All too often people make lists of their dream vacation destinations. They might include places that they have already visited, as well as those still on their list of places to visit. Some people refer to these as bucket lists, it seems rather curious that on the majority of these lists there is a common destination. There are many who plan on indulging in Panama Canal travel at least once.
With it being such a popular destination its fortunate that there are numerous trips on offer, and they are of varying lengths. So no matter how busy you are you will always be able to find a suitable trip. Yet despite its popularity, there are still some who know nothing about the place, and therefore wouldn't know what to expect.
A good place to start is with a world atlas. Look for central America, these are the thin countries which join South and North America together. In olden days it helped with migration by acting as a land bridge, but millions of years ago these countries didn't exist as they were completely underwater. These areas also provide a land barrier between the Pacific Ocean and the North Atlantic ocean alongside the Caribbean Sea.
Ever since man has explored the world it has been claimed that a short cut connecting the two mighty oceans would be beneficial. Prior to it being built the journey was many thousands of miles longer, and it also meant the dangerous passage through the stormy seas at the bottom of South America. It will come as no surprise that this is still one of the globe's busiest routes for shipping.
It was the French in the 1880's who made the first serious attempt at joining the oceans. The engineer in charge of this project was a man by the name of Ferdinand De Lesseps. His name might sound familiar, and with good cause. He also completed a similar task linking the Mediterranean and Red Seas together.
With this new project the French managed to dig approximately 11 miles of the required 51 miles. They had to abandon the project due to a combination of engineering problems, disease and financial difficulties. The next to pick up the project were the Americans in 1904, who also bought the existing equipment from the French.
The Americans literally employed 1000's of people during their involvement. Finally ten years later they finished the whole project. It was possibly the decision to use lock gates which enabled them to successfully finish the task. Now it only takes 9 hours to go from one ocean to the other, and takes in all 3 sets of locks. If you do only a partial transit then you will only see a single set of locks.
So if the Americans took over the project in 1904 and it took a further 10 years to complete, the year of completion must have been 1914. Most of you will have worked out that this means that the amazing project celebrates its centenary next year. Surely that will be an ideal time to take in your Panama Canal travel. There are so many different types of tours available, that people often feel spoilt for choice and do a different tour each year. It is small wonder that it was referred to as the eighth wonder of the world.
With it being such a popular destination its fortunate that there are numerous trips on offer, and they are of varying lengths. So no matter how busy you are you will always be able to find a suitable trip. Yet despite its popularity, there are still some who know nothing about the place, and therefore wouldn't know what to expect.
A good place to start is with a world atlas. Look for central America, these are the thin countries which join South and North America together. In olden days it helped with migration by acting as a land bridge, but millions of years ago these countries didn't exist as they were completely underwater. These areas also provide a land barrier between the Pacific Ocean and the North Atlantic ocean alongside the Caribbean Sea.
Ever since man has explored the world it has been claimed that a short cut connecting the two mighty oceans would be beneficial. Prior to it being built the journey was many thousands of miles longer, and it also meant the dangerous passage through the stormy seas at the bottom of South America. It will come as no surprise that this is still one of the globe's busiest routes for shipping.
It was the French in the 1880's who made the first serious attempt at joining the oceans. The engineer in charge of this project was a man by the name of Ferdinand De Lesseps. His name might sound familiar, and with good cause. He also completed a similar task linking the Mediterranean and Red Seas together.
With this new project the French managed to dig approximately 11 miles of the required 51 miles. They had to abandon the project due to a combination of engineering problems, disease and financial difficulties. The next to pick up the project were the Americans in 1904, who also bought the existing equipment from the French.
The Americans literally employed 1000's of people during their involvement. Finally ten years later they finished the whole project. It was possibly the decision to use lock gates which enabled them to successfully finish the task. Now it only takes 9 hours to go from one ocean to the other, and takes in all 3 sets of locks. If you do only a partial transit then you will only see a single set of locks.
So if the Americans took over the project in 1904 and it took a further 10 years to complete, the year of completion must have been 1914. Most of you will have worked out that this means that the amazing project celebrates its centenary next year. Surely that will be an ideal time to take in your Panama Canal travel. There are so many different types of tours available, that people often feel spoilt for choice and do a different tour each year. It is small wonder that it was referred to as the eighth wonder of the world.
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When you are planning ahead for Panama Canal travel, begin with a visit to our web pages at panamacanal.com today. You can see suggestions and points of interest here at http://panamacanal.com right now.
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