Panama Canal - Serenade of the Seas

[maggie11]

I have been waiting for RC to post fall, 2020 Itineraries for Panama Canal but gave up!!!  So I booked May 2020 on the Serenade of the Seas.  Has anyone done a PC with Royal and i’d Love any and all feedback - especially if you have done it on the Serenade.  Do they open up the bow for better viewing???  What are the excursions that shouldn’t be missed??  And has anyone used outside companies not affiliated with RC???  This is going east to west as the ship is getting in position for Alaska.  I love this itinerary and that’s why we finally pulled the trigger.  It is a long time on a smaller, older ship though.  Thank you in advance!!!

 

thanks Biker for correcting my error!!!!

Edited August 18, 2019 by maggie11

[Biker19]

1 minute ago, maggie11 said:

 Do they open up the hull for better viewing??? 

That would be interesting. 

[138east]

I did the PC cruise on Jewel in an inside cabin.  Fantastic!  Spent the early morning first lock transit with the crowd in the bow and the rest of the very hot transit day in the Viking Crown air conditioned lounge with fantastic views.  It was surprisingly uncrowded.  Popped in and out on deck 13 to take great pictures.  IMO many folks with side balconies spent the day in their cabin and missed the full panoramic experience of the transit.

[tallnthensome]

No offense but that cruise is extremely overpriced. Have you looked at other lines? You could do the NCL Sun for their 20 day Panama Canal cruise in May 2020, pretty much the same ports plus more, drink package the whole time, specialty dining included. Same price for 2 in an ocean view for 2 on both lines comparatively speaking. Royal Cruise includes nothing ...... Royal is extremely limited on the PC sailings and very high because of it. Look elsewhere is my friendly money saving advice.  

Edited August 18, 2019 by tallnthensome

[BillB48]

 

The bow on the Serenade (and the other Radiance class ships) is generally open to the passengers all the time.  I have seen it closed at times during the late overnight hours and of course in inclement weather.  The bow was always open to the passengers during the transit.  I am sure you can imagine the bow is prime real estate for the passage through the first locks, Gatun in the direction you are going.  It does thin out after Gatun and gets a little more crowded for the afternoon passage through the Pacific Locks, usually not as crowded as in the morning.

 

I think some of the interesting stops other than at the Canal would be found in Cartagena and Guatemala.  Lots of interesting things in Cartagena in and around the walled City  and Antigua Guatemala, the one time capital of Guatemala.  As for your stop in Colon for Panama, seeing the locks (both old and new) from shore side might be something you would take in.  There are also trips to the Embera Indians which are unique and excursions to Panama City where there is also a walled portion of the City which dates back to 1673.  By the way the original Panama City (Panama Viejo) was founded 500 years ago on Aug 15, 1519.  However some tours do not cover this portion of Panama City in their itinerary.

 

Check out your Roll Call for some ideas if you are looking to use someone else besides RC for tours.  In Cartagena Dora gets pretty good reviews and Okey Dokey Tours in Costa Rica seem to rate fairly well.  In Panama I have used non ship services, but I don't have anything I can readily recommend.

Edited August 18, 2019 by BillB48

[sellwingri]

I was in a balcony on Jewel in February through the PC.  We sailed from Miami to San Diego which is the preferred direction to sail since you gain 3 hours.  (We only gained 2 hours because daylight savings time took effect.).  Our first stop was in Columbia.  I guess I had a preconceived notion of what to expect but sailing in was great!  Tall skyscrapers were all over the coast.  We just arranged for a private tour at the pier and is was wonderful and a lot cheaper than prescheduled tours.  My favorite port was in Guatemala.  We scheduled a ship excursion to an animal sanctuary and I loved it!  All animals lived in their own habitat.  We were greeted at the gate by zebras.  Other areas had lions, hippos, ostrich and all types of other birds, and giraffes, one of which tried to get on our bus.

 

We’d done a partial crossing through the PC many years ago so it wasn’t mind blowing.  It would have been better had we gone through the new passage but a Disney Cruise had that honor.  We went through the old passage.

 

It was kind of expensive but one of the best we’ve been on and hope to do it again.

[maggie11]

7 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

No offense but that cruise is extremely overpriced. Have you looked at other lines? You could do the NCL Sun for their 20 day Panama Canal cruise in May 2020, pretty much the same ports plus more, drink package the whole time, specialty dining included. Same price for 2 in an ocean view for 2 on both lines comparatively speaking. Royal Cruise includes nothing ...... Royal is extremely limited on the PC sailings and very high because of it. Look elsewhere is my friendly money saving advice.  

Thank you so much for opening my eyes to Norwegian!!!  I have canceled the RC and rebooked on NCL - $2000 less including all of the extras!!!!  And 1 night longer!!!  I appreciate your candor!!!!  

[Jimbo]

I know you changed lines but when went the priced lowered alot closer to the sail date and was a no brainer to take this cruise. So you never know the RCCL cruise price might come way down. Maybe book  both cruiselines refundable and see where prices go before deciding.

 

Well anyway here is my wife and I review when we went. Not sure but some things in it might give you some ideas for your cruise. We went west to east though.

 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=7522

 

It is still one of our most favorite cruises ever. Would still like to go through the Panal Canal again in the future.

 

Jimbo😁

[tallnthensome]

52 minutes ago, maggie11 said:

Thank you so much for opening my eyes to Norwegian!!!  I have canceled the RC and rebooked on NCL - $2000 less including all of the extras!!!!  And 1 night longer!!!  I appreciate your candor!!!!  

Good for you! We sail Royal, Carnival, NCL, MSC, Holland, Princess and Celebrity. Sometimes there are just better deals to be had and we are loyal to no particular line. Sounds like you made some hefty savings. 

[maggie11]

42 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

I know you changed lines but when went the priced lowered alot closer to the sail date and was a no brainer to take this cruise. So you never know the RCCL cruise price might come way down. Maybe book  both cruiselines refundable and see where prices go before deciding.

 

Well anyway here is my wife and I review when we went. Not sure but some things in it might give you some ideas for your cruise. We went west to east though.

 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=7522

 

It is still one of our most favorite cruises ever. Would still like to go through the Panal Canal again in the future.

 

Jimbo😁

 

42 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

I know you changed lines but when went the priced lowered alot closer to the sail date and was a no brainer to take this cruise. So you never know the RCCL cruise price might come way down. Maybe book  both cruiselines refundable and see where prices go before deciding.

 

Well anyway here is my wife and I review when we went. Not sure but some things in it might give you some ideas for your cruise. We went west to east though.

 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=7522

 

It is still one of our most favorite cruises ever. Would still like to go through the Panal Canal again in the future.

 

Jimbo😁

Terrific review!!!  Thank you so much!!  

[Jimbo]

3 hours ago, maggie11 said:

 

Terrific review!!!  Thank you so much!!  

No problem your welcome glad you enjoyed it. Brings back good memories.

Edited August 18, 2019 by Jimbo

[travelwide]

We are taking a cruise on the serenade which stops in Colon. That is the port for Panama City. Can you tell me what tours they offered to Panama City? We did a similar cruise on MSC and they had Panama City on your own. That included a bus ride to the city. They walked around with you for about a half hour and then they showed you where to meet them. That worked out very well for us. Does Royal offer any similar tours?

[BillB48]

6 hours ago, travelwide said:

We are taking a cruise on the serenade which stops in Colon. That is the port for Panama City. Can you tell me what tours they offered to Panama City? We did a similar cruise on MSC and they had Panama City on your own. That included a bus ride to the city. They walked around with you for about a half hour and then they showed you where to meet them. That worked out very well for us. Does Royal offer any similar tours?

 

About the closest I've seen to an on your own tour is a short swing through Panama City and then shopping at one of the larger malls where some of that time would be on your own.  As of now the only other Panama City tour I see is one that allows some time in the Casco Antiguo and then to the locks.

 

Curious, where did they drop you off and how long was the "on your own" part of your excursion?

[sellwingri]

10 hours ago, travelwide said:

We are taking a cruise on the serenade which stops in Colon. That is the port for Panama City. Can you tell me what tours they offered to Panama City? We did a similar cruise on MSC and they had Panama City on your own. That included a bus ride to the city. They walked around with you for about a half hour and then they showed you where to meet them. That worked out very well for us. Does Royal offer any similar tours?

We booked a private tour that took us into Panama City.  It happened that it was Mardi Gras which is celebrated big time there.  When we were driving back, roads were being closed in anticipation of evening activities.  The RCI tour that dropped passengers off for a few hours to explore on their own got back over an hour late which delayed the sailing of our ship.

Edited August 19, 2019 by sellwingri

[travelwide]

It was an MSC tour. They dropped us off right along the water within a very short walking distance to the Old Town. On the way there we stopped at a rest stop to get drinks and use the restroom facilities. Then went on to the city. The only issue was that it was a rainy day. On the way back we went right from the city to the ship. The area around the ship was all flooded. Don't remember the exact number of hours that we stayed in the old town area but it was approximately three to four. The bus ride is quite long from where the cruise ship ports. Really want to go back to the old town and not into a shopping mall. we are very experienced at taking private tours but the distance from the port concerns me on this one.