Cruise cancelled as Panama Canal dries out

Readers have had Aurora Expeditions’ 15-day Costa Rica and Panama Canal cruise cancelled at short notice.

They have been told it’s due to the canal’s low water levels.

The canal crossing is a popular feature of cruise itineraries transiting Central America linking the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. It’s also a major freight link for shipping containers.

But more recently a combination of a drying climate and El Nino has forced the Panama Canal Authority to restrict the number of daily ship transits, which has impacted global sea trade as well as cruise ships.

Aurora says it is working through solutions with clients and did not want to comment further.

The 15-day Aurora trip aboard the ship Greg Mortimer was due to leave San Jose, Costa Rica and sail to Cartagena, Colombia.

On this itinerary, the ship would visit Curu National Wildlife Refuge, Rio Claro Wildlife Refuge, Gulfo Dulce, Coiba National Park and touch the Pearl Islands before reaching Panama City and the Panama Canal. The itinerary has only the final stop at Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, after the canal.

Cruising is potentially facing the twin challenges of security – where war in the Middle East has impacted itineraries in the region around the Red Sea — and climate change.

The canal’s water is supplied through the Gatun and Alhajuela lake system. As of March 18 the water level of Gatun Lake, on which ships transit, sat at 80.5 feet, more than 7ft below its maximum operating level of 88ft. The lake is expected to drop to 79.5ft by late May according to the authority’s 2024 projections.

The authority says 2023 was the second driest year on record for the Panama Canal Watershed and October 2023 its driest October ever, which prompted it to act. It was the first time canal transits have been restricted.

Total ships allowed to cross per day was limited to 22 in December, but numbers allowed to transit has been steadily increasing and stands at 27 this week. Under regular scheduling there are 36 daily canal transits.