News: More Holland America Panama Canal Cruises
Cruise close to home with Holland America Panama Canal cruises
If you’re yearning to transit the lakes and locks on a Holland America Panama Canal cruise, you’re in luck. The cruise line will have eight ships and 19 cruises from which to choose. The new cruises begin this fall and continue through spring 2018. Two partial transits are included with Holland America’s Sunfarer Southern Caribbean itineraries aboard the Zuiderdam.
During the 2017–18 season, Holland America Line will offer full and partial Panama Canal transits that range from 14 to 23 days.
Cruise not one but two oceans
From September 2017 through May 2018 there will be a total of 19 Panama Canal full transits between the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean departing from five North American cities. Departure cities include Boston, Mass.; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; San Diego and San Francisco, California; and Vancouver, British Columbia.
Full-transit passengers will visit ports in Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua and the Caribbean. In addition, almost all sailings offer a visit to Half Moon Cay, Holland America Line’s private island known in the Bahamas.
Ships scheduled for these 19 cruises include ms Amsterdam, ms Eurodam, ms Maasdam, ms Nieuw Amsterdam, ms Oosterdam, ms Westerdam and ms Zaandam.
Partial Transits and Southern Caribbean ports
Zuiderdam will make sixteen partial transits between November 2017 and April 2018. The 10- and 11-day Southern Caribbean & Panama Canal Sunfarer itineraries include a sailing on the Canal’s Gatún Lake. Southern Caribbean cruises will visit ports in Aruba, Bonaire, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Grand Cayman, Panama and Half Moon Cay.
New Explorations Central (EXC) Brings Panamanian Culture on Board
Throughout the voyages, Explorations Central activities bring Panama’s local traditions, culinary tastes and cultural experiences on board. With EXC Encounters, guests can practice their language skills, learn the local customs, or catch up on forgotten geography.
Enrichment lectures include a telling of the history of constructing the canal. A pop-up Panamanian food market on the Lido Deck ifeatures regional food favorites like empanadas, arroz con pollo, ropa vieja and pastel de tres leches.
The EXC Team lends insight at each port. Online EXC Port Planners, in partnership with AFAR Media, offer tips and information for each destination. Plus, the in-stateroom EXC TV Channel will run a selection of films, documentaries and TV shows that feature destinations on the ship’s itinerary.
