Independent tours in Colon

[wendyatpml]

Has anyone used a tour company that is not part of the ships tours?  We would like a much smaller groupl

[BillB48]

The lack of the regular volume of Canal cruises over the past couple of years has dried up current information on private tours.  You might try looking at the Roll Call for your sailing to see if there is anyone arranging with a local tour operator.  Beyond that give Trip Advisor a try to see if there are any tour companies available.

 

 

Edited August 15, 2022 by BillB48

[cruizinfools]

On 8/14/2022 at 6:41 AM, wendyatpml said:

Has anyone used a tour company that is not part of the ships tours?  We would like a much smaller groupl

I reached out to a tour operator that I used many years ago to see if he was still in the business. I just heard back from him and I highly recommend you reach out to him. He provided a tour from Colon to see both the old and new locks (at that time they were still under construction). This was a large group from the CC roll call for that cruise, but he definitely works with small groups as well. The tour that I worked out with Roberto just happened to appeal to many of the folks on our roll call. His contact info is:

 

Roberto E. Whitaker H.

email: robtads2@hotmail.com

Telephone: (507)442-2499 Office; (507)6875-3683 Cell. 

 

Good luck!

[cruisingcows]

Hello!  I was wondering if anyone has recently reached out to Mr. Whitaker.  I e-mailed the above address last week and have not heard back.  He sounds like exactly what we are looking for.  I always prefer independent tours and have not really been able to find any for our stop in Colon.  We will be there on the Radiance of the Seas on April 2nd.  We may end up staying on the ship, but we are traveling with my aunt and uncle who have never been to Panama, so I would like to arrange something (my husband and I have been to Panama a long time ago when he was stationed there briefly in the Air Force and a few years ago on a cruise - we did a ships tour that was packed with people.)

 

Thank you for any suggestions or advice!

 

[mleng]

Following the thread...

My wife and I are interested in this information as well.  We always try to book directly with local tour providers instead of through the cruise line. Besides Mr. Whitaker, is there any other recommendation?

[cruisingcows]

Mr. Whitaker did respond to me and mentioned that he has been having difficulties with his e-mail.  We are booked with him for April 2nd.  I will follow up on here if you are intersted.

 

[little britain]

 

[sellwingri]

Does anyone know if there are shops around the pier in Colon?  My husband wants to buy a Panama hat while we’re there on Radiance in April.   

[BillB48]

There is a shopping mall adjacent to where the ship docks, can't say if you will be able to find a real Panama hat or not.  But I would think there would be a good chance to get a genuine knock off!  There are two berths for ships calling at Colon, one of the berths is attached to the shopping mall and the other berth is a short distance away.  When I was last there they were building  duty free shopping near the second berth.  I can't tell you what to expect for the duty free shopping area as I don't know if it has been completed or not.

[njhorseman]

4 hours ago, sellwingri said:

Does anyone know if there are shops around the pier in Colon?  My husband wants to buy a Panama hat while we’re there on Radiance in April.   

 

1 hour ago, BillB48 said:

There is a shopping mall adjacent to where the ship docks, can't say if you will be able to find a real Panama hat or not.  But I would think there would be a good chance to get a genuine knock off!

Since 'Panama" hats originated in Ecuador and I think "genuine" Panama hats are still manufactured only there and not in Panama, I suspect there is a 100% probability of a hat bought at the mall at the port in Colon will be a knock off. 😉

[Essiesmom]

35 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

 

Since 'Panama" hats originated in Ecuador and I think "genuine" Panama hats are still manufactured only there and not in Panama, I suspect there is a 100% probability of a hat bought at the mall at the port in Colon will be a knock off. 😉

It might even be made in China.  EM

[Turtles06]

On 2/21/2023 at 2:32 PM, njhorseman said:

 

Since 'Panama" hats originated in Ecuador and I think "genuine" Panama hats are still manufactured only there and not in Panama, I suspect there is a 100% probability of a hat bought at the mall at the port in Colon will be a knock off. 😉

 

I can't speak as to the mall in Colon, but our guide in Panama City a few weeks ago said that any "Panama Hats" bought there should say made "made in Ecuador."  🙂 

[OneAnnM19608]

On 2/18/2023 at 12:59 PM, cruisingcows said:

Mr. Whitaker did respond to me and mentioned that he has been having difficulties with his e-mail.  We are booked with him for April 2nd.  I will follow up on here if you are intersted.

 

I would be interested in hearing if your experience. 

[rs45thompson]

On 2/18/2023 at 12:59 PM, cruisingcows said:

Mr. Whitaker did respond to me and mentioned that he has been having difficulties with his e-mail.  We are booked with him for April 2nd.  I will follow up on here if you are intersted.

 

I would be interested to hearing about your experience.  Also, what was the price?

[cruisingcows]

We had a fantastic experience with Roberto Whitaker of Robtad's Tours on April 2, 2023!!!  Highly recommend!!!  He had several (a huge amount) of tours to choose from.  We chose Agua Clara Locks and Fort San Lorenzo.  It was a four hour tour and the price was $200 for four people - there is per person pricing after the first four people, so you can save a bit of money by getting a group together.  Roberto had a sign with our names as we exited the port area, and took us to the air conditioned van. He was a wealth of information about Panama history and the locks.  He also had cold water and soda for us!  We really enjoyed our tour - all his tours are customizable to what you want.  We felt very safe, and wouldn't hesitate to book with him again!

[cruisingcows]

One other note - it did take Roberto Whitaker several days to get back to us when we first e-mailed - he said he sometimes has e-mail issues, but he was 100% reliable.  His contact info is:

 

 robtads2@hotmail.com

[Cruise till you drop]

We just returned from the Panama Canal sailing on Celebrity Edge.

As for private tours, it seems like options are slim to none.  And it’s also a place I wouldn’t feel comfortable taking a private tour.  Honestly on our cruise, many people didn’t even get off the ship.  We did a ship tour called “Best of Panama” and it was just ok.

There are shops near the pier but most were closed and the ones open offered limited items

I didn’t see any Panama hats, but there were many sold in Cartagena