Fuerte Amador (Panama City) to Fort Lauderdale

The Panama Canal is an artificial 82 km waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit for maritime trade.

Puerto Limón, located on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica, boasts a rich combination of sights, sounds and smells. Once ashore, embrace these elements as they surround you, filling your senses with the essence of this delightful port city. The growth of the coffee market prompted the Costa Rican government to search for an Atlantic port to facilitate shipping coffee to Europe and beyond. In 1871, the port of Limón was established and what was once a migrant fishermen’s village of five huts grew into an important center of commerce. With the introduction of a rail service the following year between San José and the Atlantic coast, Limón became a thriving railroad and banana town.

Here, where the skies are wide expanses of blue, waters are a transparent turquoise, and beaches are pure white edged by lush green palms, you can aim a point-and-shoot in almost any direction and get a beautiful picture. Photography aside, you can also dive, snorkel and swim with the dolphins. You might opt to explore the reef in a glass-bottom boat, go into town to shop for island crafts, or see the butterfly and floral gardens.

Santo Tomás de Castilla, also known as Matías de Gálvez is a port city in the Izabal Department, Guatemala. It lies at Amatique Bay off the Gulf of Honduras and is administratively a part of Puerto Barrios.

ALonely Planet “Best in Travel 2019,” Belize is home to the dazzling offshore Belize Barrier Reef – the world’s second largest after Australia’s – this is a haven for snorkelers and divers eager to explore an underwater world of rich marine life. Inland, verdant jungles are home to Mayan ruins including Caracol, renowned for its towering pyramid.

Soak up the sun on Mexico’s largest island. Cozumel has pristine palm-lined beaches and plenty of opportunities for you to get lost in Mayan mysteries, explore Caribbean coral formations, or simply relax on a white sand beach.

Progreso is a port city on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. It’s a common stop for cruise ships, which dock at its landmark long pier. An oceanfront promenade, the Malecón, is lined with beaches and thatch-roofed restaurants. The Faro de Puerto Progreso, built in 1893, is an active lighthouse. The city is a gateway to the inland Mayan archaeological sites of Chichén Itzá, Uxmal and Dzibilchaltún.

Originally a fort built by the U.S. Army in 1838, during the Second Seminole War, Ft. Lauderdale has little left of its warlike past. Instead the city welcomes visitors with broad beaches and an easy pace of life, plus convenient air and water connections that make the city a perfect place to begin or end a cruise.