The Great Panama Canal Cruise, Day 8, At Sea

Continuing the live blog of our day-by-day Panama Canal cruise, sailing round-trip from Fort Lauderdale with Princess Cruises.

More Leisurely Thoughts

After a run of four straight port calls, it is good to take things down a notch or two with another relaxed sea day, giving us a chance to catch our breath, review the amazing experiences of the past few days, and enjoy the full array of facilities aboard the expansive Coral Princess.

With no tours in the offing and no wake-up calls to set, we take the opportunity for a lie-in and give breakfast a miss completely. Instead, we wander down to the International Café for a coffee and pastry and take a stroll around the ship.

We are keen to take in lecturer Chris Roberts’ port talk on Grand Cayman – the next port of call – at 1.30pm, so we head for an early lunch at the Provence dining room. That gives us plenty of time to reach the Princess Theater and enjoy the last of Chris’ excellent port insights (sadly, he won’t be on the next cruise, as he’s contracted elsewhere, but there will, of course, be another expert lecturer to take his place).

In need of exercise, we take a couple of turns around the Promenade Deck and then have a look around the pool decks. The genuinely amazing thing about this ship is just how much space there is for lounging and relaxing. Almost everywhere you look there is somewhere open to enjoy the sun, the sea view or just a quiet corner. It is the perfect recipe for really enjoying your sea-going home.

This is also a major movie-going ship, with the chance to catch a film on the big Movies Under The Stars screen overlooking the Lido Deck, in the Princess Theater, the Explorers Lounge or just in your cabin on TV (with 4 dedicated movie channels). Today, we take in the Oscar-nominated Beasts of the Southern Wild in the main theatre – but wish we hadn’t. What total, inexplicable, atrocious nonsense. What was the Academy thinking??

Anyway, the more relaxed day also gives us the chance to review the cruise in more detail and decide what we like (and aren’t so keen about) over the eight days so far since we embarked back at Port Everglades.

What We Like

I’ve already said it, but the spaciousness of the ship is remarkable, easily the best we have seen on a vessel of this size (90,000 tons, 2,050 passengers). There is virtually nowhere that feels crowded, and the occasional bottleneck (initial disembarkation in port, occasionally at the Bordeaux dining room around 6pm and exiting the Princess Theater) usually smoothes out quickly.

The enormous variety of activities and programmes during the day is also impressive, with an imaginative array of options, from lectures and fitness seminars to daily trivia, bingo, deck games, music, dance classes and, of course, movies. There are usually three or four choices at any one time.

The ship is wonderfully steady and has great sea-going characteristics, which means she sails well, even in moderate weather. She is a sleek shape for a modern vessel, almost 970ft long and 106ft wide, but only 14 decks high, which makes her a bit less ‘top-heavy’ in appearance than many of her contemporaries.

Excellent dining choice – from the two main dining rooms (one for Anytime Dining, the other for fixed, regular seating), to the two signature alternative restaurants (Bayou Café & Steakhouse and Sabatini’s) and the newly-redesigned Horizon Court buffet, plus the on-deck Bar & Grill, Pizzeria and Ice Cream bar, plus the recent addition of the International Café, there is something for everyone at all times of the day. The addition of afternoon tea (on sea days) and a Pub Lunch (periodically throughout the cruise) provide even more reason to enjoy time aboard.

By the same token, the onboard service is rarely less than highly proficient and usually wonderfully personable, too. The bar service is a real highlight (notably in the Wheelhouse Bar) but the Bordeaux dining room, led by head waiters Carlos and Marius, is simply excellent.

And, as two places that epitomise pretty much all of the above, we especially enjoy spending time in the indoor Lotus Pool and the Bayou Café, where the restaurant/bar ambience is enhanced by the cool jazz sounds of the Argo Trio – possibly the best of the ship’s many live music offerings.

And What We Don’t

The stateroom shower. Ugh. This is so tiny it could have been designed in the 1980s, when most cabins were equally poorly designed, space-wise. My elbows have taken a real beating in here.

Early port disembarkations can be a bit chaotic; it’s almost the only time things feel a bit crowded from the 2,050 aboard. Then, and when leaving after a show at the Princess Theater, which has only two exits. The air-conditioning in the Theater also varied between Cold and Arctic. Taking a sweater or jacket here is highly advisable.

And that’s about all the negatives we can come up with so far. Definitely a lot on the plus side.

Tomorrow – Grand Cayman.

For more info and bookings – in the UK, call Princess Cruises on 0843 373 0333 or visit the expert cruise agents of The Cruise Line Limited on this link; in the US, call 1866 335 6379, or visit www.princess.com.

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The Great Panama Canal Cruise, Day 7, Costa Rica

Continuing the live blog of our day-by-day Panama Canal cruise, sailing round-trip from Fort Lauderdale with Princess Cruises.

(NB: Apologies for the delay, but the internet connection at sea today has not been consistent)

Limon

This small Central American country has become a big name in tourism in recent years, and we are very keen to see what it has to offer in today’s visit to its largest Caribbean port.

In truth, the Caribbean side of Costa Rica is the ‘wet’ one, with an astonishing amount of rain – around 200 inches – per year, leading to the rich, verdant rainforests that cloak the coastline. Under heavy clouds, the terrain marches inland to a string of mountains that effectively cut the country in half, the highest peak towering to 13,000ft.

We are told this is the first ‘dry’ day in almost a week, the town of Limon having endured five straight days of rain, which gives the whole place a damp, rather downbeat appearance. We are docked barely five minutes from the town centre and there is also a highly worthwhile little craft market inside the port area, providing plenty of shopping opportunities for those who don’t want to stray too far from the ship!

In truth, the 30 or so little stalls under one roof feature some of the most original and enjoyable arts and crafts we have yet seen on the cruise, with some outstanding woodwork, pottery and artwork, including some eye-catching pictures hand-painted on neutral-coloured bird feathers. There is also plenty of high-quality Costa Rican coffee to be had (around $10 a pound) and even a few salon stalls featuring manicures, pedicures and hair-braiding.

Walking out of the port authority building, we cross the street to a rather down-at-heel park and turn left into Limon’s main street. Now, this is not your typical Main Street; this is Central America, and not the tourist version. It is the heart of a typical working community that probably had its hey-day in the 1950s and is busy but not thriving.

The streets are fascinating but slightly challenging; pavement maintenance is not high on the agenda here and many buildings look in need of some urgent TLC. The 1941 building housing the central produce market is well worth a look as, again, it is very much a working facility and makes for a neat contrast with the Colonial splendour – and tourist appeal – of Cartagena.

Those who like things neat, clean and inviting will probably not want to venture this way, but those who enjoy seeing the beating heart of another culture will certainly appreciate Limon. There are probably back-streets where visitors should not venture, but the main street and market are perfectly viable. This is not the scrubbed, tidy, identikit and tourist-inspired Caribbean but the genuine, down-to-earth, working reality, and our impromptu walk is both invigorating and charming.

We return via the rather sodden pathways of the park, where some inexplicable statues hint at former glories while we also engage a few local children – probably about 13 or 14 years of age – and are told, in excellent English, about some of the delights of Limon, including “very good Wi-Fi,” which comes as something of a surprise, as does their farewell greeting of “Have a good day, sir!” Clearly, the youngsters here are a polite bunch.

Back on board, we are a bit early for lunch so make a last-minute decision to try the Daily Trivia contest in the Wheelhouse Bar. Much to our surprise, our two-person ‘team’ manages 18 out of 20 and finds itself in a tie for first place. The tie-breaker question asks how many seats there are in the Princess Theater – we guess at 750, the other team suggests 1450. We are closest (the exact figure is 635) and so it is victory for Team Veness!

After a quick lunch at the International Café (which is proving a big favourite with us for meals, snacks and speciality coffees, especially their salads and paninis), we are off on our chosen shore excursion, a trip to a Banana Plantation and Canal-boat eco-tour.

Before we have gone far out of town, our driver, Bosco, spots a troupe of howler monkeys in some trees and stops for a photo opportunity, while he also stops at regular intervals to dive into the underbrush with his machete (every coach-driver’s chosen accessory, it seems!) and return with some choice item of fruit or plant-life for our guide, Erick, to explain.

It is a thoroughly entertaining double-act that keeps us amused all the way to the Filadelfia Del Monte plantation, where we can see huge stalks of bananas arriving by special zipline courier (which has to be seen to be believed, as the workmen coast in along these long overhead cable-ways), to be sorted, cut, cleaned and sized before they are shipped out.

This plantation employs around 500, and the bananas are packed ready for the two-week journey to the US or the three-week trip to Europe.

After the half-hour stop, we drive on to the eco-tour, which also offers a small craft stall and some drinks and fresh fruit. For the next two hours, we cruise up and down a narrow waterway that parallels the coast at a distance of just a few hundred yards.

Here, among the genuine rainforest for which Costa Rica is well known, our boat captain and Erick conduct a master-class in the local flora and fauna, pointing out tree sloths, howler monkeys, and a host of bird-life, as well as several emerald basilisks (a genuine prehistoric-looking reptile) and iguanas.

The bird-life includes various kingfishers, herons, egrets and other tropical varieties, including a superb black-collared hawk, and our guides’ ability to spot this amazing variety of wildlife is absolutely astonishing, highlighted by an encounter with 10 tiny, sleeping fruit bats, each only a few inches across and perched in line half-way up a tree trunk. From just a few yards away they were all but invisible, but our captain spotted them from 20 or so yards distant.

We could easily have spent hours more cruising up and down this intriguing waterway, which opened out at one point to a river almost 100 yards across, and we were very impressed by the overall picture of Costa Rica that emerged from our day ashore.

Back aboard, we are again grateful for a hot shower to freshen up, and we take in the 6.30 performance of the main evening show, Dance!, which is definitely the best of the big production shows so far, with an excellent finale featuring a Lord of the Dance type Irish ensemble.

Dinner turns out to a be a wonderfully protracted affair on a table for 10 in the Bordeaux dining room, as we chat merrily away until the staff are busy clearing he tables all around us! It is Italian Night in both main dining rooms, and the highlight is undoubtedly the special course of penne arrabiata served up by our head waiter Marius, who mans a cooking station nearby to turn out a non-stop supply of freshly-made pasta in a spicy garlic-tomato sauce.

Marius has already proved to be a huge aid with our low-sodium diet at each meal, but now he proves a dab hand with the frying pan, too!

Tomorrow – A Day At Sea.

For more info and bookings – in the UK, call Princess Cruises on 0843 373 0333 or visit the expert cruise agents of The Cruise Line Limited on this link; in the US, call 1866 335 6379, or visit www.princess.com.

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

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The Great Panama Canal Cruise - The Canal, Pt 2

Continuing the daily live blog of our big Panama Canal cruise, sailing round-trip from Fort Lauderdale with Princess Cruises.

The Panama Canal

Having completed our journey ‘up’ to Gatun Lake, we are riding at anchor, awaiting our turn to go back ‘down’ again, and enjoying the views around this amazing Lake – the largest man-made body of water in the world prior to the creation of the Hoover Dam.

Before we know it, it is our turn to pass through again and, this time, we take advantage of the full array of observation points around the ship to see everything from a different perspective; from the Splash Pool area on Deck 16; on the starboard side of Deck 15; down on the Promenade Deck (7), on both sides; and aft on Deck 16 behind the Center Court games area.

It ensures a thorough and well-rounded view of this absolute technological marvel, as well as a glimpse of the brand new channel and set of locks under construction parallel to the existing ones that will more than double the capacity of the Canal from 300,000,000 tons a year to in excess of 600,000,000. Like ‘Wow!’ and then ‘Double wow!’

It is warm and humid but far from uncomfortable – this is the ‘dry’ season, hence easy to bear; from late April to early December, the ‘rainy’ season kicks in with temperatures in the 90s and humidity at 98%, plus constant, heavy downpours that add up to an annual rainfall of more than 140 inches. #Megawet!

By 3.30pm we are in the port city of Colon on the Caribbean end of the Canal’s 50-mile transit, and able to walk off for a look around the small shopping area. We have also been able to watch the full documentary film on the making of the Canal, take lunch at the Bar & Grill and, more importantly, re-charge the camera battery. We already have more than 400 photos of the trip so far, and today will add at least 100 more.

This is a busy port city, with dozens of small frieghters lined up in the bay, while the docks are busy handling large container ships and several huge, box-like car transporters.

 

After a mini shopping expedition we are back on board and in need of a shower and freshen up. We have dinner at Sabatini’s at 7pm tonight, our first chance to sample Princess’s signature alternative restaurant, and we also want to catch comedian Steve Caouette.

Caouette is new on board, having just arrived via Costa Rica and is terrific fun, with a great running gag involving late arrivals to the show. We then head straight for Sabatini’s, and the best meal to date – an Italian extravaganza involving beautifully fresh antipasti, a heavenly mushroom tartlet, calamari, farfalle pasta with meatballs (immensely succulent and delicately flavoured), lobster and duck, then two heavenly desserts (don’t miss their Zabaglione) to finish with, all accompanied by an excellent chianti and service from our Romania waitress, Laura.

As you can immediately tell, that is WAY too much food for two, but, once again, we were suckered in by a fabulous array of tastes, and simply couldn’t help ourselves.

It only remained to waddle our way back to our stateroom and collapse in two distended heaps, with an in-room movie for comfort.

It had been an immense, utterly memorable day and we have already decided that we must return for a full Canal transit at some stage. This is too fascinating a part of the world not to want to see more, but we are equally happy we stayed on board and got the full locks experience both ways for our first visit.

The men who struggled to build the Canal back at the turn of the century deserved our full appreciation, and we would absolutely recommend this trip in a heartbeat.

Tomorrow – Costa Rica.

For more info and bookings – in the UK, call Princess Cruises on 0843 373 0333 or visit the expert cruise agents of The Cruise Line Limited on this link; in the US, call 1866 335 6379, or visit www.princess.com.

 

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The Great Panama Canal Cruise - The Canal, Pt 1

Continuing the daily live blog of our big Panama Canal cruise, sailing round-trip from Fort Lauderdale with Princess Cruises.

The Panama Canal

Our first view of one of the great engineering and human achievements in the world is pretty small-scale – a dim view of lights in the near distance building into a Christmas-tree effect as we get closer.

It is 6am and the first light of dawn is filtering through a heavy overcast, slowly revealing the outline of the Gatun locks of the great Canal, which opened almost 100 years ago.

We have inched up the initial stage of the Canal from Colon, on the Caribbean side of the Isthmus, and, within a few miles, are ready to enter the first part of the three-stage locks that lift ships up some 85ft to the level of Lake Gatun that effectively acts as a ‘bridge’ across this narrow part of Central America.

As it slowly becomes fully light, we can take in the overall effect of this spectacular achievement – the highlight of our cruise and one of the top sights in the wide world of cruising.

We are not here for a full transit but we will see the Gatun locks in action, twice, as we pass through on the way ‘up’ to the lake, then anchor for a while to allow a number of excursions ashore and then turn around and go ‘down’ again to the Caribbean.

It is a truly awe-inspiring sight as we maneuver into the first lock and are attached to four ‘mules’ - $2million train-type engines that maintain the ship’s position through each lock in a continuous pull up the full 85ft ascent.

There are two sets of locks, side by side, and a large freighter is already into the second lock alongside us, demonstrating the smooth, efficient and quite breathtaking transit that takes about an hour.

From our balcony we watch the entire “performance” as all 90,000 tons of the Coral Princess is carefully eased into position, using its own power and the two sets of mules fore and aft, and the first lock is then filled to the level of the second so we can move up in 28ft increments.

Many people are out on deck – and look like they have been there since 5am! – but we have a perfectly good view to start with. We can also enjoy the ultimate indulgence of room service and breakfast on our balcony as we pass through into the third lock.

The onboard lecturer maintains a regular commentary from the Bridge, and this is relayed both out on deck and on the in-cabin TV, ensuring everyone gets the full insight into what we are seeing. The ship’s ‘Bridge-Cam’ TV channel also provides an excellent forward view of the whole process.

It is a thrilling view, a slow-motion ballet of machinery that steadily urges us into the hinterland of Panama, this controversial country caused in a revolutionary breakaway from Colombia in 1903 and supported by the USA in their desire to build the Canal.

The effort took them 10 years and more than 5,000 dead men in a monumental building programme the like of which the world had never seen. It is all brilliantly documented in David McCullough’s book The Path Between The Seas, which also details the tragic French attempts from 1870-1890, and is essential reading for anyone heading this way (and anyone who just loves scintillating, well-written history).

Up in Gatun Lake, the totally man-made body of water created in the final stage of the Canal’s construction, there are another nine ships awaiting their turn to pass ‘down’ the lock chain, and the constant slow passage of traffic through the locks is almost mesmerising.

Next – Canal Pt 2 and Colon.

For more info and bookings – in the UK, call Princess Cruises on 0843 373 0333 or visit the expert cruise agents of The Cruise Line Limited on this link; in the US, call 1866 335 6379, or visit www.princess.com.

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

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Panama Canal Cruise, Day 5 – Colombia

Continuing the day-by-day account of our big Panama Canal cruise, sailing round-trip from Fort Lauderdale with Princess Cruises.

Cartagena

Having sailed smoothly right across the Caribbean Sea, our arrival this morning on the northern coast of South America is a memorable one as we negotiate the islands and navigation entrance to the port of Cartagena, Colombia’s fourth-largest city.

It’s hard to know what to make of this at first, as it isn’t immediately obvious what you’re looking at as Coral Princess moves into position in the big container port docks. On either side is a large, built-up area, with high-rise condos on one side and low-rise urban sprawl on the other. Somewhere in the middle is the 17^th century Old City and the fortress of San Felipe, but neither is visible from our initial vantage point.

It is going to be a hot day – with the forecast for temperatures of 86F, 30C, and no rain, but high humidity – and so it is time to break out the high-factor suncream. It may be March, but sunburn is still a very real danger in this latitude.

We are booked on the City Highlights & Fortress tour, and there is initially some confusion and crowding as half the ship seems intent on assembling in the Bordeaux dining room for the tours. But things are soon sorted out and we are off in plenty of time to meet the fleet of buses waiting along the dock.

Tour No. 9 is our tour, and we are bus No. 6 with Corpus as our guide and Lucco our driver, navigating the crowded morning streets with ease. For the next four-plus hours we are treated to an in-depth look at the history, architecture and culture of this key point in Colombian history dating back to the 16^th century and fighting through the depths of the Inquisition, the maraudings of French and British pirates, an invasion by British-American forces in 1741, and the battle for independence from Spain in 1811.

The Old City is an absolute gem, a masterpiece of colonial Spanish architecture with overtones of San Juan, Havana and St Augustine, and the Fortress provides a magnificent overview of both Old and New sections. Corpus keeps up a steady stream of insightful info and we also get two good shopping stops to view local crafts (and buy some of the excellent local coffee, to top up my supply from Hawaii last December!). The tour concluded with a drive through the new Bocagrande island district, where modern hotels and condos bestride the landscape, along with the inevitable shops and cafes.

The ever-present local vendors and hawkers are a little tiresome but most of them do respond to a polite ‘No, gracias.’

It all makes for a fascinating look at this unique part of the world, where the African slave trade first flourished and gave rise to all kinds of cultural anomalies over the centuries, and we felt there was still plenty of the Old City to explore in a future visit.

The mid-afternoon sailing ensured we got another look at the island entrance route, in bright sunshine this time but, by late afternoon we were back in the south-western reaches of the Caribbean, making full-speed for the Isthmus of Panama, with the promise of an early start (i.e. at first light) tomorrow!ighlightH

Tomorrow – The Canal.

For more info and bookings – in the UK, call Princess Cruises on 0843 373 0333 or visit the expert cruise agents of The Cruise Line Limited on this link; in the US, call 1866 335 6379, or visit www.princess.com.

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

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Panama Canal Cruise, Day 4 – Aruba

Continuing the day-by-day account of our big Panama Canal cruise, sailing round-trip from Fort Lauderdale with Princess Cruises.

Netherlands Antilles

After two full days at sea to get the hang of our sea-going home, we arrived at the island of Aruba bright and early this morning, ready to stretch our legs ashore for the first time since Thursday afternoon.

Curiously, we are here only until 1pm, when we set sail again for Colombia, but it is long enough to have a good wander around the main city of Oranjestad, where we are moored barely five minutes away.

In many ways, it is typical Caribbean port fare – jewellery stores, T-shirt and souvenir kiosks, and cafes. But there is also something not typically Caribbean about Aruba; it is more arid, windswept and barren; it is also far more European, with the Dutch stewardship still well in evidence. The musical sounds are more Latin, and the overall vibe is somehow a distinct mix of all three sources – European, Caribbean and South American.

There are a number of tempting tours on offer, including submarine and snorkeling varieties, but we are happy just to stroll the streets of Oranjestad and take in the shops – and wildlife. Because the island’s trademark iguanas are never far away and the bird and marine life is also rich and well in evidence.

It is a comfortable 30-minute walk from one end of the town to the other, and, while it is pretty hot and humid, it is good to be out and about, although a stop at a harbor-front bar for an ice-cold beer is also a pretty good idea.

We are easily back on board by the appointed mid-day return time, with the chance to see more of Aruba from the top decks before lunch in the Provence dining room.

Our next ‘appointment’ isn’t until 3pm – a well-attended Sommelier’s Wine Tasting session – so we have some more balcony reading time (and more chance to get through the book that has quickly become an addiction, The Path Between The Seas).

We have a 4pm meeting with Hotel Director Martin May to learn a bit more about the ship’s recent refit in Bermuda and get an insight into this particular cruise, which, it turns out, is a classic example of Princess’s Panama Canal operations, with a high repeat factor among the passenger list and a slightly older clientele due to it being more than seven days in duration.

Retreating to the balcony once more, we are enthralled by the sight of an array of gulls and other sea-birds ‘dive-bombing’ our wash to snatch flying-fish out of the air as the fish are startled into flight by our passing. It is an amazing nature lesson – and a fascinating insight into avian evolution, as the birds have obviously learned this tactic over time from other passing ships.

Finally, it is dinner-time again, and we are ushered to a table for eight in the Bordeaux restaurant to enjoy another lively evening of swapping shore excursion stories and other travel tales while enjoying possibly the best meal in the main dining room so far – fresh ceviche, calamari steak and a superb Grand Marnier soufflé.

Once again, we are impressed by the full range of dining choice, and the evening concludes in style with The Ultimate Deck Party as we head for our next port of call, on the South American mainland…

Tomorrow – Cartagena.

For more info and bookings – in the UK, call Princess Cruises on 0843 373 0333 or visit the expert cruise agents of The Cruise Line Limited on this link; in the US, call 1866 335 6379, or visit www.princess.com.

 

 

 

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Tauck's Two For 2014

Tauck has revealed the names of its two new riverboats that will debut next year, and announced that the duo will each be considerably longer than the four sister-ships currently in the company’s fleet. 

The newcomers will be MS Inspire and MS Savor,and will measure 443ft long, compared to Tauck’s existing ships which each measure 361ft. But, despite being 23% longer, the two newbuilds will only accommodate 130 guests each, or just 10% more than its current fleet (like MS Swiss Emerald, above). 

 

CEO Dan Mahar explained: “Our existing riverboats – what we’re now calling our Jewel Class vessels – already have the lowest passenger-to-ship-length ratio on Europe’s rivers. The two new riverboats – our Inspiration Class vessels – actually raise the bar even higher.

 

“When these ships launch next year they’ll each have just 130 guests aboard, whereas other major lines carry up to 190 on the same length ships. That’s an additional 46% more passengers aboard ships of the same length.  You simply can’t deliver the same relaxed, intimate atmosphere when you put nearly 50% more passengers into the same space.” 

 

Even though Tauck’s newbuilds will have far fewer guests aboard, the the company says they will nonetheless be staffed with more service personnel than any other river cruise line. Mahar added:  “Each Inspiration Class riverboat will have a Tauck Cruise Director and three Tauck Directors aboard to attend to guests’ needs and provide exemplary service. By contrast, other ships carrying more guests are often staffed by just a single cruise director.”

 

The Tauck Directors will also accompany shore excursions, according to Mahar, where they’ll divide guests into small groups of no more than 25, with each group personally guided by a local expert.  “River cruises offer incredible opportunities for authentic, in-depth explorations of each destination, so we place tremendous emphasis on ensuring our shore excursions – all of which are included in our prices – are absolutely world-class.”

 

For more info, call Tauck at 1800 468 2825, or visit www.tauck.com. In the UK, contact the leading river-cruise agent specialists, The Cruise Line Ltd, on 0800 008 6677.

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