I am going on my first Panama Canal cruise in April. It is on the Zaandam, leaving on April 21st. Any great tips? Which shore excursions are not to be missed?

The very best excursion on my recent cruise through the Canal was in Playa Flamingo, Costa Rica (Pacific side). This was a cable canopy ride (zip cable not aerial tram) run by a company called Congo. Very safe, very fun. Although organized by the ship, it would be easy to do independently.

Other excursions to consider include:

1. At Puerto Quiepos (again on Costa Rica's Pacific side). I enjoyed the outrigger canoe excursion but would have preferred a bit more canoeing and snorkelling and a bit less beach time.

2. Also at Puerto Quiepos,other passengers at the same port went, independently, to Manuel Antonio National Park, hired a guide at the gates, and said this was the highlight of their trip.

3. In Panama, the best excursion of the day, according to the passengers who took it, was the canoe trip by dug-out canal to the Embara Indian village. I chose that day to laze on board so cannot speak from personal experience here.

4. In Belize, definitely take a snorkelling trip to the manatee reserve (Shallows Cay) and to the barrier reef off Caye Caulker. Here we swam with sharks, manatees and then headed over to the reef for great coral and fish. Although I would have preferred to do this independently, I used the boat tour in order to ensure getting back to the ship before it sailed...good idea as it turned out, because we were an hour late getting back and the ship waited.

Others on the ship went to Tikal but said there was a lot of travelling (tender, bus, air) and not enough time spent at the ruins.

5. In Roatan, we hired a taxi and went to Foster's beach bar and hotel for a lazy day and good snorkelling. We were almost the only people on this beautiful stretch of beach. There is snorkelling off the beach near the pier. There is bettter snorkelling at the far end of the beach around the large coral and rock formations. There were no currents as everything is protected by the barrier reer in front.


You can get more information on ports of call at the eponymous bulletin board at www.cruisecritic.com.

Hope this helps

This helps a lot! Thanks. I am taking my mom because my dad passed away a year ago. She is young at heart and would really enjoy some of these.

Hi MsWitty: To make sure you're getting the correct response, what exactly are you asking about? Some "Canal" trips are only a short "Partial" transit of the canal. Others completely pass through the canal and usually (both) have ports that they visit before or after the canal transit.

Curiousx gave you good advise, but the tours mentioned are not at stops in the canal (except the one). Maybe curiousx knows the other stops on this cruise that are before or after the canal. Anyway, if you want info on the canal and places to visit while you are there you will want to say that specifically.

Enjoy your cruise, you're doing a VERY nice thing for your mother. She'll never forget it.

Hold is right, MsWitty1 - my post covered all the 'before and after' ports of call that I found interesting in a 'through the Canal' cruise which went to the Caribbean and Pacific sides of Costa Rica as well as Honduras, Belize and Panama.

Our only 'in Canal' stop was at the Gamboa resort in Gatun Lake which was interesting but not 'right up there', largely because of the iffy weather at the time. We spent a day and a half transiting the canal itself (and Gatun Lake).

I should also mention that many people loved the dolphin encounter offered at Puerto Limon/Moin. I did not do this since I am very uncomfortable with the notion of keeping dolphins captive for our entertainment.

I am glad you asked for clarification. We are going on an 18 day trip that goes through the canal. We stop before and after and go all the way through.

We stop in Aruba, Columbia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala and then up through Mexico. Thank you both. I am new to the site and "posting" for advice, but it is great.

Wow! 18 days. Sounds wonderful! Aruba is a wonderful little island, you'll want to take a tour that circles the island so you can see the vast differences in it. One side has nothing on it due to weather, etc. The touristy side is nicely built up and very enjoyable.

Don't let Columbia worry you. Due to drugs and the "cartels" you'll want to stay with a good tour group to see this part of South America. The ship tours are safe and will show you the culture and beauty of this country. If you stop in Costa Rica, it will probably be in Limon and while it is beautiful, the poverty is obvious. Stay with a tour that can show you the highlights.
I have not been to Nicaragua or Guatemala.
As a first timer, I like to relax and take the ship sponsored tours which I know are safe and usually leave time to shop etc. Perhaps others can give you specific tour companies that they have used and enjoyed.
Again, enjoy your cruise.... you're a good daughter and I know you mom will love this. By the way, the canal passage itself is wonderful. All ships I've ever been on have a person who narrates the passage, and that's a free tour in itself.
Enjoy

My wife and I went on our first cruise in 2002. We stopped in Cartegna first and took an organized tour through the cruise line. We went to near by monastery (interesting architechure), saw the statue of Don Blas de Leso (very interesting, one armed, one leg, one eye yet still defeated Admiral Nelson) and then in town for emerald shopping (didn't find any good deals). We then went throught the Panama Canal to Gutan Lake. If you have never seen how lock systems work it is quite interesting (being from Ottawa Canada, with an extensive lock system on the nearby Rideau River the mystery of the locks was no longer a mystery). One suggestion for viewing the locks...most people went out to the front of the ship and stood in the heat of the sun for hours (they got burnt). Suggest watching from your room (a least some of the time) Our balconey was on the shade side of the ship so we could comfortably watch the goings on. You can also put on your TV and watch what is going on 'out front' from the camera they have mounted there. We too stopped in Limon. We took the ships organized tour to the rainforest for the canopy and walking tour. Quite enjoyed this. While it is true that Limon is not the prettiest place we returned there the following year and got married in Sloth Park. We spent a fair bit of time around Limon and enjoyed the market area. Now...the typography of Aruba is quite interesting. You travel through sanddunes on the north western coast, on through a 'moon scape' in the central area and then on the Baby Back Beach on the south west coast. From there you can go to St. Nicholas for a stop at Charlies Bar. A good time can be had by all. I would suggest getting off the ship and going on a tour of the island. I hope you enjoy your trip. Your mother is truly fortunate to have such a caring daughter. Have a safe journey.

Aloha MsWitty1,
My wife and I are taking the April 21 Zaandam cruise from Port Canaveral to Los Angeles. If you're interested in "meeting" someone before you get to the ship, send us an email at [email protected]

We're retired Californians now living in Hawaii. We always like to meet new people.

Ciscokids,

Sounds great! I will email you off line. We are flying into Orlando the night before the cruise so we can get on board early. Look forward to talking to you!

Angie