Help me choose please?

[Werangels]

Hi

 

I’m looking to book one of the December 2024 Panama Canal trips.  They visit different ports and I wondered if anyone would help me choose which to go for please?  Which would you choose and why would you make that choice?

 

I tried to cut and paste the itineraries but it didn’t work so sorry they are not listed. 

 

Thank you.  

[ChucktownSteve]

18 minutes ago, Werangels said:

Hi

 

I’m looking to book one of the December 2024 Panama Canal trips.  They visit different ports and I wondered if anyone would help me choose which to go for please?  Which would you choose and why would you make that choice?

 

I tried to cut and paste the itineraries but it didn’t work so sorry they are not listed. 

 

Thank you.  

I think you should go with the second itinerary. But you should be U.

Edited August 27, 2023 by ChucktownSteve

[Werangels]

3 minutes ago, ChucktownSteve said:

I think you should go with the second itinerary. But you should be U.

Thank you.  They both sound good to me, that’s the problem 🤦‍♀️🤣🤣.  

[ChucktownSteve]

11 minutes ago, Werangels said:

Thank you.  They both sound good to me, that’s the problem 🤦‍♀️🤣🤣.  

I'm presuming you're talking about the 12/3 and 12/13?  Actually I changed my mind.  I like the 12/3 better because it's one night longer and of the two overnights.  The ship acts as your hotel but you can do a lot in two days you don't do on just a port of call.

 

I really despise Mexican ports after we were held by armed Federales at one of their ports in 2017 for local political reasons, while on a local tour not purchased through the port. We were released one hour later after they proved their point to the tour operator. I don't trust the politics there.   I also prefer the ABC Islands.

Edited August 27, 2023 by ChucktownSteve

[Werangels]

5 minutes ago, ChucktownSteve said:

I'm presuming you're talking about the 12/3 and 12/13?  Actually I changed my mind.  I like the 12/3 better because it's one night longer and of the two overnights.  The ship acts as your hotel but you can do a lot in two days you don't do on just a port of call.

 

I really despise Mexican ports after we were held by armed Federales at one of their ports in 2017 for local political reasons, while on a local tour not purchased through the port. We were released one hour later after they proved their point to the tour operator. I don't trust the politics there.   I also prefer the ABC Islands.

Yes those are the ones I’m talking about.  Thank you.

 

Cartagena looks interesting on the 3rd December cruise.  

[Host Jazzbeau]

I would also favor the Dec. 3 voyage.  Caribbean itineraries on most cruise lines are either East or West (often alternate weeks) so it's almost impossible to avoid going to the Mexican ports over and over.  But Cartagena and the ABC islands are not so easy.  I'm not sure how the flights affect you; from a US perspective starting in Miami is much easier too.  [But it is confusing, as the itinerary and the map are quite different!]

[Werangels]

28 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I would also favor the Dec. 3 voyage.  Caribbean itineraries on most cruise lines are either East or West (often alternate weeks) so it's almost impossible to avoid going to the Mexican ports over and over.  But Cartagena and the ABC islands are not so easy.  I'm not sure how the flights affect you; from a US perspective starting in Miami is much easier too.  [But it is confusing, as the itinerary and the map are quite different!]

Thank you for including those.  Now that is odd?  The flights are BA/Iberia via Madrid to or from Panama and direct obviously for Miami.  

[ChucktownSteve]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I would also favor the Dec. 3 voyage.  Caribbean itineraries on most cruise lines are either East or West (often alternate weeks) so it's almost impossible to avoid going to the Mexican ports over and over.  But Cartagena and the ABC islands are not so easy.  I'm not sure how the flights affect you; from a US perspective starting in Miami is much easier too.  [But it is confusing, as the itinerary and the map are quite different!]

 

This is the itinerary I got from another website. I find it intersting that your itinerary shows the at sea Dec 7 for the same hours as mine shows Bonaire.  Which do you suppose is more accurate?  AZ IT or the other website? lol

[Host Jazzbeau]

The Azamara itinerary for Dec. 7 shows 'at sea' for 8 am to 10 pm, which is not the way sea days are ever shown.  It also isn't that far from Aruba to Curacao.  So my bet would be on the itinerary that shows Bonaire on Dec. 7.  "ABC Islands – complete your set!"

[bikerunner]

I booked the Dec 3rd one a few weeks back.  I liked the overnight in Cartagena and of course the ABC islands.  Tho Bonaire as pointed out is listed on some sites and not others.  I just care that I hit Aruba finally on a Friday and not a Sunday when most of the island is shut down. Been there 3 times on cruises.  

[alcpa1]

I too recommend the Dec. 3rd itinerary. We have done both but this is the one I never tire of.

I too thought it was strange with a sea day between Aruba and Curacao. Bonaire is just a short sail between.

When you get to Cartagena tour with Dora. She operates the best tours in Cartagena. She is sensitive to the needs of her clients too.

If you haven't been to Aruba take an island tour that takes you all over the islands. Some tours only go to the east. Try to find one that goes to Baby Beach on the west coast.

My best advice on Bonaire is to avoid the temptation of picking up salt! There aren't many signs but it's a big no no. I found out the hard way.

We've been to Curacao three or four times and are finally going to take an island tour when we are there in '24.

The ABC islands are famous for their water sports. You will have to choose since it's almost impossible to tour and snorkle, swim or dive in one day. Choices.............

You should think about going to the Canal visitors center and museum in Panama. If you have time consider a visit to the Embera Village. 

There's lots of information on the Ports of Call boards.

Enjoy!!!!!

[Werangels]

Thanks everyone.  Looks like the 3rd!

[excitedofharpenden]

13 hours ago, Werangels said:

Thank you for including those.  Now that is odd?  The flights are BA/Iberia via Madrid to or from Panama and direct obviously for Miami.  

I'd go for the 3rd too.

 

Just a word on the flights. We pay extortionate airline passenger duty (APD) here when leaving from the UK. Especially true when flying in a premium cabin. One way to reduce that is to fly short haul from UK to Europe in economy and then do the long haul from say Madrid. It's what I've done when I've flown to South America. London to Madrid on BA and Madrid to a South American airport on Iberia.  I really like the seats in Business on Iberia and they share the use of Avios. I saved a heap of taxes doing it that way. No longer direct, but worth it. If the Iberia business class was no good I wouldn't do it, but it's fine. 1-2-1 configuration and aisle access for all. Just random thoughts. 

 

Phil 

[blag]

2 minutes ago, excitedofharpenden said:

I'd go for the 3rd too.

 

Just a word on the flights. We pay extortionate airline passenger duty (APD) here when leaving from the UK. Especially true when flying in a premium cabin. One way to reduce that is to fly short haul from UK to Europe in economy and then do the long haul from say Madrid. It's what I've done when I've flown to South America. London to Madrid on BA and Madrid to a South American airport on Iberia.  I really like the seats in Business on Iberia and they share the use of Avios. I saved a heap of taxes doing it that way. No longer direct, but worth it. If the Iberia business class was no good I wouldn't do it, but it's fine. 1-2-1 configuration and aisle access for all. Just random thoughts. 

 

Phil 

If you mix your flight classes like that, would these have be ticketed separately, and therefore you have to handle your checked luggage and re-check it in at the intermediate airport?

[excitedofharpenden]

12 minutes ago, blag said:

If you mix your flight classes like that, would these have be ticketed separately, and therefore you have to handle your checked luggage and re-check it in at the intermediate airport?

Yes, that's a good point. I had to recheck my bags at Madrid. My memory is a bit hazy and I'd forgotten that. However the savings made it worthwhile for me.   I flew to Quito on one trip and to Lima on another, the latter using Avios that I transferred to Iberia from BA, following the instructions from The Points Guy website.  A bit of effort, but worth it. 

 

Phil 

[blag]

3 minutes ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Yes, that's a good point. I had to recheck my bags at Madrid. My memory is a bit hazy and I'd forgotten that. However the savings made it worthwhile for me.   I flew to Quito on one trip and to Lima on another, the latter using Avios that I transferred to Iberia from BA, following the instructions from The Points Guy website.  A bit of effort, but worth it. 

 

Phil 

Thanks

APD's

Just to put a quantum to this...

How much are the APD in the UK? And how much in Europe?

Do the UK APD's apply if you fly from EU into UK and then on to, say, New York on a single ticket.

How about if you fly economy on the leg into UK, and Business out from UK, thus two tickets?

[Werangels]

1 hour ago, excitedofharpenden said:

I'd go for the 3rd too.

 

Just a word on the flights. We pay extortionate airline passenger duty (APD) here when leaving from the UK. Especially true when flying in a premium cabin. One way to reduce that is to fly short haul from UK to Europe in economy and then do the long haul from say Madrid. It's what I've done when I've flown to South America. London to Madrid on BA and Madrid to a South American airport on Iberia.  I really like the seats in Business on Iberia and they share the use of Avios. I saved a heap of taxes doing it that way. No longer direct, but worth it. If the Iberia business class was no good I wouldn't do it, but it's fine. 1-2-1 configuration and aisle access for all. Just random thoughts. 

 

Phil 

Thanks Phil, much appreciated. That was something I became aware of when looking at flights for the cruise starting in Panama using Iberia via Madrid.  The 3rd December trip starts from Miami so that would be London to Miami I think, then Panama vi Madrid home. Or, would you fly via Madrid for that?  I’m intending to use companion vouchers 🤞.  
 

As an aside, I’m just looking at the new Avios Barclaycard.  Do you know whether you can use in the same year?  Companion vouchers with Amex and then cabin upgrade with Barclaycard on different flights? 
 

I also need to decide whether to wait until onboard at Xmas to book or get prices now.  
 

Thanks very much. 

[norn iron]

2 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

I'd go for the 3rd too.

 

Just a word on the flights. We pay extortionate airline passenger duty (APD) here when leaving from the UK. Especially true when flying in a premium cabin. One way to reduce that is to fly short haul from UK to Europe in economy and then do the long haul from say Madrid. It's what I've done when I've flown to South America. London to Madrid on BA and Madrid to a South American airport on Iberia.  I really like the seats in Business on Iberia and they share the use of Avios. I saved a heap of taxes doing it that way. No longer direct, but worth it. If the Iberia business class was no good I wouldn't do it, but it's fine. 1-2-1 configuration and aisle access for all. Just random thoughts. 

 

Phil 

Good point.

Friends of mine (family of four) flew Leeds Bradford to Dublin with Ryanair, and then commenced their flights to South Africa with BA from Dublin to LHR and onto South Africa.

They saved a couple of grand on APD.

I can’t remember how they booked the homeward flight, but they got train back up north from LHR

 

[excitedofharpenden]

On 8/28/2023 at 11:35 AM, Werangels said:

Thanks Phil, much appreciated. That was something I became aware of when looking at flights for the cruise starting in Panama using Iberia via Madrid.  The 3rd December trip starts from Miami so that would be London to Miami I think, then Panama vi Madrid home. Or, would you fly via Madrid for that?  I’m intending to use companion vouchers 🤞.  
 

As an aside, I’m just looking at the new Avios Barclaycard.  Do you know whether you can use in the same year?  Companion vouchers with Amex and then cabin upgrade with Barclaycard on different flights? 
 

I also need to decide whether to wait until onboard at Xmas to book or get prices now.  
 

Thanks very much. 

Apologies for the delay in replying. I missed your question. I am not an expert and tend to rely on websites like The Points Guy and One Mile at a Time for detailed information and the intricacies. I don't have experience of 2 for 1 vouchers, but am pretty sure that it has to be BA aircraft so that doesn't work for using Iberia in your itinerary. 

 

Your second question about the BA upgrade voucher I can answer as I have a couple of them. You can't combine them with any other promotions and they are like the 2 for 1 in that they have to be used on BA flights (no partner airlines) and these can be round trip if you are using one for yourself or two one ways if used for two people, but the flight itinerary has to originate in the UK. So booking return only from say Miami doesn't work. In addition there must be availability in the cabin you want.

 

My example.  I am flying to Hong Kong and back from Tokyo. I want business class for both, but could only get Premium Economy going out and economy coming back as that's all they had. This is how I booked them by phoning BA. Had to book the return otherwise I'm stuffed booking one way and waiting because that flight won't have originated in the UK. I'm registered with Reward Flight Finder and will hope that at least a Premium Economy will become available on the return. If they pop up I will need to phone BA again and upgrade. 

 

I've gone on a bit, but to use the cabin upgrade vouchers you have to be cute. Might be easier on more popular routes where cabin availability is better, but I really struggle with finding them. Hopefully my patience for next March will pay off. Good luck with yours. 

 

Phil 

Edited September 3, 2023 by excitedofharpenden

[blag]

Unanswered question, so I'll repeat because I would like to know... 

 

APD's

Just to put a quantum to this...

How much are the APD in the UK? And how much in Europe?

Do the UK APD's apply if you fly from EU into UK and then on to, say, New York on a single ticket.

How about if you fly economy on the leg into UK, and Business out from UK, thus two tickets?

[Scots Caz]

If you are on a single ticket that transits the UK then the APD for departing the UK does not apply

If you have a separate ticket originating the UK then you will be hit with APD when purchasing the ticket (not sure if there is any way to claim it back)

UK APD in business for London-New York currently UK £191

 

Looking at random return dates in November - FCO-EWR via LHR all in business class = £2189

starting London with same LHR-EWR-LHR flights = £2,484

 

ITAMatrix is a useful resource to check tax breakdown on routes.

 

I've also used Dublin as a starting point for long haul business...a few years ago managed flights to LAX in business cheaper than economy from starting London

[blag]

11 minutes ago, Scots Caz said:

If you are on a single ticket that transits the UK then the APD for departing the UK does not apply

If you have a separate ticket originating the UK then you will be hit with APD when purchasing the ticket (not sure if there is any way to claim it back)

UK APD in business for London-New York currently UK £191

 

Looking at random return dates in November - FCO-EWR via LHR all in business class = £2189

starting London with same LHR-EWR-LHR flights = £2,484

 

ITAMatrix is a useful resource to check tax breakdown on routes.

 

I've also used Dublin as a starting point for long haul business...a few years ago managed flights to LAX in business cheaper than economy from starting London

Brilliant info.

I use ITAmatrix but have never looked at the breakdown of the price. 

Thanks. 

[Werangels]

7 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Apologies for the delay in replying. I missed your question. I am not an expert and tend to rely on websites like The Points Guy and One Mile at a Time for detailed information and the intricacies. I don't have experience of 2 for 1 vouchers, but am pretty sure that it has to be BA aircraft so that doesn't work for using Iberia in your itinerary. 

 

Your second question about the BA upgrade voucher I can answer as I have a couple of them. You can't combine them with any other promotions and they are like the 2 for 1 in that they have to be used on BA flights (no partner airlines) and these can be round trip if you are using one for yourself or two one ways if used for two people, but the flight itinerary has to originate in the UK. So booking return only from say Miami doesn't work. In addition there must be availability in the cabin you want.

 

My example.  I am flying to Hong Kong and back from Tokyo. I want business class for both, but could only get Premium Economy going out and economy coming back as that's all they had. This is how I booked them by phoning BA. Had to book the return otherwise I'm stuffed booking one way and waiting because that flight won't have originated in the UK. I'm registered with Reward Flight Finder and will hope that at least a Premium Economy will become available on the return. If they pop up I will need to phone BA again and upgrade. 

 

I've gone on a bit, but to use the cabin upgrade vouchers you have to be cute. Might be easier on more popular routes where cabin availability is better, but I really struggle with finding them. Hopefully my patience for next March will pay off. Good luck with yours. 

 

Phil 

Thank you Phil.  
 

you can now use BA companion vouchers on Iberia.  What I am going to do is cancel my companion voucher summer European flights and then use the vouchers for the Panama Canal trip and hopefully get business or at least premium.  
 

I am going to take out the new Barclaycard avios card and may manage to use that for my summer Europe flights.  You get an upgrade voucher so you book one cabin and can upgrade to the next.  
 

Either way, Miami ans Panama will be a better use of this year’s vouchers!

 

Thanks for your help