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The Panama Canal & Costa Rica
Eastbound
Tour Description:
Marvel in awe of one of the greatest engineering feats of the 20th century... cruise along the canal that revolutionized shipping patterns... gaze in awe as you pass the tropical forests, secluded beaches, diverse wildlife and clear waters that make up Costa Rica and Panama, and whose many treasures remain undisturbed by development.
A 7-night voyage aboard Ponant's Explorer Class yacht features a complete transit of the Panama Canal, and an opportunity for cultural exchange with locals in Panama and along Costa Rica's Pacific coast. Explore the rich interior and its abundant wildlife with our expert naturalists. Go swimming or snorkeling, land on islands via tender or Zodiac craft, visit a gold museum in San José and learn how coffee beans are harvested and brewed to perfection. Experience the pleasures of Tauck small ship cruising on a Panama Canal and Costa Rica cruise!
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Dates & Pricing
| Saturday 11 Jan 25 — Wednesday 22 Jan 25 | Starting at $9,390 |  SPECIAL | Get a Quote |
| Saturday 25 Jan 25 — Wednesday 05 Feb 25 | Starting at $8,990 | SPECIAL | Get a Quote |
Disclaimer: Prices listed are per person, based on double occupancy, and in USD. All promotions are valid for new bookings only, capacity controlled and valid on select dates and departures. Individual Terms and Conditions will apply to all promotions. Any promotion can be withdrawn at any time without notice. Please speak with your Pavlus Travel Planner for complete vendor terms and conditions, including eligible tour and cruise dates.
Destination & Sightseeing
Destination & Sightseeing
Marvel in awe of one of the greatest engineering feats of the 20th century... cruise along the canal that revolutionized shipping patterns... gaze in awe as you pass the tropical forests, secluded beaches, diverse wildlife and clear waters that make up Costa Rica and Panama, and whose many treasures remain undisturbed by development.
A 7-night voyage aboard Ponant's Explorer Class yacht features a complete transit of the Panama Canal, and an opportunity for cultural exchange with locals in Panama and along Costa Rica's Pacific coast. Explore the rich interior and its abundant wildlife with our expert naturalists. Go swimming or snorkeling, land on islands via tender or Zodiac craft, visit a gold museum in San José and learn how coffee beans are harvested and brewed to perfection. Experience the pleasures of Tauck small ship cruising on a Panama Canal and Costa Rica cruise!
Highlights
Tauck's experienced naturalist, Tauck Director and local guides join the cruise aboard ship, leading excursions ashore to enrich your experience of the jungle, water and flora & fauna
Visits to Carara National Park in Costa Rica, the Darien and the San Blas Islands
Tauck's private shore excursions and distinctive inclusions valued at $3,147
7-night cruise aboard one of Ponant's Explorer Class yacht
Your cruise may be a shared ship experience with non-Tauck guests onboard as well; all Tauck guests will be accompanied by one Tauck Director for approximately every 40 Tauck guests, and your itinerary will always be highlighted by exclusive, private Tauck shore excursions
Full small-ship transit of the Panama Canal with onboard commentary by a local expert
Highlights
Tauck's experienced naturalist, Tauck Director and local guides join the cruise aboard ship, leading excursions ashore to enrich your experience of the jungle, water and flora & fauna
Visits to Carara National Park in Costa Rica, the Darien and the San Blas Islands
Tauck's private shore excursions and distinctive inclusions valued at $3,147
7-night cruise aboard one of Ponant's Explorer Class yacht
Your cruise may be a shared ship experience with non-Tauck guests onboard as well; all Tauck guests will be accompanied by one Tauck Director for approximately every 40 Tauck guests, and your itinerary will always be highlighted by exclusive, private Tauck shore excursions
Full small-ship transit of the Panama Canal with onboard commentary by a local expert
ITINERARY
ITINERARYArrive San José
Tour begins: San José. Welcome to Costa Rica! A transfer is included from Juan Santamaria International Airport to the Costa Rica Marriott Hotel San José or InterContinental Costa Rica at Multiplaza Mall. Join us this evening for a welcome reception and dinner at the hotel.
San José gold & Sarchi crafts
San José city sightseeing today includes visits to the Baroque-style, 19th-century National Theatre, a grand symbol of civic pride dating back to 1897 – its interior glistens with Baroque gold overlays and Carrara marble – and the Gold Museum, which houses pre-Columbian works of gold crafted by indigenous islanders. After lunch at a local restaurant, visit Sarchi, an artisans' hamlet outside of San José where workshops display the traditional painted carretas (ox carts) and other handmade products bearing the colorful starburst designs that have become a symbol of Costa Rica. After returning to the hotel, the rest of the afternoon and evening is free to spend as you wish in San José.
Coffee, waterfalls, wildlife & your cruise begins
Near-perfect growing conditions have made coffee one of Costa Rica's most important exports. Today you'll visit the Doka Coffee Plantation, located on the fertile slopes of Alajuela's Poás Volcano, where the soil and altitude make for ideal growing conditions. Your guide explains how the beans are produced and roasted and how different microclimates affect the taste. Also explore and have lunch at La Paz Waterfall Gardens, a private rainforest eco-park and wildlife refuge known for spectacular waterfalls and flowing white rivers; this protected reserve buzzes with the sounds and sights of wildlife including toucans, butterflies, spider monkeys, two-toed sloths and red-eyed leaf frogs – to name a few of the 100+ species. Embark your ship late this afternoon in Puntarenas for the start of your Panama Canal cruise.
Carara National Park & Pura Vida Gardens
Your ship arrives at Punta Leona for a choice of shore excursions offering a range of eco-activities. One includes a walking tour in Carara National Park with a local naturalist guide, after which you'll travel through luscious landscapes crossing the crystal waters of Tarcolitos River several times on a tractor-drawn wagon; another choice offers a more active, faster-paced walk in the park, followed by the mangrove cruise. A third choice features a visit to Tropical Forest Sky Walk near the boundary of Carara Biological Reserve, where you'll hike across suspended cable bridges skimming the top of the rainforest, up to 126 feet above the ground; from your lofty perch, you'll see the marshlands of the Tarcoles River and views of the ocean in the distance. Your guide will point out species of birds, monkeys, butterflies and other mammals that you may encounter. Still another possibility is a short walk through Carara National Park followed by a cruise through the mangroves, learning about the local animal, floral and fauna species that live in thrive in this part of the world.
Adventures in Quepos
Call on the city of Quepos this morning, a perfect jumping off point for a day of activities in Costa Rica's eco-wonderland. Your day today is rich with excursions, as you'll have a choice of activities in both the morning and the afternoon! Excursions you may choose from today include: a scenic drive through Quepos and a stop at Espadilla Beach; a horseback ride through a mountain forest; a cruise through the Central American mangroves (keep your eyes peeled for wildlife!); an active hike through the rainforest; a nature walk through Rainmaker Conservation Park; a walking tour of Manuel Antonio National Park and an exciting river float trip* on the Savegre River (which will include lunch). Back aboard the ship, enjoy dinner at your leisure tonight, as your ship sets out from Quepos, bound for the Pacific Ocean.
A day at sea on the Pacific
Enjoy a relaxing day at sea today, taking advantage of your Explorer Class ship's many amenities as you make your way across the Pacific Ocean waters off Panama's coast, bound for the remote Darien region of Panama. Throughout the day, your Tauck Directors and naturalist guides will circulate about the ship answering questions – sharing their experiences and scanning the horizon for marine mammals and pelagic birds – and will also offer compelling lectures.
The Emberá people of the Darien
Today you'll stop in the remote Darien region of Panama, calling on Playa del Muerto for a wet landing by Zodiac craft to visit an indigenous community of the Emberá people, whose lifestyle remains largely unaffected by modern times. You'll learn about cultural traditions, see how they live, and view their "Cocobolo" wood or "Tagua" vegetable ivory carvings. Return to the ship for lunch; enjoy a naturalist lecture this afternoon as your yacht begins preparations for tomorrow's entrance into the Panama Canal.
Transiting the Panama Canal
This morning, your ship begins to position for her transit of the Panama Canal. Opened in 1914 and considered an engineering marvel of the 20th century, the Panama Canal opened trade to the Americas by creating a transit path between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Thanks to the canal, today ships traveling from New York to San Francisco save over 7,000 miles by not having to chart a course around South America. Before our crossing, we'll welcome aboard a canal pilot, the local navigation professional who will guide our ship under the Bridge of the Americas, through Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locks, into the narrow Gaillard cut and into Gatun lake, before finally clearing the Gatun Locks on the Atlantic side of the isthmus. Your Tauck Director, Tauck Naturalist and an official of the Panama Canal Authority will provide both technical and historical information about this engineering wonder.
The Guna people of the San Blas Islands
Your yacht arrives in the archipelago of San Blas today, where you'll transfer by Zodiac for a wet landing at Holandes Cayes. Here, you'll visit Guna Indians, whose language and customs reflect lives with few outside influences, women sell handmade molas – reverse-appliquéd fabrics with brilliant images of fish, birds and jungle animals – and fishing is still done by canoe. After your visit to a Guna village, you can spend a leisurely afternoon swimming and snorkeling before returning by Zodiac to your ship. Join us for the Captain's farewell dinner tonight, as your yacht sails to Colon, Panama.
Gamboa Rainforest & crossing the Isthmus
After completing the Panama Canal crossing, your Explorer-Class vessel arrives this morning at the port of Colón, where you'll disembark and bid your ship and its crew a fond farewell. Once ashore, learn more about the Panama Canal on a visit to the Agua Clara locks. Then start across the Isthmus of Panama; during a stop at the Gamboa Rainforest Resort, you'll choose between an aerial tram ride with a naturalist through the rainforest at eye-level with exotic birds and animals (aboard the only gondola of its kind in Panama), or a boat cruise along waterways leading to hidden islands, where you might spot monkeys at play. After lunch at a local restaurant, continue across the Isthmus to Panama City; check into your hotel in the city's heart this afternoon. Spend the rest of the day and evening as you wish in historic Panama City.
Exploring Panama City
Begin today's exploration of Panama City in its key historic district, Casco Viejo; a walking tour will show you this walled cobblestoned city, built in the 1670s at the foot of Ancon Hill, to provide safety from attack. The area is a gem of Spanish colonial architecture in various stages of redevelopment, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site; you'll also have free time to explore on your own. After lunch at a local restaurant, tour the former Canal Zone, driving through Ancon Hill, a lush residential enclave that was home to US military facilities until a 1977 treaty granted Panamanian sovereignty over the "Zone;" Albrook, a former US Air Force Base; and Clayton, once a US Army base. Then enjoy a fascinating visit to the exhibits and gardens of the Biomuseo, the Panama City biodiversity museum designed by renowned architect Frank Gehry. Please join us tonight to cap your memorable Panama Canal cruise experience with a farewell reception and dinner at your Panama City hotel.
Journey Home
Tour ends: Panama City. A transfer from the Hilton Panama or JW Marriott Panama to Tocumen International Airport is included. Please allow at least 3 hours for check-in formalities.
Disclaimer: Prices listed are per person, based on double occupancy, and in USD. All promotions are valid for new bookings only, capacity controlled and valid on select dates and departures. Individual Terms and Conditions will apply to all promotions. Any promotion can be withdrawn at any time without notice. Please speak with your Pavlus Travel Planner for complete vendor terms and conditions, including eligible tour and cruise dates.
