Disney Wonder utilizes expanded Panama Canal

Disney Cruise Line became the first to give the expanded Panama Canal a try as Disney Wonder made its way from east to west on its way to summer service in Alaska.

The 83,300-ton, 2,713-passenger Wonder has traditionally been the line’s ship to transit the canal, but because of upgrades in 2016 that grew the ship’s length to 984 feet, it now has to use the improved waterway with new locks that allows for larger ships to pass through. The canal’s original set of locks still work and several lines still use them with their smaller vessels.

“The original Panama Canal has been a cruise destination for many years,” said Panama Canal Deputy Administrator Manuel Benitez on April 29. “Today’s historic transit marks the beginning of cruise lines being able to include the new locks as part of their itineraries, opening up additional transit options and allowing cruise passengers to witness firsthand Manuel Benitez, this feat of modern engineering.”

Disney Cruise Line had held off major refurbishments to Wonder awaiting the Panama Canal improvements, which became a reality last summer after nine years of construction.

Wonder underwent dry dock enhancements in Cadiz, Spain last September, so after spending the winter months sailing the Caribbean from Galveston, Texas and Port Canaveral, Wonder got to try out the new path for the first time on its way to San Diego and eventual Alaska service.

While the lock enhancement was designed to allow for larger cargo vessels, cruise lines with their evergrowing ship sizes will also be able to utilize it. Princess Cruises will take advantage of that fact with Caribbean Princess transits beginning in October with Carnival and Norwegian planning to use the new system in 2018.

The Panama Canal Authority said lines have booked 18 trips across the new locks for the 2017-18 season. By Sept. 30, cruise lines will send 233 vessels across, either by using the old or new locks.

The Panama Canal opened in 1914. Ships too large to cross it would have to travel around the top of South America, an extra 8,000 miles, to get from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The expanded locks are 70 feet wider and 18 feet deeper than those in the original canal.

While Disney Cruise Line has not slated new West Coast duties for any ship other than Disney Wonder, now all four of its ships can fit through the Panama Canal.

DISNEY CRUISE LINE/COURTESY Disney Wonder became the first cruise ship to use the Panama Canal’s new expanded set of locks. Wonder made the transit from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean on April 28.