I am interested in a cruise that goes through the Panama Canal. What itenerary is best? Starting from the East and heading West or going through from West to East. What is the advantage of one direction over the other? Do you have a perfered cruise line? Thanks
Best way to cruise the Panama Canal East to West or West to East
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IMO either way traverses the Canal, you see the same either way.
The difference is the itinerary pre & post the Canal. and whether you want to travel in Spring or Fall and whether you want to be closer or farther from home at the beginning or end of the trip.
We did a partial transit (from E) on Princess and a full transit (W to E) on HAL (the line we prefer).
During the full transit you cannot get off in the Canal/ on the partial - they do have tours of the locks, etc.
Have fun and let us know what you decide.
We entered the Canal on the Pacific side for our December 2002 transit. The weather was great - very low humidity. Since this was our first time through the Canal, we stayed on board for the duration of the transit. Many passengers tendered ashore when we reached Gatun Lake for shore excursions. They rejoined the ship in Cristobal, Panama, on the Atlantic Coast.
Glad to know that they allow tours on the full transit on your cruiseline.
For me, west to east is best with the canal transit being the hightlight of the cruise. We enjoyed the Mexican Riviera (Cabo San Lucas, Acapulco, Huatulco) and Puntarenas, Costa Rica but the anticipation of going throught the canal kept the excitment level high for us.