Panama Canal Basin

Suggested stay: 2 nights

Setting: Nature

Best time to go: December to September

In a nutshell: The Panama Canal is 50 miles long from deep water in the Atlantic to deep water in the Pacific. It requires about nine hours for an average ship to transit the Canal. Its principal physical features are the two terminal ports (Colon and Panama City), the four sets of twin locks (Aguas Claras, Gatun, Pedro Miguel, and Miraflores), Gatun Lake, and Gaillard Cut. At Miraflores Locks, visitors can attend a state-of-the-art audiovisual presentation; then, from an open-air balcony that provides a bird’s-eye view of the action, they watch a ship being towed into position for descent to the Pacific Ocean. Most of the canal basin has been protected and is teeming with wildlife and all types of birds

Highlights