Panama Canal Cruise - Puerto Vallarta

January 23, 2020

Have we become cruise people? It seems so unlikely given that we were somewhat bored on our first cruise together 11 years ago – a relocation cruise between Sydney, Australia and Maui, Hawaii. But last year we took the nautical plunge again with cruises in Alaska and the Galapagos Islands and really enjoyed both. So now we find ourselves once again at sea on a cruise through the Panama Canal. It starts in San Diego and stops in Mexico (Puerto Vallarta and Huatulco), Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, transits the Panama Canal, stops in Aruba and Curacao, and finally ends after 16 days in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Then, rather than immediately fly back to Olympia’s winter weather, we decided to take yet another cruise – this one a 7-day excursion in the Caribbean, round trip from Fort Lauderdale with stops in the Bahamas, Dominican Republic, and Turks & Caicos. Both cruises were purchased more-or-less last minute, so the price was right, especially since we are satisfied with modest cabins with obstructed views and no balcony. After all, the views out on the deck are the same for everybody, as is the food and entertainment. So we feel we are getting good value. And compared to our typical nomadic lifestyle where Deborah still ends up doing a lot of cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc., a cruise offers the only true “vacation” for her, as all those domestic tasks are taken care of on the ship by industrious people from third world countries.

After one full day at sea our first port of call in route was Puerto Vallarta. We had spent six weeks in PV just a year and a half ago so this was familiar territory and we were comfortable using the bus and finding our way around. It’s probably our favorite spot in Mexico (so far) so walking around was like catching up with an old friend. We walked the Malecon, visited some of our favorite art galleries, and had drinks and guacamole and chips at a familiar beachside restaurant. Drinks on board the ship are expensive (and they don’t let you bring your own on board) so we typically avoid those and instead save the cervesas for when we are in port. Based on our observations, some of our shipmates must have enormous alcohol bills at the end of their cruise. Meals are another matter since they are included with your cruise fare. We only eat out at restaurants in port when it isn’t practical to get back to the ship to enjoy the meal we’ve already paid for. And the ship’s food is generally pretty good, although we’d prefer a little more variety in the vegetables served, but judging by the physiques of our fellow passengers, healthier choices do not seem to be a high priority.

Here now are some photos from our dear old friend Puerto Vallarta: