elklemi

I did Star Clipper Costa Rica in January and their port stops were mainly rain forest and only one was a nice beach. Still enjoyed it and Costa Rica was very enjoyable but was looking for more beach time. They also do Panama and Costa Rica but found Windstar from Panama thru Panama Canal to Aruba and just booked for March. Full transit is appealing as I have only done partial many years ago and always wanted to experience the full passage. It also has stops at Panama islands what I want to see and Cartegena which I experienced on land tour and enjoyed and on one of their Yachts which will be a new experience as other trips with them were on the sail ships. Chance to experience Panama islands, and Columbia I really enjoyed so those items made the choice easy for me. I miss the Gallo beer in Columbia. I am sure you will enjoy whatever trip you choose. Best of luck.

This is from one of their brochures 2022-2024 so guess they use different names. I did Costa Rica this year on Star Clipper but want to do Panama Canal and some of the Panama Islands.

I am also looking to do the Panama Canal this winter and looking at the Spanish Treasures with Aruba to Panama City and wondering which trip you are considering?

Only sail and sign on HMC, Princess Caye has some private stalls and bar outside gate that uses dollars.

The hotels I mentioned near airport are Hampton Inn, Hilton Garden Inn, Sleep Inn, Fairfield Inn, Days Inn, Courtyard by Marriott, Residence Inn, Red Roof Inn, as mentioned 15 minutes to port and two restaurants walking distance and I think a mall is nearby.

The Holiday Inn is close to port but not much around there, I stay at one of the hotels near the airport and walk to one of the two restaurants (Ruby Tuesday or Longhorn Steakhouse) from there it is 15 minute drive to port. I have done many of these trips as I like the small ship and Bahamas has a special place in my heart, and I plan a cruise in early December to get some warm temps and it is a easy drive from East Tennessee. Enjoy your cruise.

hard to tell how crowded it will be, but it is a long beach and do not think it would be so crowded there would be no place to sit. There are guys who will rent chair and umbrella and some just put a towel down.

I do the same and they have a waiter come and I order a beer capped and take it and enjoy later.

I plan on beer $4-$5 cracked conch $15-$22 depending on appetizer or full dinner, this is my budget for Bahamas, maybe others can provide prices for other items, I always walk by these places but then I go to Bearded Clam right at port for refreshments. Have a wonderful time, I have not been since the new port is updated, only saw it during construction as I go every December and it was still in construction mode then.

It is if you enjoy walking and it is flat but I wear a hat and you can buy water at Junkanoo, I am 75 and I walk everyday so walking is an activity I enjoy and if you get tired you can always hail a cab.

It is easy walk maybe 15-30 minutes depending on how fast you walk. Just follow sidewalk at Senor Frogs and go past Margaritaville. Lot more vendors now than few years ago and the Fish Fry is just beyond the beach on same route. I always walk by and go to Fish Fry for a Kalik then head to my favorite bar for a few hours. Hope you find what you are looking for.

Did Costa Rica/Nicaragua sailing last year and considering the Panama/Costa Rica sailing for 2024, unable to find any info on the Balboa port and hope someone can help. Thanks.

Two months ago I did tour the site with a group tour not from a ship and I say you need to do this as a group tour so you bypass the huge crowd waiting to buy tickets, we walked right past everyone in line and the line was huge, it is an impressive site and you will get a feel in 1.5 hours and the advantage of a land tour is we were in a hotel so close we could see one of temples from our grounds, it is worth seeing and doing the bus ride to get there and Progresso would be much better than Cozumel. Enjoy your visit.

Go to cashier at casino and show your sign and sail and they will give you cash. Good luck.

Looks like TYS

I did it a few years ago and it was only a few dollars then, nice way to see the port area and then I went and spent time at the beach.

I have done Caye caulker twice with Coral Breeze and was an excellent experience, they took good care of us and if you are not snorkeling, they drop you on the island first and pickup so snorkel folks can get lunch before heading back to port.

I always stay near the airport, there are at least 5 major hotel chains and two restaurants that are in walking distance of these hotels. From these to port is 15 minute drive as I park at port.

Enjoyed your report and brings back memories of my trip in 2019 and Bequia is also now my favorite stop especially as I had never heard of it before my trip. thank you.

In Princess Caye you can go outside the gate and there is a local bar, George's Bar, with all your libations and cheaper than inside the gate. I take a cooler and get a few Kaliks or Sands and go back to my lounger and enjoy the day. When you get off the tender the right side is less crowded and close to the gate.

Bearded Clam bar in alley on street in front of ships, great cracked conch also with good drink prices.

Have been with them twice to Caulker and was impressed with how they run their trip. Caye Caulkeer is a special place and glad I got to experience the island.

I have taken this tour twice but did not snorkel and they left us on the island and picked us up after the snorkel was over. Really enjoyed both visits and it is a little cheaper to not snorkel and they take good care of us and am really impressed with Coral Breeze.

Glad tp be of help, Drink of the day was 5 euros, and I only drink beer which was 3.5 euros to 4 euros as I recall, others who drink wine or spirits were saying drink prices were reasonable. We did have a sea day which was 3rd full day, nothing real dressy but some did dress up a little for Captain's dinner and they had a pirate one evening and heard some dress up for that. Cruise director was Axel Melchior and he is from Costa Rica but myself with others did not feel like he gave a "feel" for our stops and seems like everything was geared for excursions from ship. Wishing you all a great time.

Since Star Clipper did not provide any information until 8 days before my cruise I decided to give a recap to help others sailing Costa Rica what I can offer. Any questions ask and I will try and help out. Flying blind on info on where and when to board, transfers, excursions before and after until I was packing to leave. Flew in 2 days before cruise and stayed at Doubletree by Hilton Cariari and could not have made a better choice. Free transfer from airport and this is a beautiful hotel with vegetation and buildings that made sure I was in Costa Rica. Nice bar and restaurant and everyone was nice and room was clean and large. Loved this hotel. San Jose can get chilly when sun goes down and it is always windy so plan a jacket. Checked numerous transfer companies and decided on Morpho tours as all were close in price and I paid $149 each way for 1-5 people and they were prompt to return my emails and answer any questions I had. Both drivers were great and to port he took us over the mountain and back we took main road. On that road traffice heading to port was backed up due to construction on side of road. We arrived little after 1 PM and they were taking our luggage and took our paperwork and we were free until 4 pm when they took us to ship by groups. Usual check in on ship and got keys and left passport and were free to do whatever. Ship is what I expected as have been on Star Flyer in past. Heard there were 80-90 of us so no lines ever and dining room was quieter due to not being full. Stops were designed for excursions from ship and I was not planning on doing these and usually walk off ship and find enough to peak my interest but this trip was a challenge. Quepos was let off at a marina which was nice and visited restaurant/bar and overlooked the boats and water and had lunch. Some others said there was a small town but I was not aware of such as cruise director did not supply much info which was helpful for any stop. Golfito is very small and found one nice restaurant/bar (La Playa) on the water and had a fine time with some friends from the UK and Germany. Bahia Potrero we were let off on the beach and go to the right and there is a nice beach some went to and I went left to find a store to purchase some items needed and it was a long walk on black sand beaches of Costa Rica. Found the store and had lunch at Hemingway's which is on the beach and nice place with wifi. Isla Tortugas was fabulous and reminded me of the Caribbean and I really enjoyed the white sand and palm trees and little beach bar had umbrellas and chairs $14 for 2 and $7 for 1. Beer was $3 and many had coconuts or Pineapples with rum I think were $7. Hated to leave but it was a great last stop. Also on two stoops we had to take tender and near beach had to transfer to Zodiacs which can be dicey to be extra careful. As usual all crew were exceptional. Seas were calm and sailing was fine and usual climb the mast was a hit. I admit I expected Costa Rica's pacific coast to be like the caribbean which was not the case except for last stop- but that did not make me enjoy my time any less. Tennessee is not really freezing but nice to be in upper 80's and on the water. Saw one whale and others saw porpoises around front of ship. Guests were UK, Germany, and US and all were friendly and enjoyable to talk to and hear other's experiences. Loved Costa Rica and best for land vacation and go to National Parks and rain forest for birds, etc. Glad I went and Central America is one of my favorite places as I have been to Guatemala, Hondouras, and Columbia. If those going on a future cruise to Costa Rica have any questions I can answer please let me know and I will try to be helpful. Star Clippers needs to step up their game in this regard. Also, review all your paperwork as I was supposed to get 4 hours free wifi when I booked and when I got on board it had changed to 1 hour. Did not realize until after trip so check your paperwork. Safe travels to all and the Clipper did carry Imperial, Costa Rican beer on board for those who enjoy beer, as the old saying goes "if you travel global--Drink Local".