The Panama Canal welcomed the Norwegian Bliss on 14 May, the largest passenger vessel to ever transit the waterway.
Operated by Norwegian Cruise Lines, the transiting Norwegian Bliss weighs more than 168,000 gross tons and can carry nearly 5000 passengers.
The Norwegian Bliss left Germany’s Meyer Werft shipyard in March to begin a 15-day itinerary this month, sailing from Miami, Florida through the Panama Canal and up along the west coast of Central and North America before reaching its final destination at the Port of Los Angeles in California. The ship will then service the Alaska region until the end of the cruise season, after which it will be repositioned in the Caribbean.
Panama Canal Cruise Season
For the Panama Canal, 24 May marks the unofficial end to the 2017-18 cruise season when it will transit the Pacific Princess, operated by Princess Cruises, as part of a 17-day voyage from Los Angeles, California, to its final destination at the port of Fort Lauderdale.
This cruise season, a total of 248 passenger ships will have travelled through the Panama Canal, carrying a total of 312,304 passengers. 20 of these ships are Neopanamax vessels. These include the Caribbean Princess, Carnival Freedom, Carnival Splendor, Norwegian Bliss and Disney Wonder.
Smaller ships such as the Safari Voyager and the Wind Star also contributed to total transits. These vessels, with itineraries of 8 and 11 days, respectively, visited ports located on the west coast of the Central American isthmus. Additionally, the Panama Canal received passenger ships that were not expected to transit, such as Le Boreal and Logos Hope.
Below you find three videos of the transit.
Picture: The Norwegian Bliss began its transit through the Panama Canal on Monday 14 May.
