papa55 - If this is your first cruise to the canal zone I would most heartily recommend crossing the isthmus by rail and taking the canal ferry through the canal since the CCL Freedom does not transit the Canal itself. The CCL tour may seem pricey but it is well worth it for the experience! Other than that I suggest the tour of the port city of Portobello (quite famous in pirate lore) wirh a stop at the Locks - it is less expensive but it is a nice tour.
I will be taking the CCL Freedom in January 2011 on the same itinerary!
Bon Voyage,
BillyBuzzy
Posts: 1331 | Location: Connecticut | Registered: January 19, 2006
Papa, if you enjoy nature and wildlife, taking a tour of the Tortuguero Canals in Costa Rica is a must as far as we are concerned. The boats take you into the rainforest where you can see all sorts of wildlife including monkeys. We booked our tour through RCCL. The tour also included a side trip to a banana plantation and a light meal.
In Panama, I would just add that no matter what excursion you take, be sure it includes a trip through the locks. It is the main reason for going to Panama!
We did the Tortuguero Canals trip with OKEY DOKEY tours it was a great day with lunch at the beach. charlie puts on a good tour and if you can find other on your ship to join you the price is more reasonable
Papa, are you talking about the Tortuguero Canals or Panama? The tour of the Tortuguero, you actually take a boat through canals in the rainforest.
The Panama Canal, I'm not sure about the tours. On our first cruise to the Canal, our ship docked at Colon. We took the train ride to Panama City and it was a wonderful trip. Our disappointment was that we never saw the locks. BillyBuzzy's tour suggestions would give you a good overall view of Panama and the Canal.
It sounds like you will have a wonderful cruise. Enjoy the planning!
We stayed on the ship for the Panama Canal our ship did not stop there. The second trip we stopped in Colon & people did the canal tour by boat ..they were delayed getting through the locks & ended up with a police escort back to the ship
Thank you so much for sharing your pictures. I'm going to have to put off my Panama Canal cruise until 2011, so that has made me all the more excited about going. Who knows, maybe my luck will change
panama took excursion visiting the locks,historical district[oldest church with gold altar]and lunch amongst downtown skyscrapers and beautiful skyline. was one of our best shore excursions of some 15 cruises.costa rica took a big off road truck[held 25 people]to banana plantation and rain forest was disapointed except seeing the poisonous tree frogs.booked both off carnival
Hi Im doing Panama and Costa Rica in February, it was great to see the pictures and get the advice on what to do. The police escort sounds exciting - perhaps I had better make sure I do the trip with RCI just in case!
Originally posted by cruisingUK: Hi Im doing Panama and Costa Rica in February, it was great to see the pictures and get the advice on what to do. The police escort sounds exciting - perhaps I had better make sure I do the trip with RCI just in case!
Papa -- I have never cruised to Costa Rica, but I have spent an extensive amount of time there - most of it on the Caribbean coast. We spend most of our time in a little town called Puerto Viejo which is about an hour drive south of Limon - we like it so much we even bought land there. Limon is a horrible place - dirty and a lot of crime. We lock our doors and get out as fast as possible. So I wouldn't recommend spending any time there. However, everything south of Limon is delightful. It is very easy to drive there and very easy to get around once you get out of Limon. I would really urge you to rent a car and go south of Limon. You might want to rent a GPS too just to get out of Limon. Roads are not marked well there. But there is only one major road going south, so it's no problem to follow it. In recent years the road has been repaired and is now in very good condition. We were just there last month with no problems. I believe you could probably hire a driver too, but we always drive ourselves.
The drive along the coast south of Limon is beautiful. If you have an entire day there, you'll have plenty of time to see all sorts of things. You can head south with either Puerto Viejo or Cahuita as your destination. Stop along the way (about half way) at the Sloth Sanctuary for an up-close, personal encounter with these amazing creatures. Skip the boring canoe trip there - just stop to see and touch the residents -- lots of photo ops and amazing information.
Head on south from there. You'll enter a national wildlife refuge. Don't let the armed guards worry you -- they are there to prohibit drug smuggling from Panama and to stop the smuggling of wildlife. They generally don't stop tourists at all. There is a national park at Cahuita with great facilities and gorgeous beaches. You can stroll along a well marked trail and see howler monkeys in the trees above you. We usually see iguanas too. The beaches are beautiful. If you are into snorkeling, you can pay a guide to take you out to the reef - it's too far out to go from the beach. They have markers on the bottom to tell you what you're looking at. It's a live reef with a lot of colorful coral and gorgeous fish -- just gorgeous. There are also good restaurants in Cahuita.
If you skip Cahuita and head on south, go to Puerto Viejo. The road will turn to dirt - just slow down and forge on -- its worth it! There is a hidden little surfer town with a vibe all its own. Lots of little shops and phenomenal restaurants. English is widely spoken there. You'll meet people from all over the world. Head on through town, just to the south to Playa Cocles. You'll see a little inn on your right called La Isla Inn -- stop for some good food or just a cold drink. The beach across the street is gorgeous and is the only one in the area with a lifeguard. You can rent surf boards or take a surf class if you're adventurous. There is surf most of the year.
