Panama Canal

The best way for Panama visitors to see the canal is to literally get in the middle of it—on a transit or partial transit boat tour at sea level. You can experience the sensation of cruising directly through the canal, watching as the locks fill with water and your ship passes steadily through the three sets of double locks(the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locks on the Pacific side, plus the Gatún locks on the Atlantic side).

Between the locks is the artificial Gatún Lake (Lago Gatún), created by the Gatún Dam across the Chagres River (Rio Chagres), and the Culebra Cut, the narrowest section of the canal, hewn out of the mountains. It's also possible to see the locks by train, as you pass by the banks and through pristine rain forest en route to Gatún.

Most full- and half-day tours include roundtrip transportation and a visit to the Miraflores Locks Visitor Center, which tells the story of this incredible engineering feat through exhibits. The center's restaurant, theater, and terraced decks also provide comfortable vantage points for watching ships pass through. You can also visit the Gatún locks (about an hour from Panama City) to learn about the Panama Canal expansion.

• By booking ahead with a guided tour, there's a much higher likelihood of actually seeing the famous Panama Canal in action.

• Travelers can make self-guided visits to the Miraflores Locks Visitor Center in Panama City and the Canal Expansion Observation Center in Colon on the Caribbean Sea.

• Stop in for a meal at the Miraflores Restaurant at the Panama Canal to dine while viewing the ships cruise by.

Arrive at the canal via boat, train, bus, or car. The Miraflores Locks Visitor Center has parking, but most visitors arrive as part of a group sightseeing tour with a tour guide.

The morning hours and late afternoon are the best times for actually watching a ship pass through the canal.

A few tours depart from the town of Gamboa, situated at the end of the Gaillard Cut on the Chagres River in the Gamboa Rainforest. Neighboring SoberanÌa National Park—home to diverse bird species, sloths, and jaguars—and Embera village are also popular. The Amador Causeway (Calzada de Amador) is also worth a trip; this narrow strip of land is a popular spot for recreation.

Panama Canal tours vary widely in cost, depending on length and whether they involve excursions like kayaking. Generally speaking, you’ll find tour prices in the range of US$50–$300 per person. The cheapest way to visit is by heading to the Miraflores Visitor Center, where there’s an observation deck that overlooks the locks.

The best way to tour the Panama Canal depends on what you’re looking for. For budget- and time-savers, visit the Miraflores Visitor Center and watch the ships from the observation deck. Partial-transit and full-transit tours cost more, but allow you to cross the entire length of the canal from ocean to ocean.

In general, most visitors try to avoid Panama’s rainy season, which typically lasts from April to December. The biggest crowds roll in from January to March. If you’d like to avoid them (and avoid paying high-season prices), visit in early April or late December, getting the best of both worlds.

The best time of year to do a Panama Canal cruise is January to March (aka the dry season). If you’re looking to avoid the crowds and save a pretty penny, cruise anytime between April and December—though that likely means rain. To test your luck with crowds and clouds, try the shoulder season.

Traveling from one ocean to another (from the Pacific to the Atlantic), transiting across the Panama Canal takes 8-10 hours, depending on traffic. That means only about 40 ships can cross the canal a day. And believe it or not, sometimes ships wait up to 3 days to even begin their passage.

Yes, the Panama Canal is worth seeing, as it’s one of humankind’s greatest feats of engineering. Canal operators use a system of locks to lift ships some 85 feet (26 meters) above sea levels. You can watch this process while taking in views of the Panama Canal from the Miraflores Visitor Center’s observation deck.