16 nights, San Juan to Amador (Panama City)
Explora's name for it: A Grand Journey through Balmy Shores & Enchanting Nature to Panama’s Wonders
Sixteen nights, thirteen stops, and a one-way arc that ends inside the locks. This sailing runs from San Juan down through the eastern Caribbean, west along the Colombian coast, and finishes by lifting the ship 85 feet over the Continental Divide on a full Panama Canal transit. The pace is generous: most calls dock you in the heart of town, so the days are about the places, not the transfers. In San Juan, Explora ties up at the Old San Juan piers themselves, plazas and the cathedral a five to fifteen minute walk from the gangway. Gustavia keeps large ships out by design, so you tender into a small French harbor that never feels crowded. Cartagena walks you out through a 700-animal aviary before you reach the taxi stand, and the canal day rewards a forward rail well before the first set of locks.
Who it rewards: a traveler who wants range and depth over speed, comfortable with one major decision per port (the Scenic Railway or Brimstone Hill at Basseterre, the old town or Tayrona at Santa Marta) and patient enough for tender-dependent calls like Gustavia and a volcano-view day at Montserrat that hinges on whether the summit is clouded. If you want a tight one-week loop or guaranteed every-port-on-foot certainty, pick something shorter. This one earns the full sixteen nights.
The ship is EXPLORA III, all-suite and all-oceanfront.
The itinerary, port by port
13 calls over 16 nights, San Juan to Amador (Panama City). Open any port for my full day-ashore guide, what to see, when to go, and how the day actually runs.
Getting there: Flights to San Juan (SJU) are already bookable for these dates. I watch the fare for booked clients so you book at the right moment. When to book your flights →
- Embark
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- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12 Crossing the Panama Canal
- Disembark
Fares on this departure, decoded
Reading the fare fine print is the job. Here's what this sailing currently carries:
- Invitation to Discover More
- Explora's discovery fare, available across most of the calendar. Onboard credit where the offer applies.
- Founders Fare
- A founding-era fare on a selected set of sailings. Onboard credit where the offer applies.
- Air-Inclusive Fare
- A fare that folds airfare into the voyage price on a smaller set of sailings.
The ship and your suite
This sailing is aboard EXPLORA III, all-suite, every suite with a private ocean-front terrace. Suites run from the entry Ocean Terrace to the Owner's Residence; the right tier depends on how you travel. Compare suites → · What's included →