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EXPLORA III · Grand Journeys

17 nights, Amador (Panama City) to Vancouver

April 22, 2027 – May 10, 2027 · 17 nights · 11 stops

Explora's name for it: An Extended Journey of Ancient Mysteries & Pacific Coastal Wonders

Seventeen nights, eleven stops, and a single long line up the Pacific coast from Panama to Vancouver. Six countries, one direction. The pace is generous early, with sea days padding the gaps between the Central American calls, then tightens into a string of walkable North American port cities at the end. The early stops earn their place inland: Amador docks you at the canal's Pacific entrance with Miraflores and Casco Viejo in reach, Puerto Quetzal is purely the 90-minute run to Antigua's cobblestones and ruined churches, and Acajutla trades a working container pier for Los Cobanos, the largest Pacific reef between Mexico and Panama and a rare snorkel stop where the marine life is the draw. Huatulco ties up beside the beach at Santa Cruz Bay, protected reefs and all, no long drive required.

This rewards a traveler who likes a route that builds, who will commit to one inland choice per port rather than chase everything, and who reads sea days as part of the trip, not dead time. The Central American calls are working ports where you leave on a shuttle or a guide; if you want to walk off into a town, that comes later, at San Diego's Embarcadero and San Francisco's Pier 27. Anyone wanting a tidy week of easy beach stops should pick a shorter Mexican Riviera sailing instead.

EXPLORA III is all-suite, all-oceanfront.

Amador (Panama City) (open port guide)Amador (Panama City)AcajutlaPuerto QuetzalPuerto ChiapasHuatulcoPuerto VallartaLos Angeles (open port guide)San DiegoSan FranciscoVictoria (open port guide)Vancouver (open port guide)Vancouver

The itinerary, port by port

11 calls over 17 nights, Amador (Panama City) to Vancouver. 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 Amador (Panama City) (PTY) 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 →

  1. Embark
    Amador (Panama City)

    Amador is a chain of small islands linked by a causeway built from Panama Canal spoil at the canal's Pacific entrance, now home to a new cruise terminal that opened in 2024. Port guide →

  2. 2
    Acajutla

    Acajutla is El Salvador's main Pacific cargo port, and the dock itself is pure industry.

  3. 3
    Puerto Quetzal

    Puerto Quetzal is Guatemala's main Pacific port, and the cruise terminal is a self-contained compound with a craft market and tour desks but nothing to explore beyond its gates.

  4. 4
    Puerto Chiapas

    Puerto Chiapas is a purpose-built cruise terminal on Mexico's far-southern Pacific coast, near the Guatemala border, with a pool, craft market, and folkloric shows but no town or beach you can walk to.

  5. 5
    Huatulco

    Huatulco is a planned eco-resort development on Oaxaca's coast, built around nine bays with 36 beaches, much of it inside a national park.

  6. 6
    Puerto Vallarta

    Puerto Vallarta is the most polished stop on this stretch of coast: a real Mexican beach city on Banderas Bay with a walkable old town, a mile-long seafront promenade studded with bronze sculptures, and a…

  7. 7
    Los Angeles

    Los Angeles cruises dock at the World Cruise Center in San Pedro, the harbor district at the south end of the city rather than near Hollywood or the beaches most people picture. Port guide →

  8. 8
    San Diego

    San Diego hands you a flat, walkable bay front the moment you step off the gangway, with a retired aircraft carrier, a 160-year-old sailing ship, and the Gaslamp Quarter all within a few blocks.

  9. 9
    San Francisco

    San Francisco docks you at Pier 27 on the Embarcadero, dropping you onto one of the most DIY-friendly waterfronts in North America.

  10. 10
    Victoria

    Victoria is the small, walkable capital of British Columbia on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, an unhurried city of heritage stone, gardens, and a working Inner Harbour. Port guide →

  11. Disembark
    Vancouver

    Vancouver is the embarkation city for most Alaska sailings, a coastal Canadian metropolis pinned between the harbor and the Coast Mountains, with a forested 1,000-acre park at its tip. Port guide →

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.

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 →


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