Holland America Panama Canal Cruise

Since its inception nearly a century, the Panama Canal was considered one of the engineering wonders of the world's most important. This 51-mile passage between the oceans can save a ship of over 7,000 miles of transit in South America, and continues to surprise the cruise passengers. Princess Cruises ships have long offered a front-line of the Panama Canal, and in 2011-12 the line will offer 38 cruises to these destinations signature, with five different route options.

The history of the Panama Canal adds to his status as "must see" destination. The construction project the most expensive in the history of the United States at the time, "Great Divide" has taken over 30 years to build at a cost of $ 375 million. The long history of the Canal included efforts to build two different nations and the creation of an independent Panama. In total, the construction of the canal involved as much as 80,000 workers and the excavation of approximately 268 million cubic meters of earth.

Today the canal provides passage to about 14,000 vessels a year. Princess passengers sailing on the canal you will enjoy the facilities of two ships specially built for the Panama Canal cruise - Coral Princess and Island Princess. The sides of these vessels just above the massive locks that use an average of 52 million gallons of water in each room as they eventually raise and lower ships a total of 170 feet as they pass between the Caribbean and Pacific during the transit of nine.

"Their ships were transiting the Panama Canal for 40 years and, in fact, we even called Coral Princess as it moved through the channel," said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises' executive vice president . "There's really no better way to observe the fascinating process as the ship transits each lock from the decks of our boats -. It is a great way to experience this engineering marvel"

Princess' unique two-day channel, available on many more departures, combines a complete transit of the canal, including the Miraflores, Pedro Miguel and Gatun Locks, with a second day in Panama at Fuerte Amador. This extra day gives passengers time to explore other Panama with excursions such as riding the Panama Canal Railway, explore a rainforest, visiting the Embera Indian village or hiking authentic Animated Panama City.

Beyond the Panama Canal, these routes offer calls in the Caribbean islands , Riviera Mexican resort towns, and a number of exciting ports of Central America. In Costa Rica, passengers will discover a land of tropical forests, coffee plantations and lush coastline of white sand against a backdrop of majestic mountains. In San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, this picturesque fishing village offers beautiful white sand beaches and rich green, while the nearby city of Granada is the oldest city in Central America.

Panama Canal routes:

Panama Canal-Two Experience Day Cruises - Coral Princess and Island Princess will feature three routes with Princess' Day Two-channel experience - a full Panama Canal transit combined with a full day in Fuerte Amador on the Pacific coast of Panama. The sails 14-day route between Fort. Lauderdale and Los Angeles with stops in Aruba, Cartagena, and Puntarenas (Costa Rica) in addition to the two-day Canal experience. A 15-day option offers an additional call at Puerto Quetzal (Guatemala). And another option sails 15-day San Francisco to Ft Lauderdale with stops in Cabo San Lucas, Puntarenas (Costa Rica), Cartagena, and A.