Panama Canal Cruises

Summary The provincial capital of Colón, beside the canal's Atlantic entrance, is named for the Spanish-language surname of Christopher Columbus, though the Americans called it Aspinwall in the 19th century.. The city was founded in 1850 by Americans working on the Panama railroad and named Aspinwall for one of the railway engineers. Following completion in 1855, Colon gained in importance, which was furthered by the plans for an isthmian canal. During the time of the French canal attempt, a fire in 1885 burned the city nearly to the ground and left thousands of people homeless. Colon was rebuilt in the architectural style then popular in France. Buildings from that era plus the ones constructed by Americans between 1904 and 1914 are still in use today, although the majority is on the verge of collapse. In addition to its importance as a port, Colon boasts the world’s second largest duty-free zone, known as Zona Libre, which is contained in a huge fortress like, walled-off area with giant international stores. However, most of the merchandise is sold in bulk to commercial businesses throughout the country.

Summary

Fuerte Amador is a growing port in the Pacific side of the Panama Canal. It is situated near to Panama City, which is a fascinating mix of old in the Old Town of the city, with charming winding cobbled streets and Spanish Colonial buildings, with balconies and bourgainvillea draping down - and new, with shiny skyscrapers, fantastic shopping and sleek buildings in the new part of the city. 

It is located near the Miraflores Locks, where ships can be viewed passing through the engineering marvel that is the Panama Canal. 

Summary

Panama City is the capital of Panama. It is a fascinating mix of old in the Old Town of the city, with charming winding cobbled streets and Spanish Colonial buildings, with balconies and bourgainvillea draping down - and new, with shiny skyscrapers, fantastic shopping and sleek buildings in the new part of the city. 

It is located near the Miraflores Locks, where ships can be viewed passing through the engineering marvel that is the Panama Canal. 

Summary

Gatun Lake is a man made freshwater lake to the south of Colón, Panama. It carries ships 33km of the way along the Canal. It was created by building the Gatun Dam across the Chagres River from 1907-1913. It is also the name of the most famous of the canal's locks - the Gatun Locks, which are located at the entrance into the canal from the lake. 

Cruise ships sail into the lake on half and full Panama Canal transits. It isn't a port itself, but some ships stop here, where shore excursion tender boats take guests out to explore the lake and area more from a moored point in the lake, before continuing the canal transit.

Local wildlife often be seen from the ship while in the lake. 

Summary

Bocas del Toro - mouth of the bull - is a town and province in Panama, located on the southern tip of Isla Colón, in the Caribbean Sea.

It is a fantastic place to visit for nature lovers. To the north, Bird Island hosts the rare red-billed tropic bird. It is home to stunning beaches, including the sheltered Starfish Beach to the northwest and popular surfing spot Bluff Beach, to the east. 

Local artisans sell their hand made wares in Simón Bolívar Park in the town centre. 

Summary

Isla Parida is a beautiful uninhabited island, and the largest island in Panama’s Chiriqui Gulf National Marine Park, located on the Pacific Ocean side of Panama.

It was given UNESCO protective status in 1994, UNESCO along with the group of islands in the archipelago that it belongs to, that spans 57 miles. 

The island's soft sandy beaches attrack wildlife including seabirds and turtles. The island has interesting ecosystems, with mangrove swamps, marine meadows. tropical forests and 19 coral reefs.

Cruise ships are required to obtain a special permit before visiting the national park and then must anchor in the sea while the passengers are transported by inflatable boats to the wondrous nature.

Summary

Cristobal is the port for Colon, on the western edges of Manzanillo Island. It is named after the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, who landed there in 1502. 

It is located in Limon Bay, at the southeastern part of Colon city, at the Atlantic entrance of the Panama Canal. 

15,000 cruise ships dock here annually and is is an important seaport for routes across the Caribbean and Atlantic Ocean. It is surrouned by high-rise towns and rainforest, home to many species of birds and nine ancient indigenous tribes. 

Summary The San Blas archipelago is located off the Caribbean coast, east of Colon, and is made up of 365 islands that range in size from tiny ones with a few coconut palms to islands on which hundreds of Kuna Indians live. Only about fifty are inhabited. The Kuna rule the San Blas Territory with internal autonomy, and have tightly preserved their language and cultural traditions over the centuries despite influences from European colonies. In addition to their own language, Spanish is widely spoken and many men work on the mainland, but live on the islands. Women wear costumes with unique designs based on local themes, geometric patterns, and stylised fauna and flora. The island of El Porvenir is one of the main seats of government for the Kuna Indians. Many Kunas from the other islands came to settle on El Porvenir, bringing with them their traditional arts and crafts, including the famous molas. These intricately hand-sewn designs are made by the women of the tribes as part of their blouses and dresses. With the increased tourism, molas are now a favoured souvenir and craft item for visitors.

Summary

Darien National Park forms a bridge between North and South America. The park has varied habitats, with rocky coasts, sandy beaches, mangroves, swamps and tropical rainforests with a plethora of wildlife. 

Two ancient traditional tribes live in the rainforest. 

Summary

Portobelo earns its name, which means beautiful. This historic port, founded in 1597 is in Colon province in Panama, near the Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal. 

Colonial Spanish forts and lush vegetation surround the quaint port with small fishing boats in this pretty town that was once the largest colonial Spanish port in Central America, and is why is it now a UNESCO World Heritage site. 

Summary

The Pearl Islands in Panama were once only a destination for the rich and famous, but have recently become accessible to others, to experience their natural beauty.

The archipelago off the Pacific coast in the Gulf of Panama has more than 200, mostly uninhabited islands.

The largest island is Isla Del Rey. Favourite islands with tourists are Contadora Island, which has 13 beaches, and Isla Saboga.

The Pearl Islands offer beautiful white sand beaches, scuba diving and whale watching and is popular with nature lovers to see the wildlife. 

Summary

Balboa is the port for Panama City, which is the capital of Panama.

It is a fascinating mix of old in the Old Town of the city, with charming winding cobbled streets and Spanish Colonial buildings, with balconies and bourgainvillea draping down - and new, with shiny skyscrapers, fantastic shopping and sleek buildings in the new part of the city. 

It is located near the Miraflores Locks, where ships can be viewed passing through the engineering marvel that is the Panama Canal.