Traversing a distance of 44.3 nautical miles, the Panama Canal connects the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Construction began in 1881 by French diplomat Ferdinand deLesseps. Lesseps is also given credit with the development of the Suez Canal which in 1869, joined the Mediterranean and the Red Seas, reducing the sailing distances and travel times between Europe and East Asia.
Lesseps attempted to repeat his Suez Canal success by building the Panama Canal at sea level. Unfortunately, the project was devastated by epidemics of malaria and yellow fever, as well as beset with financial problems. As a result, the Lesseps Panama Canal was never completed. The project was eventually purchased by the United States. After solving the medical problems and changing the design to a non-sea level canal with locks, the project was finally completed in 1914. Control of the Canal remained with the United States until 1999 when President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian dictator Omar Torrijos signed a treaty agreeing to transfer control of the Canal from the United States to Panama.
Throughout my travel escapades I have traversed the original 'old' Panama Canal a number of times, North from the Atlantic to the Pacific side as well as in reverse. The purpose of my most recent trip however, was to experience a transit through the 'new' third lane Canal.
My goal was realized March 2, 2023 aboard the Norwegian Bliss. It would prove to be a delightful day for a
transit. The sun was shining brightly overhead and the temperature reached a
comfortable 82 degrees.
The
Panama Canal Expansion Project incurred a cost of US$5.25 billion and was
inaugurated on June 16, 2016. Not only
has it increased the capacity of the Canal with wider and deeper lanes, but it
has also opened up a third lane of traffic equipped with a brand new set of
locks. On March 2, 2018, the Panama Canal Authority announced
that 3,000 New Panamax ships
had crossed the canal expansion during its first 20 months of operation.
Operating around-the-clock, the canal sees some 40 vessels pass through each day, including tankers, cargo ships, yachts and cruise ships.
The Panama Canal takes in $2 billion a year in revenue, of which approximately $800 million goes into Panama’s General Treasury. The Miraflores Visitors Center at the Miraflores Locks overlooks the 'old' canal and is open from 9am-5pm each day. Access to the visitors center costs $15 for visitors and $3 for Panamanians and Permanent Residents.
The Agua Clara Visitors Center overlooks the 'new' canal lane. You have a spectacular panoramic view where you will be able to see Gatun Lake on one side and the ships transiting through the lock on the other side, while a guide narrates the functions of the Panama Canal in different languages. There is also a projection room where they project different footage of the history and the effort of thousands of Panamanians in the construction of the new set of locks. The Visitor Center is 1 hour and 20 minutes from Panama City. Entrance fee is $15 USD per person for non-residents or $5.00 for residents. Children under 6 are FREE.
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| View from Visitor Center of 'new' locks |
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| Entering 'new' locks |
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| Agua Clara Visitor Center on the hill |
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| Exiting the 'new' locks into Gatun Lake |
The Canal calculates different fees for the various ships and cargo. For example, you pay less to transport grain than you will to transport liquified natural gas. In April, 2022, according to the latest tolls proposed by the Panama Canal Authority, container ships pay $60,000 to $300,000 depending on their size, and then additional fees based on the number of containers the ship is carrying.
Before the expansion of the third lane, the record fee was $461,000 paid by one ship. Now the record has jumped to $1.1 million, making income from the Canal accounting for 12% of Panama’s gross domestic product.
Starting in February 2022, the Panama Canal Authority changed the way they charge Cruise ships from a per berth basis to a per ton basis. For the first 10,000 tons it costs a Cruise ship $5.25 a ton or a whopping $52,500 to go through the Canal. The per-ton price goes down just slightly for each additional 10,000 tons that a ship is carrying.
My transit was aboard the Norwegian Bliss. Built in 2018, the Bliss checks in at 168,028 tons. Based on the $5.25 figure, the assessed transit fee would be a minimum of $882,147.
Small ships pay a $1,600 to $4,100 toll at the canal depending on length. But, just like container ships, there are additional charges tacked on that can make this journey hard on the pocketbook.
Boats under 65 feet pay a $1,600 toll while lengths from 65 feet up to 80 feet will be assessed $2,400. Lengths of 80 feet up to 100 feet pay $3,500 and over 100 feet is $4,100.
The cost for just 'reserving' a slot to go through the canal is $10,500 for ships less than 91 feet long. This fee increases with the length of the ship. The Norwegian Bliss is 1,092 in length so their reservation fee would be somewhere between $40,000-$50,000. The cruise ship companies willingly pay the additional reservation fee to guarantee a transit time during daylight hours. The majority of the transit fees are paid for by the passengers as 'port taxes'.
As you enter the first lock you will easily see 12-24 tankers patiently waiting for a time slot to transit as they are not willing to pay the additional reservation fee.
This third lane with expanded locks has opened the canal up to vessels that are on average 25 percent larger than those that were previously able to use it. There are still close to 200 post-Panamax vessels in the world that are too large for the new locks and the Panama government is already looking into adding a fourth set of locks to accommodate them.
Today the Canal functions 24 hours per day every day of the year. This was not always the case. The Panama Canal Authority only commenced 24-hour operations in 1963 after the introduction of fluorescent lighting.
Generally speaking, most of the south-bound traffic (Pacific to Atlantic) will commence their passage in the morning through Gatun Locks. Conversely north-bound traffic (Atlantic to Pacific) will commence their journey through Miraflores Locks at the same time. Vessels will cross somewhere on Lake Gatun where there is ample room to maneuver.
One of the questions posed to the Norwegian Bliss Captain during an onboard Q&A session questioned the total cost for the Norwegian Bliss to transit the Canal during our voyage. His response was “About $900,000 for this 3,800 passenger voyage!" Paying these types of rates the $5.25 billion that Panama paid for the new longer/wider locks should be paid off in 10 years!
Note: The Bliss holds 4,004 passengers but we were not booked to capacity on March 2, 2023, thus the 3,800 response.
NORWEGIAN BLISS
ATLANTIC TO PACIFIC
TRANSIT TIMES
AGUA CLARA LOCKS
Arriving: 7:30am Departing: 10:00am
GAMBOA
Passing by Gamboa: 1:00pm
COCOLI LOCKS
Arriving: 3:00pm Departing: 6:00pm
On the morning of our transit a member of the Panama Canal Authority boarded the Norwegian Bliss and provided a full day narration which included the history, construction, flora, fauna and future plans for this amazing structure.
If you are planning on a Canal transit on the Norwegian Bliss, the best viewing sites are:
· Deck 7, Premenade
· Deck 8, Waterfront
· Deck 8, Fwd (front bow)
· Deck 16, Outer decks
· Deck 17, Outer decks
· Spice H20, Deck 17, Aft
· Observation Lounge, Deck 15, Forward
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