Gatun Lake cruise port guide
At the center of one of the world’s greatest engineering projects is a place where nature has been given a space to flourish—the vast Gatún Lake. The lake includes some 33 kilometers (20 miles) of the 77-kilometer (48-mile) route that ships follow through the Panama Canal. While a passenger gazing at its forested shores may assume they are looking at a landscape that predates the canal, the lake is as much a manmade creation as the various locks. It was formed in 1912, with the damming of the Chagres River, and the islands that dot the lake were once the peaks of hills. The surface of the lake sits at an elevation of between 25 and 27 meters (82 and 87 feet) above sea level. At its Caribbean end, the Gatún Locks raise ships traveling towards the Pacific to the level of the lake; at its other end, the Pedro Miguel and then the Miraflores Locks lower them back to sea level. In addition to opportunities to see the infrastructure of the canal, created at the expense of millions of dollars and thousands of lives, Gatún Lake is fascinating for its remarkable biodiversity. More than 100 species each of mammals and reptiles, as well as some 500 different birds, thrive in the nature reserves in and near the lake.
About Gatun Lake
Gatun Lake is the artificial lake created by the Gatun Dam as part of the Panama Canal construction, completed in 1914. Cruise ships transiting the Panama Canal pass through this lake between the Gatun Locks on the Atlantic side and the Pedro Miguel/Miraflores Locks on the Pacific side, traversing through rainforest-covered tropical scenery.
Quick facts
Cruises visiting Gatun Lake
Prices per person · incl. taxes & fees.
Sailing soonest
21-Day Panama Canal & Southern Caribbean: Abc Islands
Nieuw Amsterdam · Caribbean · 21 nights
from $3,624
$172 / night
12-Day Panama Canal Discovery: Costa Rica & Greater Antilles
Nieuw Amsterdam · South America · 12 nights
from $2,344
$195 / night
21-Day Southern Caribbean & Panama Canal: Abc Islands
Nieuw Amsterdam · Central America · 21 nights
from $3,524
$167 / night
21-Day Panama Canal & Southern Caribbean Discovery
Nieuw Amsterdam · Caribbean · 21 nights
from $3,449
$164 / night
12-Day Panama Canal Discovery: Costa Rica & Greater Antilles
Nieuw Amsterdam · South America · 12 nights
from $2,244
$187 / night
19-Day Panama Canal Holiday: Amber Cove & Costa Rica
Nieuw Amsterdam · Caribbean · 19 nights
from $3,754
$197 / night
Showing the 20 least-expensive of 25 sailings.
Showing 25 Gatun Lake cruises
Open in full search