CME Cruises Visiting Colon, Panama

Colon is best understood not as a destination in itself, but as a functional gateway to two of Panama's most significant experiences: the Panama Canal and the historic forts of Portobelo. The city of Colon is an industrial port, and it is strongly advised to explore the surrounding region via organized tours rather than on your own. The primary draw is, without question, the Panama Canal. From Colon, you can visit the Agua Clara Visitor Center to witness the new, larger locks in operation. Watching massive Neo-Panamax container ships and vessels from around the globe being raised and lowered is a genuine spectacle of modern engineering. The scale of the operation is difficult to comprehend until seen firsthand. For a journey into the past, the nearby town of Portobelo, a UNESCO World Heritage site, offers a different perspective. Here, you can explore the ruins of 17th and 18th-century Spanish colonial forts that once protected treasure fleets from pirates. The town has a quiet, rustic charm, a world away from the industrial activity of the canal. Other excursions may offer opportunities to visit indigenous Embera communities or take a boat trip on Gatun Lake, the vast artificial lake that forms a major part of the canal. A day in Colon is about the world-class attractions that lie just beyond the port's gates.