Some time ago I recommended you some channels that you have to cross at least once in your life to be considered a good cruise passenger. Well, now it will give you more details about the most impressive navigable canals in the world. To begin with, I will tell you that a canal is a waterway, which is almost always built by man, It serves to connect lakes, rivers or oceans. For a long time the canals were used to transport goods, but today they have become one more tourist attraction, who has not dreamed of traveling to Venice and its canals, Amsterdam, Bruges, Burano, or Delf among other cities?
But today I want to talk to you especially about the channels impressive, either for its magnitude or for the beauty of the landscapes they go through. By the way, if you are interested in a cruise through the canals of Bruges, much less saturated than other destinations, I recommend this article.
The Suez Canal, a historic canal
The Suez Canal was inaugurated in 1869, but the idea of its construction was already had by the ancient pharaohs of Egypt, and the Persian and Ptolemy kings were in charge of rebuilding it, the Romans called it the Canal de los Pharaohs and it is that this extends from the Port of Said, passing through Al-Ismailiya and ends in the Red Sea, at the Port of Tawfiq. Therefore its location is a strategic point.
Some of its characteristics is that, It is the longest canal in the world, with 163 kilometers, It does not have locks, because the two waters that it unites are at the same level. It also only has one address and it takes between 11 and 16 hours to cross it.
Any cruise that traverses the Suez Canal is traversing part of human history, you will have an impressive view of the Egyptian city of Ismailia, on the banks of the canal.
Panama Canal, connects the Atlantic and the Pacific
As you can imagine, the other great canal is the Panama Canal, which connects the Atlantic and the Pacific. Although when it was expanded in 2016, with its new locks, only the Princess Cruises shipping company was the only commercial cruise company that crossed this canal of about 80 kilometers long.
Right now Now you can find trips on Norwegian Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Carnival, Hollan America Line and the luxurious Seabourn They also offer proposals to cross the Panama Canal. It takes about 10 hours to cross the canal.
Corinth Canal, the one carved out of the rock
We return to Europe, more specifically to Greece, and I present to you the Corinth Canal, one of the most amazing channels, dug out of the rock. This canal was devised in 630 BC, but as it is now, it was inaugurated on November 9, 1893. It connects the Greek region of the Peloponnese to Hellas, in mainland Greece.
It has a length of just over 6 kilometers, and a width of only 21 meters. And unlike the one in Suez or Panama, it is mainly used by tourist boats, that is why it includes many of the cruises in Greece, apart from you can visit the city of Corinth, full of history, raisins and shops.
Grand Canal of China, on the other side of the world
And let's jump to the Grand Canal of China, one of the oldest on Earth that in its heyday it traveled about 1.800 kilometers. Es World Heritage Site since 2014. If you want to go part of it there is a kind of bus, ferry type, which includes visits to the Museum of the Grand Canal of China, Qinsha Park, Tongheli, and the Gongchen Bridge, a stone structure with more than 4000 years old.
Today the Grand Canal, revitalized during the 1950s and 1980s, remains a China's economic artery.