Celebrity Infinity Review
4.0 / 5.0
Thrilling experience on the Infinity Panama Canal crossing
Review for the Panama Canal & Central America Cruise on Celebrity Infinity
onyourmark
10+ Cruises • Age 70s
Rating by category
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Additional details
Sail Date: Sep 2018
Cabin: Ocean View 7
Back in 2010 we sailed to Panama on the Equinox but crossing the canal was not on the itinerary. We just did a land excursion with a stop at the Gatun Locks Observation deck (now closed).
An opportunity had arisen to consider this 15 day cruise on the Infinity at a bargain price, and were happy to book it quickly. You can’t experience a Panama Canal crossing unless you are on the ship going through the locks.
We flew from Toronto to Ft. Lauderdale for one night stay at the Best Western South Airport and cruiseport on Stirling Rd. Very good choice for pre-cruise. There is ample shopping and dining within walking distance. If you use Uber to get to the port, make sure you key in the proper pier location. Our driver followed GPS and brought us to a few wrong spots in the port.
Cabin Review
Ocean View 7
Cabin 07
Our Oceanview cabin 2056 was comfortable and kept immaculately clean by Wayan. The a/c fan rattle was repaired quickly. The cabin layout should be noted, since you don’t see this information on the Celebrity website. Our king bed (2 singles put together, with mattress topper added) was pushed against the 4 ft. round window. There was a useful night table on both sides of the bed. Reading light was adequate. There is also a small sofa convertible to a single bed, and two upper berths, making maximum space for 5. There is no connecting door, which I hoped will cut down on noise. There is only one half-size mirror above the desk, but no full length mirror anywhere. The fridge was emptied as requested, but it really did not cool much. I had to use the ice from the bucket, transferred to zip lock bags, to keep my drinks colder. The flat screen TV was rather small, and the interactive menu lacked many features found on the newer ships.
Port Reviews
San Diego
we walked straight to our hotel, Best Western Bayside and explored the waterfront, Little Italy and had a quick bite at The Kabob House.
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Cartagena (Colombia)
At the pier there was a nice rainforest display with flamingos, parrots and monkeys, as well as souvenirs. We shared a taxi to the clock tower gate to the old city, walked the wall and visited the Gold Museum
Colon (Cristobal)
we took a 5 hour taxi tour at $40/person with Alfred Golden (alfredgolden23@gmail.com) through the rain forest and scenic viewing areas to Panama City and Isla Del Flamenco
Puerto Quetzal (Antigua)
the ship had to use an alternate dock, and transport people by free “chicken bus” shuttles to the main terminal. There we took a taxi tour for our group of 5 with Marcos (Mardoqueo Pereira Garcia). Cost was $40/person for a 6 hour tour. He drove us to the old city of Antigua, with stops at Don Pedro church, San Miguel hotel grounds, Jade factory, Central Park (town square), the Arch, and a Mayan village visiting a local family roasting coffee and weaving fabrics. Some parts of the road to Antigua were badly damaged in the last volcanic eruption. There were random police roadblocks and our taxi was pulled over. We were asked for our passports, and were detained for a few minutes because we had our photo ID, as instructed by Celebrity. We reported this incident to guest services when we returned to the ship.
Puerto Vallarta
we went to the Walmart, enjoyed high speed wifi, then used Uber ride to the Malacon, where we strolled for a few hours, enjoyed the seaside views, tequila tasting and shopping for souvenirs. We took a local taxi back to the ship for $8.
Cabo San Lucas
we took the tender to the marina, and went in a glass bottom boat tour. The cost was $15/person, which included a 45 minute sail to a snorkelling patch, viewing the Arch, the secluded beaches (Balcony, Lover’s Divorce), Land’s End then heading across the bay to Medano Beach. There were got two loungers, umbrella and two beers at Omega concession. After two hours the boat returned to get us back to the tender boarding point. This was a most memorable conclusion to a great cruise.
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