Does Princess or NCL Open Bow For Canal

[Pete69]

Hi All,

 

Can anyone confirm if they have been on Island/Coral Princess or NCL Jewel/Pearl and that they do open the bow of the ship when transiting the canal??

[swedish weave]

Hi All,

 

Can anyone confirm if they have been on Island/Coral Princess or NCL Jewel/Pearl and that they do open the bow of the ship when transiting the canal??

 

That is a decision usually made by the Captain or HD, and can be hit or miss depending on how they operate.

 

The Island and Coral have viewing areas on the front and back of several decks so there are quite a number of spots for viewing on those ships even if they don't open the bow..

[Jasperdo]

On the Coral Princess last year the bow itself wasn't open to passengers. There was a special crew photo taken there though. The forward decks 10 and 11 do have a viewing area that's open to passengers. It's a great place to view the Panama Canal. Here are a few pictures I took from there:

 

Panama Canal: Gatun Locks by Jasperdo, on Flickr

 

Panama Canal: Gatun Locks by Jasperdo, on Flickr

 

Panama Canal: Culebra Cut by Jasperdo, on Flickr

 

Panama Canal: Gamboa by Jasperdo, on Flickr

Edited November 20, 2013 by Jasperdo

[CruiserBruce]

Go on Holland America. They open the bow.

[chloemonkey]

Hi All,

 

Can anyone confirm if they have been on Island/Coral Princess or NCL Jewel/Pearl and that they do open the bow of the ship when transiting the canal??

 

The Jewel did open a "crew only" area on the bow in September of this year. We were among the first there around 5:30 or 6:00 am but the area DID fill up quickly. They served coffee and water as it was HOT!

 

After a couple of hours we went back to our cabin and enjoyed the experience by watching from our balcony and NCL also has a video camera posted so we were also able to watch those angles and listen to the guide/expert giving commentary.