In Panama for business? Take a side trip to the canal

Tourists at the Agua Clara locks of the newly expanded Panama Canal.[Photo/ Agencies]

Dozens of spectators gawk from an observation deck as a bulk freighter carrying a variety of grains from the United States to China inches its way closer. Forty-ton locomotives known as mules latch onto the massive vessel with cables and guide it inside the Miraflores locks, employing a mechanical precision that keeps it from banging into the concrete walls despite the tight fit.

The ship's crossing through the Panama Canal is nearly complete as the 700-ton steel doors swing shut. While most of their bulk is hidden underneath the water, they're as tall as an eight-story building and the same ones that have been doing the job for over a century.

As a major Latin American hub of finance, commerce and transportation, the Panamanian capital is a growing destination for business travelers. For anyone looking to duck out of a convention center for a few hours, fill a gap between meetings or even if you've just got a long layover at the airport, a visit to Panama City's No 1 attraction and its newly expanded locks makes for the perfect side excursion.

Shipping geeks in particular will delight at this engineering marvel that revolutionized global maritime trade when it opened for business on Aug 15, 1914, but it also appeals to a broader audience. Nearly 3,000 people visit each day during the January-April high season.

The Miraflores Visitor Center offers several stories of space with an up-close view of the machinations of the canal, where ships pass through about 35 to 40 times a day. With each crossing, an enthusiastic guide informs visitors on a recent sticky, tropical morning, that the locks fill with about 26 million gallons (100 million liters) of fresh water that then spill into the Pacific Ocean.

"I'm impressed by the magnitude of this operation," says Vicky Londono, a Colombian traveler who flew into the airport that day with her husband and hopped in a cab to see the canal before continuing to their final destination, Madrid.

The Canal Authority threw a big bash in late June to formally inaugurate its new Cocoli locks, which doubled the waterway's capacity and can accommodate huge New Panamax-class vessels that carry up to three times as much cargo as those previously able to fit. There will be no separate viewing platform at Cocoli for at least two years, but for now you can see some of the action at a distance from Miraflores. Tip: Bring binoculars.

"This is spectacular," says Tom Matz, a retired lawyer from New York, as a sky-blue liquid petroleum gas ship emerged from Cocoli bound for the Atlantic. "The past, present and future of the canal, all right here."

Getting to the canal is a snap, with a host of travel agencies and hotel tours competing for your business. For $30 or so, depending on your willingness to haggle, taxi drivers will take you from the city center and pick you up a couple of hours later. Plan on $60 or more if you're starting from the airport, as well as a 30-to 45-minute cab ride there-possibly longer due to Panama City's chronic traffic congestion.

If no ship is passing through right when you arrive, while away the time in the facility's theater and museum for comprehensive exhibits on the canal and its construction－which claimed the lives of more than 25,000 workers. Most of those who died were from Caribbean islands, most of them victims of tropical diseases such as malaria and yellow fever.

A simulator lets you play captain and virtually maneuver a ship through the locks. There's also a snack bar, and a pricier restaurant upstairs that stays open into the evening.