Panama Canal Partial Tour - Southbound Direction
Description
• Be the protagonist in your Panama Canal Tour • Navigate through the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks. • Enjoy the action of the Panama Canal's operation. • Get indulge in history dating more than 100 years old! • Experience the Panama Canal in the comfort and spacious M/V Pacific Queen. • The M/V Pacific Queen offers two areas for better comfort: opened and air conditioned decks • Meet our Captain Claudio and the Panama Canal's pilot in our open Bridge.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Our check in point is at Flamenco Marina, located on the last island of the Amador Causeway. It is right next to the Panama sign and behind the Duty Free Shop. The exact tour time will be confirmed the day before. The time shown on the booking platform is approximate. Please check your email the day before the tour for the final details. Our tour starts at the Flamenco Resort and Marina. Passengers board motor coaches for a 45-minute ride to the town of Gamboa where the Panama Canal Dredging Division is located. Once in Gamboa, passengers board the Pacific Queen to start the water portion of the tour.
Panama's Centennial Bridge is a major bridge crossing the Panama Canal. It was built to supplement the overcrowded Bridge of the Americas and to replace it as the carrier of the Pan-American Highway. Upon its opening in 2004, it became the second permanent crossing of the canal.
The Panama Canal partial transit tour begins at the north end of the Gailard cut, where the Chagres River flows into the canal. The Gaillard Cut (also known as Culebra Cut because its curves resemble a snake) is one of the main points of interest for visitors because it was carved through the Continental Divide and this section of the Canal is full of history and geological value. Before reaching the Pedro Miguel Locks at the southern end of the Cut, you will be able to view the Centennial Bridge which crosses over the Canal. Next, the Pacific Queen will enter Pedro Miguel Locks, which is one of the two sets of locks on the Pacific side. You will then enter Miraflores Lake, which is a small artificial body of fresh water that separates Pedro Miguel from Miraflores Locks, the latter being the final set of locks before reaching the Pacific Ocean. Once in the Pacific Ocean the vessel will sail to the beautiful Flamenco Marina where passengers disembark.
The Bridge of the Americas is a road bridge in Panama, which spans the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. Designed by Sverdrup & Parcel, it was completed in 1962 at a cost of US$20 million, connecting the north and south American land masses.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Please Note: The exact check-in time will be confirmed the day before your tour via email. Please make sure you check your inbox.
Reviews(573)
If you choose one thing to do to experience and learn about the Panama Canal, this is your tour! We learned so much from Patrick, the tour narrator, during this canal excursion. You won’t be disappointed If you want to see how the canal really functions. The lunch they provided was good as well!
When I share with friends and family that we actually experienced traveling through the canal, everyone is amazed and intrigued. A bucket list item for sure with a delicious buffet and icy cold air conditioning, we may take the north bound direction when we return to Panama because it was just that good.
The cruise down the Canal was the highlight of my trip to Panama. We were there on a family vacation. The Canal tour was relaxing, informative and an overall wonderful experience. Seeing the operation of the locks up close was awesome! The arrangements were seamless and the staff was very professional. The tour guide was excellent and kept us well-informed throughout the duration of the tour. We visited the Miraflores locks the previous day, however, transiting the Canal and seeing the operation up close, give a far greater appreciation of the engineering feat that is the Panama Canal. I highly recommend this tour.
The tour company was very efficient and provided a great experience. The boat was comfortable, with air conditioned spaces, and provided a constant narrative and the lunch was good. We would definitely use this company again.
Tour was amazing. You learn a lot. Views from the boat is fantastic. Be well prepared for the weather, with sun screen if too hot etc. Food on boat was good and just enough. Overall a lovely tour.
The starting time changed a couple of times, so don’t count on that, but overall the experience was great. The guide was exceptionally knowledgeable and friendly, the food was pretty good, and if you’re interested in the whole engineering thing, it’s pretty darn amazing and informative.
Pick up was on time, guide did not talk too much - the information presented was relevant and accurate, lunch was also tasty!
Super recommend the walk! It is suitable for families (children and the elderly). It is super interesting to make a pass of the 3 composts and the explanations of the guide José (in Spanish and English) very informative form. I would like to inform you that they do not have the possibility to adapt the menu to dietary restrictions but are free from carrying food. Thank you to the whole team! Thank you!
The tour was all I had hoped it would be! I remember reading about the Gaillard Cut (aka the Culebra Cut) back in elementary school. To cruise through this monument to human endurance and engineering ingenuity was a thrill. It was equally thrilling to enter the original hundred-year-old locks, sharing the chambers with a gigantic oil tanker as we descended in stages from Lake Gatun to the Pacific Ocean. The staff was friendly and the bus and boat were very comfortable. My only complaint is that the check-in process was hot and hectic. I got there quite early to myself time to find the check in spot (which turned out to be fairly easy. It's a small office-like kiosk outdoors, next to the big Panama letters.) But no one was there until 15 minutes before the check-in time and no check-ins were done until 5 minutes before the check-in time. In the meantime, travelers must wait in an area with little seating and less shade. However, once that was done, you can enter the air-conditioned bus. So, all was soon well.
Be patient, have sunscreen, a fan, a cooling towel and a hat! The food is delicious and the tour guide is very knowledgeable!! Note to company: It would be great to have music playing during the times when travelers are waiting. Also an afternoon snack should be included.
