Full Transit vs. Partial Transit
The single most important thing to check before booking a Panama Canal cruise.
| Full Transit | Partial Transit | |
|---|---|---|
| Route | One-way, Atlantic to Pacific (or reverse) | Round-trip from the same port; ship enters locks and turns back |
| Length | Typically 10-15 nights | Typically 7-10 nights |
| Flights | Fly into one coast, out of the other | Round-trip from one embarkation port, no extra flights |
| Canal experience | Complete crossing, all locks, Gatun Lake | Partial locks experience (often just Gatun Locks) before reversing |
Important: If seeing the full canal crossing is the point of your trip, confirm “full transit” explicitly in the itinerary description — partial transits are marketed as “Panama Canal cruises” too, but don’t complete the crossing.