be honest, it is a no-brainer.

 

We don't know anything about you, so don't know what you need to be interested in. However, in 16 cruises, over 200 days at sea, have never been bored on a cruise ship. Including three transits of the Canal.

[sptrout]

I agree with CruiserBruce, do a full transit if possible. We have done both (and just a port call at Colon), and the full transit had it all over the others.

 

You said: "BUT, and this is a big BUT, the cruise only goes to Gatun Lake. I checked googlemaps and it looks like you only go through 1 set of locks before the lake, then turn around and go back." This correct. Transit one set of locks, then return later in the day. The Canal is approximately 50 miles long and the partial transit covers about 5 miles of that. You do the math, you will miss a lot with a partial transit.

 

If you do decide on a partial transit, another option that many use is to take a tour that takes you to the Pacific side of the Canal. That is a good option, at least you will see much more of the country.

 

I understand it is a big swing either way. Since this is your first visit, you may want to plan as if it will be your last visit (that is what I typically do for big trips), then take a full transit if at all possible.

[BillB48]

The problem with my advice concerning sea days comes with a bit of bias... I like them:o, so with that as a point of reference, here goes. It should not be too bad since the sea days are broken up throughout the voyage, the longest shot of sea days is only two and they are in the beginning. There should be some lectures about the Canal and other destination lectures to help take up the slack, giving you something to do.

 

Now some plugs for the full transit. If your object is to see the Canal, the full transit is the cruise of choice IMO. Not that the partial transit is a poor choice, because it's not, it's a very good cruise and a great alternative if you don't have the time to do the full transit. Just going through all three sets of locks is not the whole enchilada in many respects. There is so much to the Canal beyond the locks even they are the "works" of the Canal. The trip across Gatun Lake where most of the islands that you see are now hill tops that are covered in mostly old growth jungle. Then on into Gaillard Cut where the bulk of the excavation took place with what started out as a 300' channel and now is over 700' in most places... and they are still working on it!! You sail under two very impressive bridges, the Centennial Bridge and the Bridge of the Americas. As you clear the Bridge of the Americas off to the port side you see the very modern skyline of Panama City and then on through the islands in the bay. If I have not convinced you yet, I have just about sold myself on another Canal cruise;)!

 

Honestly the only thing "wrong" with the cruise you are looking at is there is no day stop in Panama. If I had my druthers I would look for an itinerary that offers a stop in Panama in addition to the full transit. Seems a bit odd but HAL was one of the early adopters of a full day stop in Panama in addition to the transit, but they are offering that less now a days.

[Emma]

I also would vote for the full transit and I would also suggest the extra day in Panama. It was one of the best cruise experiences we have had. We were out on our balcony very early in the morning and stayed there the major portion of the day , just in awe of everything we saw.

[Northern Aurora]

As someone who has done three full transits of the Panama Canal I just don't understand the concept behind a partial transit. While I understand that some folks have limited time, it just seems to me that a partial transit omits so much of the canal experience. And I also have to admit that I love sea days (some of my favorite cruises have been our prior transatlantics and one transpacific) and have never been bored during a sea day.

[Keith1010]

I have done both and full transits several times.

 

I highly recommend the full transit. There is no comparison between the two.

 

If you want to experience the Panama Canal, most definitely go with the full transit.

 

Keith

[sandiego1]

Thanks for the advice. I was leaning towards the full for the same reasons. Just worried about the # of sea days and only smaller cabins avail on the HAL cruise we are looking at. Now looking at Princess and Celebrity to see if I can find something suitable.

 

Appreciate you all taking the time to reply!

[OCruisers]

Thanks for the advice. I was leaning towards the full for the same reasons. Just worried about the # of sea days and only smaller cabins avail on the HAL cruise we are looking at. Now looking at Princess and Celebrity to see if I can find something suitable.

 

Appreciate you all taking the time to reply!

 

Island and Coral are excellent Princess ships and were built for the Panama canal.

 

Very much hope you'll be able to find a Full Transit that will work for you. :)

 

LuLu

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