Panama Canal & Locks Transit By Boat offering by Princess

[mary_228]

Wondering if anyone has done this excursion which is offered on our partial transit cruise in December. $185pp, this will give us an opportunity for a full transit, via  ferry boat from Gamboa to La Playita in Panama City. We will go across the Gaillard Cut, continue through Pedro Miguel Locks and Miraflores Lake, and finally through the Miraflore Locks. Specifically, I wonder if any commentary is provided, and how comfortable the 4 hour ride will be, in terms of air condiitoning. Because of the pandemic, we prefer to take excursions with our fellow passengers, so hopefully the "ferry" is not a public one that we will share.

[BillB48]

In the past commentary has been provided, I would think that would still be an important feature of the trip.  How comfortable the trip will be may be a little hard to quantify since a number of different vessels could possibly be used.  The picture below is the vessel I am familiar with, there is an air conditioned area available, but I would recommend you look for an outside area  with some shade.  This is a public "ferry" however when these partial transits on the ferry are provided to cruise ships only passengers from your ship will be on the excursion. So you will be traveling with your fellow shipmates.

 

Just a thought, this won't actually be a full transit since the Gatun Lake portion of the Canal isn't included.  However it is a great excursion since you will experience the Atlantic Locks on your large cruise ship and then see the Pacific Locks from your excursion vessel.  Great chance to experience the operation from two completely different sized vessels.

 

The Pacific Queen

 

http://www.panamacanal.com/Pacific_Queen.jpg

[Plmkrze]

@BillB48We Will be on the Emerald Princess departing from Fort Lauderdale on a partial transit December 19,2021.

Bill you are very knowledgeable with the Panama Canal and Cruises. Will you please clarify?

we will take the ship through the new locks and if we choose to get off the ship to do a tour the ship will go back through the same locks without us on the boat while we are on a tour correct?

We are trying to figure out the best tour for us. We do not want to be on a bus for a long period of time and be able to see and experience as much as possible in the area.

On the tour we prefer to be outdoors and either walking exploring the area or a vessel through the old locks if possible.

I would appreciate your advice thank you

Edited November 17, 2021 by Plmkrze

[BillB48]

18 minutes ago, Plmkrze said:

Will you please clarify?

we will take the ship through the new locks and if we choose to get off the ship to do a tour the ship will go back through the same locks without us on the boat while we are on a tour correct?

 

Yes, that's correct.  What happens is after your ship locks up through the new locks, you will tender off to meet your excursion.  The bus portion won't be the majority of you the excursion.  Depending on the direction the excursion vessel (often called ferry) is operated the bus ride will be about an hour one way and closer to an hour and a half the other way.  The ferry may run from the Pacific anchorage, through Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks, Gaillard Cut ending in Gamboa.  Of course it can run in the opposite direction as well, either direction is great.  The Atlantic side to Gamboa is the about an hour ride segment.  If you are primarily interested in the Canal I think this tour is a great combination showing you both the old and new of the Canal.

 

For the most part walking and exploring the area won't be that easy.  That option is not available where you tender off and many of the more popular excursions involve a trip to the Pacific side, as a result similar bus rides will needed.  Exploring places like Portobelo or Ft. San Lorenzo on the Atlantic side will involve more bus than being outside exploring.  I believe the Emerald Princess docks in Cristobal instead of Colon and with Cristobal being a container port there isn't the mall attached to the pier as there is at the pier at Colon.  You probably have read that Colon is not the explore on your own place anyway.

[Plmkrze]

This is what we currently have booked

[Plmkrze]

But you think this tour that was mentioned on this original post might be more of what we’re looking for?

 

 

[BillB48]

29 minutes ago, Plmkrze said:

But you think this tour that was mentioned on this original post might be more of what we’re looking for?

 

 

 

Yes, this is the tour mentioned in the first post.  Being the Canal wonk that I am, this would be tour for me.  By combining both the new locks and the original locks along with the passage through Gaillard Cut you get to see a large portion of the Canal.  Another added benefit of where they say the tour will terminate, you will have a great view of the skyline of Panama City.  If you are not expecting the skyline vista... it can be quite striking.

[BillB48]

45 minutes ago, Plmkrze said:

This is what we currently have booked

 

These two entries are all part of the same tour, is that correct?  If so, then it is a visit to the new locks that you just passed through on the Emerald Princess.  While it might be a different point of view to see things from shore side, you will have just come from seeing the locks in action from the best seat in the house... your ship.  There may or may not be another ship in the lock for you to observe.  They do however have video presentations available and it is a great view of Gatun Lake, the approach channel and the new Atlantic Bridge.

 

Then it would be off to Gamboa, where you would have traveled to if you had taken the ferry excursion.  The ecological boat portion will take into Gatun Lake to some of the islands adjacent to the main channel of the Canal.  With any luck you could motor right by a transiting ship.

 

This excursion as well as the ferry excursion will take you in or around Gamboa where you can have the chance to see some of the Canal's dredging equipment which includes heavy lift cranes tugs and assorted other floating equipment.

[Plmkrze]

Thank you for all of your help! This has helped us make the decision on the tour best for us!

[mary_228]

Thank you BillB48. We have decided to purchase the ferry to experience the locks and the Gaillard Cut all the way through to the Pacific Ocean.

[iluvthe-c]

I just happened upon this thread and it answered some of the questions I had.  I learned that there are excursions to take a ferry all the way through the canal.  In your opinions, with this being an option, is booking a partial transit cruise (FL back to FL) just as good as a full transit cruise to see all that we can/should see and experience?

 

[BillB48]

It's good you found it, maybe all your questions can be answered.  Let me further explain the ferry excursion a little.  The ferry doesn't take you through the entire remaining part of the Canal.  How the excursion works is you arrive at the Atlantic entrance, lock through one of the Atlantic Locks depending on the size of your ship to Gatun Lake.  Once you reach Gatun Lake you tender off the ship and board a bus which will take you to the Pacific side.  At this point you board the ferry which will transit through Pedro Miguel and Miraflores Locks and the Gaillard Cut.  The excursion can run in either direction, there is no meaningful difference in which direction it operates.  After your transit of the Pacific Locks and Gaillard Cut you will be transported back to the Atlantic side where you will rejoin the ship in Colon.  While you were on the excursion your ship will have locked back down the same locks it had locked up and proceeded to dock in Colon.

 

What you will have missed in making this a complete transit is the 23 mile portion of the Canal that crosses Gatun Lake from Gamboa to the Atlantic Locks.  I would always opt for a full transit of the Canal as my first option, it just seems more enjoyable to see it all in one continuous event.  That is not to say that the partial transit cruise isn't a great option, because it is.  You can even make the argument the partial transit has some advantages.  One of them is you get to see the operation from a large ship and a small ship.  The difference in perspective of the two operations puts it all in a different light.

[iluvthe-c]

Thank you for a thorough and quick response!

I am unsure if you have taken multiple PC cruises, but have you ever done one in Dec, Jan, or Feb?

If so, was it full transit and how was the weather/temperatures?  I am very cold-blooded so I love the sun and heat.  I think I would not enjoy a PC cruise in the winter, but it is the only time us farmers can get away.  🙁

[Essiesmom]

The Panama Canal is nearly on the equator.  There is very little temperature difference during the year.  The only difference is the amount of rain.  It will be hot and humid.  EM

[BillB48]

luvthe-c, I have taken both partial and full transits in the months you mentioned with the possible exception of January.  However, I can speak to the weather for the whole year as I lived about 4 miles from Miraflores Locks for a loooong time and spent many a weekend on Gatun Lake😄!  If you were going to pick a time for a trip to the Canal, late December through February is probably the best time to go.  The Dry Season begins in late December and runs through April.  During this time you will find the humidity at its best (for Panama) and the least chance of rain.  Even with the humidity at its best it will seem muggy for anyone  from a temperate climate.  Temps really don't vary much year round, never much below 75F or over 90F unless you are in the mountains.  Being close to the equator as Essiesmom points out, you won't have to be concerned with short days and longer nights.  Sunrise/sunset only varies about 45 minutes the entire year, so around 6 there will be a sunrise or a sunset.

 

 

Edited March 10, 2022 by BillB48

[iluvthe-c]

Thank you.  This is good news.  I have never sailed out of CA nor a Mexican Riviera cruise. I was assuming that winter temps moving toward or away from CA might be chilly for a day or 2 and not real pleasant to be on the pool deck or out on the balcony. 

[BillB48]

My most recent Canal sailing out of LA was late November and it was pretty comfortable on deck the day after sailing.  Didn't do the pool, but if you were out of the wind and in the sun no problem whatsoever. 

 

[iluvthe-c]

Perfect.  Do you know, would this ship be able to go through the old locks?  If a ship fits, are the old locks always selected or do smaller ships that could fit in the old ever go through the new?

[Essiesmom]

Joy is too long and too wide for the old locks.  It is rare but not unheard of for a Panamax ship to use the new locks instead of the old.  I believe there have been occasions when cargo ships have used a combination of the old and new locks.  EM

[BillB48]

Essiesmom is absolutely correct about ships that fit the original locks have at times used the new locks.  Here is part of what I posted in another thread... In the Annual Report  reports there were 88 transits by Panamax vessels (vessels that fit the original locks) through the new locks for Canal "convenience".  Of these 88 transits 22 of the transits used the new locks exclusively, in other words used the new lock for the entire transit.  The remainder of the transits used a combination of Panamax Locks and Neo Locks,  For example Gatun and Cocoli  or Miraflores/Pedro Miguel and Agua Clara.

 

Now those 88 transits are not really a huge number when you compare that to the almost 9000 transits that year at the original locks, but it can happen.  To my knowledge the only passenger ships that were able to use the original locks (Panamax) be locked through the new locks were HAL's Zaandam and Rotterdam.  This was right on the outbreak of Covid and there had been deaths onboard both ships and in an abundance of caution the Canal decided to use the new locks to mimimize contact.  The ships only used one pilot each even though they were normally assigned 2 or more pilots, no tugs were used, no lines were put out at the locks and the ships were held in the center of the larger lock chamber. 

 

I think barring the like of unusual circumstances above, a ship that can use the original locks will do just that.  The Canal is mindful that a cruise ship probably has advertised which locks would be used and would not want to needlessly change what had been advertised without extenuating circumstances.

 

[mam11]

We just returned from a partial transit on the Emerald Princess. Based on the Cruise Critic feedback, our group of 6 booked the excursion on the ferry all the way through. Unfortunately it was cancelled due to mechanical trouble with the ferry. There were A LOT of unhappy cruisers. We took the railroad one instead. The train part was really the least of the excursion- it's a cool 1938 train, but there is little to no scenery on the ride. We had a mini bus with Josie as our guide for the rest of it and it was great. She took us to the visitor's center, which I wasn't too keen on, but it was wonderful- a high overlook point with a great view of the locks. We drove across a lock on the bus! It turned out to be a very good excursion. 

[BillB48]

Too bad the ferry excursion did not work out, so goes the best laid plans.  Happy to hear your alternate choice turned out well.  Since you did not get to experience the Pacific Locks and Gaillard Cut, it is not too early to start making plans for a full transit cruise😉.

 

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[iluvthe-c]

Thank you for the follow up information!  It is people like you that have me coming back to Cruise Critic on a daily basis!

[californiagirl]

iluvthe-c I went on a Mexican Riviera cruise in Feb of this year.  It was very chilly at sea for one full day until we got to Cabo.  Then chilly on the last sea day as well as we came back up to California.  If you are doing a full transit leaving from California I’d plan on being inside for the first sea day.  Then it should warm up.  Last November we did a Caribbean cruise and it was warm at sea during the day.  I hope this helps. 😊

[CruiserBruce]

19 hours ago, californiagirl said:

iluvthe-c I went on a Mexican Riviera cruise in Feb of this year.  It was very chilly at sea for one full day until we got to Cabo.  Then chilly on the last sea day as well as we came back up to California.  

And that is totally normal for that area at that time of the year.