Panama Canal crossing

[Dan S.]

We booked the Panama Canal crossing from Tampa to L.A for next April on Radiance of the Seas. Is there any possibility that this will be cancelled due to the drought that is affecting the canal?

[steverk]

1 hour ago, Dan S. said:

We booked the Panama Canal crossing from Tampa to L.A for next April on Radiance of the Seas. Is there any possibility that this will be cancelled due to the drought that is affecting the canal?

Anything is possible, but I'd regard it as unlikely to be cancelled. Radiance has to get to the west coast for the Alaska sailing season. 

If the canal were to close down entirely, Royal would have to cancel, but how likely is that? 

Most of the canal cruises that have been cancelled were partial transits or pass through, then turn around and come back.  I'm not sure exactly how the canal traffic is prioritized, but I suspect those crossings would be considered lowest priority.

[twangster]

The canal will take anyone's money, they don't care if the ship is green, blue or black, cargo, bulk carrier, tanker or passenger.  

More ships are paying the reservation fee to go through on a guaranteed basis, cruise ships always did this since they can sit at anchor for days waiting for the cheaper service.

The only question becomes how much might the canal raise prices?  Will an extra $200k-$300k transit charge cause Royal to cancel an entire Alaska season?  Or do they just find a way to nudge up cruise fares to cover it?

[14Terry]

Dan, congratulations on booking the cruise! We’ll be cruising together. 122 days away !