Picture yourself on a warm winter cruise with a Latin beat, filled with bucket list sights to see along with dreamy beach days. My first Panama Canal cruise made me feel like we had broken free from our regular lives. There’s a slower pace, a strong sense of culture, and a pull on your heart to see more.
Windstar’s small ship cruises let you see both iconic and lesser-known monuments and attractions in Latin America and the Panama Canal. It’s possible to escape for just a week or immerse yourself on a multi-week, two-ocean sojourn. Costa Rican cruises feature a local naturalist onboard to expand your knowledge of the region. Many Latin America cruises have options to lengthen your trip with cruise tours and back-to-backs, all with ample time for relaxation. Think multi-colored beaches edged by lush greenery. And then there’s the ship’s watersports marina, providing easy access to clear blue waters.
With twenty-five distinct Latin America and Panama Canal itineraries, it can be a challenge to choose the perfect one. Are you primarily interested in the canal itself, or are you looking for a cruise that’s as easy to plan as one in the Caribbean, but with some new-to-you exotic ports of call? Perhaps you haven’t given it much thought at all. Read on as we look at the options for exploring Central America and its surrounds with Windstar.
Experience the Panama Canal
Panama Canal cruises on other cruise lines have historically been long cruises, often fourteen nights or more. And they’re often showcased as repositioning cruises (moving ships between Alaska and the Caribbean, for instance). Windstar breaks free of both patterns, offering an entire season of crossings and also giving guests the chance to tailor the cruise your way. Go long if you want — or go short.
The absolute best itinerary for seeing the canal on a short cruise is the 7-night . This is a through-the-canal cruise. Depending on the date, you will either begin on the Atlantic side in Colon, or on the Pacific side in Puerto Caldera.
Getting to these cruises involves easy non-stop flights from either Miami (three hours) or Houston (four hours). Flights to and from cruises starting in Colon are through Panama City (PTY). Transportation between the cruise terminal in Colon and the Panama City airport can be arranged by bus, shuttle or private car. The closest airport to Puerto Caldera is Santamaria International (SJO), which is roughly forty minutes from the airport.
Whether you’ve been through the canal or not, seeing it from the perspective onboard Windstar’s small ships is both fascinating and relaxing. You won’t have to fight a crowd for a view as the ship passes through the locks because there is no crowd. Onboard local guides narrate the transit throughout the day.
Your Windstar ship essentially becomes a river cruise ship for the day. You kick back and enjoy the feat of engineering and the lush Panamanian scenery pass by throughout the day. Ship choices on the seven-night itinerary include both sailing vessels and Windstar’s motor yachts.
Not that I personally have a strong leaning toward either (I love them both equally), but imagine the sheer romance of passing through the canal on Wind Spirit or Wind Star. Both will be dwarfed by most of the other vessels passing through, yet their mainsail masts will barely clear the bridges you pass under at either end. Passengers and crew cheer the clearance in the dark of early morning and again on the opposite end in evening twilight. Talk about photo ops!
Insider hints
Flight options will generally require at least one day of advance arrival pre-cruise. No matter which direction your cruise travels though, the old town in Panama City is worth exploring with an additional overnight.
To put more of a Caribbean spin on a short full-transit canal cruise, take a look at Panama Canal, Cartagena, San Blas Islands, and More. If a bucket list adventure is on your mind, consider extending the seven-night canal itinerary with a Cruise Tour: Monteverde Cloud Forest and Arenal Volcano on Star Pride or Wind Spirit.
Playtime in the Pacific
If the Panama Canal itself isn’t as important to you as exploring ports of call in Central America, specifically those on the Pacific coast, you might consider Naturally Costa Rica: Puerto Caldera to Panama City. This is an eight-night itinerary between Balboa, Panama and Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica, with stops in both countries. The first thing to know is that there will be beaches. And if beach days aren’t your thing, there is plenty of time to explore the rainforest on excursions.
Ports of call include exotic spots like Isla Parida where excursion choices are a bit adventurous, ranging from snorkeling, fishing, and hiking, to wildlife viewing (and yes, there will be monkeys). Next up is Golfo Dulce where you can do a sloth walk excursion or try some kayaking. Quepos offers a lot of choices, with more options for hiking and wildlife viewing, but also plenty of culinary treats to sample.
Insider hints
For water lovers, this cruise offers six potential watersports marina days. And for those, like me, who are always looking for places to scuba dive, this cruise offers the opportunity to book dives independently in most of the ports of call. I easily found dive operators all along the way. Days in ports are long enough to go out on your own for a couple of boat dives, then return to the ship for a leisurely afternoon.
Cultural deep dives
For those driven to experience the culture of this region in-depth, there are over a dozen Star Collector Series cruises, ranging from thirteen to 55 nights. These offer the opportunity to stay aboard longer, experiencing multiple segments of the region (and often beyond). Choosing a Star Collector comes with a bonus perk of complimentary daily laundry, allowing you to travel a bit lighter.
My favorite Star Collector option in Latin America is the 22-night Central American Explorations Via the Panama Canal. The itinerary onboard Star Seeker begins in San Juan, Puerto Rico and ends in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. It packs in the essence of Latin American culture and history amid stunning scenery while cruising in two oceans.
The ship overnights in both Cartagena, Colombia and Balboa, Panama. Among the seventeen ports of call, expect UNESCO World Heritage sites, national parks and preserves, coral reefs, rainforests, colorful beaches, and Mayan cultural landmarks. The route includes four sea days for pure relaxation on board.
Insider hints
For a deeper dive, take Star Seeker all the way from San Juan to Juneau, Alaska on a Windstar Grand Adventure. The Caribbean and America’s Explorer covers much of the Caribbean, transits through the Panama Canal, then makes its way northward, with stops in the Mexican Riviera. There’s a stretch of sea days to catch your breath on the way to Seattle, then enjoy a delightful early-season 8-day Alaskan cruise in Star Seeker’s inaugural Alaskan season.
Mixing the Caribbean and Latin America
Don’t fancy giving up your Caribbean winter adventures? It’s okay, there are options that combine Latin America with some of the Caribbean’s most delightful island escapes. Take the previously mentioned six-day hop between Aruba and Balboa, including a transit through the canal if you’re trying to squeeze it all into a weeklong cruise.
For a more leisurely Latin America/Western Caribbean combo, look to the Star Collector Series: Natural History Meets Ancient Mystery: Latin America and Beyond. This 16-night cruise on Wind Surf, beginning in Aruba and ending in Cozumel, Mexico hits Atlantic hotspots, with a stop in Colon long enough for you to take a tour to the canal and see the workings of the locks from a different perspective.
Insider hint
If you’re like me and can’t bear the thought of being so close, yet missing out on the other two islands of the ABCs (Bonaire and Curacao), start your Star Collector in Bridgetown, Barbados on Windward Ways and Tobago Cays. This seven-night addition hits the best of the Southern Caribbean: Bequia, Mayreau, St. Lucia, Bonaire, Curacao, and ending in Aruba. It would be hard to ask for more.
