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Panama Canal! Vision of the Seas Oct. 30, 2019


twangster

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Day 16 - Sea Day

Back in familiar waters.

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Captain reports we are on schedule for a 7am arrival.

Solarium roof was open again.  Enough pictures of that.

Typical sea day except it involved packing.  Ugh.  The cruise is nearly over.

TNF by the pool.  The football feed we are receiving has no vocals, just game noise.  Even the commercials have no vocals.  Oh well, it works.  

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7 hours ago, twangster said:

Our bus dropped us off at the other end of the cruise terminal.  The cruise terminal in Cartagena is kind of unique.  It includes an eco park.

Giant anteater.

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There are two aviaries within the park.

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Oh, my heart!!!  During my zoo keeping time, I was privileged to care for half a dozen toucans, and they were, by far, the most enjoyable birds that I ever worked with (even though one of them had a habit of rapping me in the back of the head if I wasn't quick enough with his grapes), and anteaters were a dream of mine to care for, but we never acquired one.  I love all of those toothless wonders   ?

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Day 17 - Ft. Lauderdale

After 4,890 nautical miles we have arrived into Port Everglades terminal 18.  That's a new personal best for a single sailing and longer than my transatlantic last year.

Nice sunrise for our arrival.

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Our cruise...

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Windjammer open from 5:30am to 8:30am, Dining Room 6:30am to 8am.

I was told to go with the last luggage tag number 31 leaving at 9:45am to meet my shuttle to Port Miami.  

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A word about Voom.  Vision uses the older satellite technology but having said I was able to make long phone calls and stream content using Surf and Stream.  While it isn't as snappy as the new technology used on newer ship, it worked fine for me with the understanding this is satellite based internet and not the internet I have at home.

Voom results for the cruise:

Date                      Download        Upload         Latency 

10/30/19 21:45       2.074            2.779            557 
10/31/19 8:58         3.726            4.233            584 
11/1/19 10:11         3.474            3.447            587 
11/3/19 10:33         2.752            2.566            552 
11/4/19 9:04           3.576            2.243            578 
11/5/19 8:42           2.645            2.998            671 
11/6/19 8:05           2.631            2.573            675 
11/7/19 15:25         3.316            2.303            709 
11/8/19 14:58         2.192            2.496            674 
11/9/19 11:37         2.22              2.095            676 
11/10/19 7:08         2.523            3.065            664 
11/12/19 9:00         1.641            2.676            663 
11/13/19 7:44         1.13              2.016            669 
11/13/19 9:07         2.504            2.676            670 
11/14/19 8:40         2.557            2.799            666

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Cruise Summary

This was another bucket list cruise that lives up to that reputation.

It introduced me to several new destinations that each warrant a return visit.  Puntarenas and Cartagena stand out as top ports while the transit of the Panama Canal completely lived up to all my expectations.  Simply wow.  

This is my second time on Vision of the Seas and she fulfilled everything I needed for this cruise.  An issue with my cabin temperature was fixed within two hours on day one and I had no issues for the remainder of the cruise.  The crew were fantastic in all respects.  

The only thing I can think to complain about was the lack of enough tenders in Cabo San Lucas.  Using the four dual purpose lifeboat/tenders from the ship simply wasn't enough and it impacted out useable time in port.  The ship offered a lot of excuses for this but at the end of the day if they can't figure out how to execute tendering in Cabo they should drop the port. Fortunately I've been there before and it wasn't the reason I booked this cruise.

Seeing the operation of the Panama Canal locks firsthand and up close was amazing and I'm glad I experienced the original Panama Canal.  It's not an experience I'll soon forget.

When I return I'll spend more time down low watching all the action from lock level.  

My decision to save money by booking an ocean view cabin worked out fine.  Looking back I don't think I missed out by not having a balcony or suite.  Even if I had a balcony I wouldn't stay out there for the canal transit as there is too much to see on both sides of the ship.  Balconies were more than twice the price of my cabin so not only did my savings cover my stay on the Queen Mary, excursions and airfare but also left enough to pay for my next two cruises.

I have a few other bucket list type cruises in the future but I'll be looking out for another Panama Canal cruise after those.  

I hope you enjoyed following along and I thank you for viewing.

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5 hours ago, twangster said:

The only thing I can think to complain about was the lack of enough tenders in Cabo San Lucas.  Using the four dual purpose lifeboat/tenders from the ship simply wasn't enough and it impacted out useable time in port.  The ship offered a lot of excuses for this but at the end of the day if they can't figure out how to execute tendering in Cabo they should drop the port. Fortunately I've been there before and it wasn't the reason I booked this cruise.

 

I hope you enjoyed following along and I thank you for viewing.

This was a great blog! Thank you!!! I really enjoyed it.

NCL Bliss also tender in Los Cabos, how do they manage the tendering of double the passengers than VOS?

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1 minute ago, carlosalonsor said:

This was a great blog! Thank you!!! I really enjoyed it.

NCL Bliss also tender in Los Cabos, how do they manage the tendering of double the passengers than VOS?

They buy every local tender boat - literally all of them, for the day.   Cabo isn't set up for big ships so when one is in port it consumes all available resources.

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Thanks so much for sharing your impressions and all of the amazing pics.

DH went through the canal on numerous occasions back in the days when he worked on the old Sitmar line but I have never been and it's bucket list for me too. Aiming for three years from now to celebrate a landmark anniversary. 

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Follow up on the transfer to the Port of Miami.  Royal offered this for free. 

I left my cabin around 7:30am to let my cabin attendant prep it for the next guest and hung out in the Schooner Bar.  Voom worked until 9am when they cycled it for the next cruise.  

Around 9:45am I got off and made my way through CBP.  No facial recognition in terminal 18 yet.  Outside I went to the right where buses for airport transfers purchased from Royal meet.  They put me on the Miami airport bus and around 10.40am we left terminal 18 in Port Everglades.

We stopped twice at Miami airport at two different terminals where the bulk of folks got off.  We then proceeded to the port.  First stop terminal A and Navigator where two guests got off.  Next stop terminal G for Empress where 6 guests got off.  It was pretty close to noon when we reached Empress.  

Painless check in and onto the ship.  Beverage in hand at 12:23pm.  Lyft was $36 and Uber was $39 so with tip that was roughly a $40 savings.  

I really appreciated this extra effort from Royal.  Loyalty pays.

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Just an amazing live blog, @twangster! Thanks so much for sharing. I’ve mulled over whether I might want to do this kind of trip some day, and while it’s still in the “some day” bucket it’s a solid, “Yeah, I’d definitely like to experience this.”

The part of me that’s always enjoyed taking things apart and figuring out how they work is busting at the seams to get a close look at those locks.

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  • 2 years later...

@twangster, I know this thread has “a few years” on it, but just wanted to say thanks for your wonderful pictures and commentary. 
 

I’ve booked a Westbound Panama Canal cruise for April 2023 (Galveston to LA).  Reading this thread has been so helpful (especially vantage points transiting  the canal).  
 

My itinerary also has Cartagena, and I can’t wait, as your photos showed the beauty of the old town. 
 

Do you know whether Royal always has a commentator on board for the full transits?  sure hope so. 
 

Thanks again for your details and photos. 


 

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11 minutes ago, Zurc said:

@twangster, I know this thread has “a few years” on it, but just wanted to say thanks for your wonderful pictures and commentary. 
 

I’ve booked a Westbound Panama Canal cruise for April 2023 (Galveston to LA).  Reading this thread has been so helpful (especially vantage points transiting  the canal).  
 

My itinerary also has Cartagena, and I can’t wait, as your photos showed the beauty of the old town. 
 

Do you know whether Royal always has a commentator on board for the full transits?  sure hope so. 
 

Thanks again for your details and photos. 


 

There was a commentator on board for my transit.  He provided a lot of useful information.  

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10 minutes ago, twangster said:

There was a commentator on board for my transit.  He provided a lot of useful information.  

Yes, When I read those posts about him (loved that he had extensive  experience working at the canal), I was hopeful that this would be a regular feature on Royal ships.  Keeping my fingers crossed .

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  • twangster changed the title to Panama Canal! Vision of the Seas Oct. 30, 2019

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