The basics of shore excursions
Arranged tours for shore excursions usually are not included with the cost of your cruise -- they run anywhere from $20 to $95 a person
Don't try to cram too much into your shore excursion. This is supposed to be vacation, after all, not an Olympic sport
Get back to the ship on time -- the ship (and all of your stuff on it) will leave if you aren't there when you're supposed to be
Journal of a journey
A whirlwind of shore excursions defines a cruise through TWO oceans
Ever wondered what exactly you do on a cruise? CNN Interactive TravelGuide contributor Daire Coco has been on five so far, and she says she finds what she does 'off' the ship is her favorite part of the trip.
My latest cruise was aboard Celebrity's Zenith on an 11-day voyage through the Panama Canal. I went with my father, who loves cruising as much as I do. We began in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and ended in Acapulco, Mexico.
Our first stop was the duty-free shopping paradise of St. Thomas . The second largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Thomas is home to some of the finest resorts and beaches in the Caribbean. Since both my father and I had been there before, we opted to take a ferry to the nearby island of St. John for a tour of its National Park. We still got back in time to do some shopping.
The next day was our first full day at sea, which we spent lying out on the sun deck, reading, strolling and attending lectures on shopping and excursions in the upcoming ports. I also sat in on a session with guest lecturer Lynn Dell Cohen, an image and color consultant from New York, who talked about how to make a great first impression.
The next morning we sailed into the charming port of Willemstad, the capital of Curaçao . The island, about 60 miles (97 kilometers) from Venezuela, is one of the Dutch Antilles. The influence of South America and the Netherlands is evident in the native language, Papiamentu, which is a mixture of several languages, including Dutch and Spanish.
While taking a trolley tour through the streets of Willemstad, we noticed even more Dutch influence in the style of the architecture.
The next stop was the island of Aruba , Curaçao's rich uncle. Aruba is known for having some of the most beautiful white beaches in the world -- but after venturing away from the glitzy resort hotels, we learned that Aruba is more of a desert than a lush tropical island.
Cartegena, Colombia was our next stop. Despite the U.S. State Department warning against travel in Colombia, our cruise did offer one sightseeing tour. Being a little wary of setting off on our own, we signed up.
The tour itself was a blur: we were whisked off to the San Felipe Fortress, then up a steep, winding hill to visit the 16th century monastery of "La Popa," where we had a great view of the city. Later, we were dropped off in a crowded shopping district in the "new" part of town, and we finished up with a quick tour of the "old town."
If we could do it again, we would have set off on our own, and spent the whole time in the "old town," with its beautiful homes and shops and narrow, crooked streets.
Passing through the Panama Canal
At last it was time for the highlight of the cruise: the passage through the Panama Canal , one of the world's great engineering triumphs. The canal is 50 miles (80 kilometers) long from the Atlantic to the Bay of Panama on the Pacific Ocean, and takes about 8-10 hours to navigate. The canal was cut through one of the narrowest and lowest areas on the isthmus of Panama, which connects the North/Central and South American continents.
Many of our fellow passengers began staking out lounge chairs or a spot along the railing shortly after 7 a.m., several hours before we were due to pass through the Gatun locks, the first of three sets of locks on the canal. Each of the locks at Gatun is 110 feet (33 meters) wide and 1,000 feet (305 meters) long. A ship is raised, or lowered, 85 feet (26 meters) after passing through them.
By the time we arrived, just about everyone on board was outside on the open decks. We inched along as the massive steel doors on the locks slowly opened. Locomotives with cables attached to both sides of our ship helped steer us through. Shortly after the steel doors closed behind us, the water level began to rise. From the stern of the ship, we could see another cruise ship, even bigger than ours, approach the first lock.
After passing through the locks, we found ourselves in a wide-open expanse of water called Gatun Lake. A few hours later, we arrived at the narrow Galliard Cut. This portion of the canal is about eight miles (13 kilometers) long, cuts right through the Continental Divide, and is carved mostly through rock and shale. Later we were lowered through the last locks, and entered the Pacific Ocean to a glorious sunset.
Cruising the Pacific
The next port on our itinerary was Puerto Caldera, on the west coast of Costa Rica . We opted for the all-day bus tour to San Jose, setting out on the windy Pan-American Highway, passing sugar and coffee plantations and little villages along the way. When we got to San Jose we toured the National Museum and the famed National Theater.
Later we enjoyed an authentic Costa Rican lunch with plantains, rice and pork. On the return journey, we had a quick shopping stop in the small village of Sarchi. I picked up some coffee, a wood carving, and some environmentally friendly "Banana Paper" stationery, which is made from recycled paper and banana fiber.
Next, we were scheduled to arrive in the new resort area of Huatulco, Mexico . Since the port did not have a pier, we were supposed to lower anchor about a mile from shore and take tenders in. Unfortunately, the wind was making the water so choppy, the captain decided it was too dangerous to use the tender service. So, we skipped Huatulco and spent the final day of our cruise at sea.
The next morning, 11 days after setting out, we arrived in Acapulco, exhausted from our trip, and sad it was over. Now, it was time to fly home, and start planning our next adventure. Next time, I'm thinking, maybe Alaska....
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