Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Can you give me some information on a panama canal cruise?

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Can you give me some information on a panama canal cruise?

We have booked a Sun Princess cruise through the Panama canal in December sailing from Acapulco to San Juan. Our port stops are in Costa Rica, Cartagena, Aruba and St Thomas. Can anyone give me input as to whether ship tours would be the way to go, or would we be able to book cabs and tour by ourselves? Also how far is the city of San Jose from Puerta Caldera? Do taxis come to the ships when they dock? also I assume the weather will be warm during that time. Am I correct? I would appreciate any innfo I can get on the ship and the ports of call. Thanks a lot.

Based on 4 or 5 Panama Canal cruises, here's my two cents... PORTS: Cartagena - highly recommend that you take the cruise's tours since it's not the safest city. Unfortunately, the cruise tours always involve shopping stops (nothing great), but they do whisk you past the armed guards. The fort is interesting - nice view of city, too. Aruba - do by yourself. Lots of cabs will waiting when the ship docks and you can hire one to give you a tour of the island. There isn't a whole lot to see, so you could probably do that in a few hours. Suggest you bring bathing suit/beach stuff and ask the cab driver to drop you off at one of the beachfront hotels (the Marriott or Hyatt are great). You can use their beach (check w/front desk, may have to pay a minimal "day rate"), have lunch in their beachfront restaurant, etc., and the doorman will get you a cab back to the ship. (Shopping in Aruba is nothing great - small selection and VERY expensive.) St. Thomas - can easily do yourself; depending on whether ship docks at the town or the shopping area, but either way there are lots of cabs and shuttles between both areas. Many stores have shops in both areas. Cabs will take you to beaches (can do the hotel "day rate" again), or do a combo of beach & shopping. Costa Rica - don't remember this at all; maybe had OD'd on native crafts, jungle walks, etc. FYI...I thought Puerto Caldera was a waste of time - the tours were very long bus rides - yes, there was scenery but I didn't want hours and hours of it - and not much to see at the final destinations. Again, the obligatory shopping stop was a major part of the tour. WEATHER: will be warm to hot and humid

Vicki, Will just add to above post regarding Costa Rica. There is not much at the pier. Don't expect cabs, etc. If you wish to take a tour, Princess is about the only way you will be able to do it. We took the "Sarchi (sp)" tour. Was an interesting bus ride but they took us to a very touristy shop. Those who took the San Jose tour said it was "very" long and they had little, if any, time on their own. I would recommend taking one of the environmental tours Princess offers. Unfortunately, they were booked by the time we made our decision. (By the way, Princess will steer you away from the vendors who are at the pier. We were sorry we hadn't gone there first. Had some very unique items and the prices were as good if not better than the "shop" they took us to.) Can't speak for the weather as we went in April. Have a great cruise.

Hi-Cartegena shouldn't be missed..BUT take an organized tour...the dungeons are fun to shop in (look for the exquisite handmade shawls..a real steal... St. Thomas...well, if you want a beautiful beach experience take the ferry from CA to St. John and take the bus for about $1.00 and they will drop you off at a beach like Trunk Bay and meanwhile give you a tour of the island. St. Thomas is for shopping at Little Switzerland..know your prices for jewelry and cameras before going...Haven't been to that spot in Costa Rica, but San Jose is a large city and I think it's a long drive through the mountains and the coffee fields...Costa Rica is a beautiful country and if your lucky you'll see the turtles laying eggs (if that is available)...Aruba is a little boring, for me...and I've never been to San Juan... Too bad your missing the San Blas Islands, a real highlight of our tour...

For Costa Rica I would take a tour. Automobiles there may not be that reliable and you don't want to risk a breakdown and miss getting back on the ship! We didn't go on Princess but the nature tour we took at one of Costa Rica's parks was fabulous. It also allowed us time to shop at the market at the pier where there were items like feathers with scenes painted on, recycled paper notebooks, whistles in the shape of toucans, wooden bowls and coffee. For places like Aruba and St. Thomas, I think I'd skip the tours. We went through the canal in November and, even with cloud, it was very hot and humid.

RE: Costa Rica - yes, do take one of the environmental trips - forget San Jose, not worth the long bus ride over bumpy roads. We did the Cloud Forest and enjoyed that. The port is a freight port and not really designed for passengers - nothing there and a long way from anything. Cartegena - definately a shore excursion, not safe at all on your own.