Recommend tours for Panama Canal cruise

[cruiseej]

We're on the December 21 Voyager cruise through the Panama Canal, and tour reservations open in a few days. I'd appreciate any recommendations for tours on this trip (Cartagena, Gatun Yacht Club, Puntarenas, Chiapas, Huatulco, Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas) -- anything you've done which was not-to-be-missed, or anything which was a dud. Thanks!

 

-- Eric

[JDRMYS]

For us, the Canal Zone tour was a dud -- we were driven past barracks and the commander's house. Very boring. The Gatun Yacht Club was so-so. The visit to the shoreside part of the Miraflores docks was interesting. The helicopter ride over the canal was fascinating.

[Off Shore]

In Acapulco and Huatulco we just walked around ourselves. This gave us plenty of time in Acapulco toexplore the 18th century fort and superb museum at the head of the bay, and walk along the beachfront. In Huatulco we walked intothe neighboring Mexican town (about a mile away) and did some shopping there, a ver nice experience. In Costa Rica we took the tour to Manual Antonio National Park and saw many wild animals!

Cheers

Danny Weitz

[dfb]

Eric,

We did the PC as the first leg of a World Cruise in 2006. Below is the link to a journal we posted online at the time:

http://journals.aol.com/dfriia/WestwardWorldCircumnavigation200/entries/2005/12/29/tuesday-dec-27---day-1-ft.-lauderdale/199

You can click on the little blue arrows to the right side at the top or bottom of each entry to page forward.

As I recall we did only one ship's excursion in Costa Rica to the Poas Volcano and Rain Forest. It was a full day and we did really enjoy it. The rest of the days we set off on our own and enjoyed those days too. We really enjoyed our relaxing hours at the Gatun Yacht Club and did not leave it for any excursions. I understand that RSSC does not do the bbq lunch there any more, just snacks and beverages, but I understand that the locals still turn out and that is not to be missed. Also, when will you get another chance to swim in the Panama Canal! Don't miss your time there since RSSC says they are discontinuing the GYC stop after your cruise.

Enjoy, Debbie

[dougburns]

Would recommend the high wire ride thru the trees in Puntarenas; it's a hoot. Keep in mind though that once you're in the trees there is no turning back; you have to go all the way. The harness you wear is a bit bulky, but not really uncomfortable.

[kvisf]

I second what dougburns said. The canopy tour (aka "zipline") in Puntarenas is an absolute blast, and was by far the best scheduled activity we did on our May PC cruise on Mariner. It's about an hour's bus ride through some pretty countryside to the chiclet forest, another hour or so to get outfitted and receive some basic instructions, then a brief ride to the hilltop, a short walk to the first platform, and then . . . well, it's all downhill from there -- so to speak. There were 18 lines ranging from perhaps 20 meters to as much as 250 meters. There were about 35 of us ranging from early 20's to mid-70's, and everyone made it, including a few who were pretty apprehensive until they got started (and it's really not feasible to back out once you are at the mountaintop). The guides are with you all the way, and they seemed very capable. Unless you have a serious case of acrophobia (I'm mildly nervous myself), think about giving it a try. There certainly didn't seem to be much in Puntarenas itself.

 

We did horseback riding in Cabo and it was OK but the dune buggies might have been more fun. Huatulco was a bit disapointing, we just walked around and had a drink, not much to see or do there. We hit Acapulco on a Sunday and did the Pierre Marques Beach thing -- nothing much to that except a mediocre buffet lunch at a pleasant enough resort hotel on a sandy beach, but since everything was closed in town the other option was to stay aboard (where we would have had a far better meal).

 

The canal zone bus tour and Gatun Yacht Club are accurately described in a post above. The best part was spending time in the observation platform beside the canal and watching those big ships squeeze through.

 

One other tip if you're interested in the history of the Canal itself: Read "The Path Between the Seas" by David McCullough before you start the transit. It will make the day spent transiting one that you will remember for a long time.

[Host Dan]

I agree, the canopy tree jumping excursion is a blast! (Coming from one who doesn't care for heights) :)

 

Host Dan

[xrvlcruiser]

Hi Debbie,

 

I went back to read your blog . . . fun to do.

 

Tell me about the outdoor remote monitoring station you had on the cruise. I've beought several different stick-up thermometers but they've all rusted and were useless. How did yours - excuse me - weather the trip?

 

I saw one on line for about $30 but don't have a clue if it's good or not.

 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Peggy

[TxnAquarian]

I agree with the above comments about the Yacht Club stop. We did an Eco-Cruise around the lake and saw no wildlife. It was hot, muggy and rained on us. I realize these things are all variable, but even if we had great weather, there still weren't any animals. It was a bore. The only good thing about the stop is that I got to touch land in Panama. Besides that, it is a waste. The helicopter ride above the locks sounds like it was amazing!

 

In Huatulco, we did a fantastic tour (can't remember the name of it). But we were driven about an hour out into rustic Oaxaca and visited some remote towns in which the locals cooked for us and welcomed us into their homes. One of the families even cut cactus that was growing in their yard and made a cactus salad for us. It was a special trip and you could tell how appreciative the people were to have us. And their is nothing better than freshly made tortillas.

 

If you haven't done Acapulco before, you HAVE to see the cliff-divers. If you have done that, the best way to see the city is independently. It is walkable and there are also cabs everywhere. It is a hot, crowded, dirty city, so the best time would be spent at the beach or at the Las Brisas Resort where you have amazing views of the bay. There is also a pretty good shopping mall about 7 blocks from the ship if you need to pick up any items left at home (I had to go buy a charger for my digital camera there on my recent trip).

 

I have always done Cabo independently by wandering around the main town. The cruise lines offer the obligatory tour to see glass-blowers just outside of town, but I think the best thing to do would be take one of the active shore excursions, such as the dune buggies mentioned above. I have heard that is fun.

 

Puntarenas can be a great stop if you take the right tour. I did a horseback riding excursion through the rain forest a few years ago which was amazing! On my recent cruise, we chose a tour in which we wandered these suspension bridges through the canopy of the forest. I didn't particularly enjoy it. We didn't see much except for huge ants and spiders that I wasn't crazy about. Costa Rica is a great destination, so pick your excursion carefully.

 

I still don't understand why Regent discontinued the port of Quepos, Costa Rica, which we visited onboard the Navigator several years ago. Absolutely AMAZING destination!

 

 

Michael

[BBfromCA]

I agree with Michael on the Acapulco cliff divers. A must see. There is also a dancing show done in conjunction with the diver show. The tour continues with a bus ride through the city and on into the hills, where the private multi-million dollar homes are.

The downside to this tour are the 2 "shopping stops" that are thrown in. The first was described as: "a 15-minute shopping stop at the regional handicraft market". It was a descibed and did have a great photo opportunity at it.

The 2nd one was a 45 minute stop at a jewelry store. This was not mentioned in the description of the tour, and to me, was a complete waste of tour time.

As there is a small shopping area at the port, I felt I had been set up.

[JDRMYS]

The helicopter ride above the locks sounds like it was amazing!

 

Indeed, the helicopter ride really was amazing -- and I don't like helicopters! A friend with whom we were travelling really wanted to do this and we went along (reluctantly, for me). It was one of the biggest highlights of the cruise. We flew the whole length of the canal and also went over some wonderful landscapes that really couldn't be reached by land. Once was enough, but I'm very glad to have done this once. Don't miss it!

[AshD]

Hey,

 

We're on this cruise as well and noticed an excursion in Huatulco that we haven't seen before: Free the turtles.

 

Looks like an adventure not to be missed! Of course, the attraction will probably be me as I run up and down the beach frightening the birds away from eating the scuttling baby turtles. Ha Ha

 

Cheers!

Ash

[ESquared]

We did the Panama Canal cruise on Celebrity Summit last February. In Puntarenas we did a train ride and boat trip on the Tarcoles River. The train ride was a bit lame but the Tarcoles River had an amazing variety of birds and very informative guides. I saw macaws flying through the air which was amazing. We picked this tour because it was shorter than most offered by Celebrity, about 4 hours. Folks on the roll call also booked a tour with Charlie Soto, I think (check the Costa Rica specific board) and had a wonderful time.

 

In Acapulco we saw the cliff divers from a boat and the boat brought two of the divers on board for photos. The boat then did a harbor tour of the bay and served a nice meal. A different way to see the cliff divers.

 

In Cabo we arranged our own excursion and went whale watching. No whales seen but we did see dolphins.

 

Elizabeth

PG in June 2008

[cruiseej]

Thanks, everyone, for the comments on several of our ports of call. Has anyone een to Cartegena or Chiapas? I haven't seen any comments about either one.

 

-- Eric