| The Crucero Express was the only company to provide ferry service between Panama and Colombia, enjoining the two unconnected segments of the Pan-American Highway (which is broken between North and South America by the impassible Darian Gap). In 1994 the Linea Crucero Express began charting a thrice-weekly course between Colón and Cartagena, but despite its initial popularity rising overhead costs and falling demand forced the company to cease operations in early 1997.
The company utilized a single vessel of approximately ten-thousand tons displacement. It had been constructed in the French shipyard Dubigeín in 1972 and retrofitted in Norway just prior to operations, rechristened with the name Crucera Express.[citation needed] The ship could transport 125 vehicles[4] and with 100 trailers, along with some 600 passengers divided into 240 cabins. For their entertainment during the twenty-hour voyage, the ship also housed jacuzzis, swimming pools, bars, casinos, conference rooms, and ballrooms, making it something of a cross between a cruise ship and a traditional ferry. Roundtrip tickets ranged from 200 to 400 USD per couple. |
