Swan Hellenic SH Diana Cruise Review Video
Our video review of Swan Hellenic SH Diana
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
Cartegena, Columbia (City Tour)
I enjoy an included city tour of Cartegena, Colombia, get to visit the bridge of SH Diana and start packing for the trip home.
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning, SH Diana is docked in Cartegena, Columbia, our final port-of-call on this sailing. We will overnight here then disembark tomorrow morning. From my balcony, I can see the tour buses already lined up outside for excursion guests.
By 8:15am, guests begin disembarking the ship for their excursions. I booked the included “Cartegena City Tour” excursion.
There were about twenty people on our motor coach for this tour. Swan Hellenic does a good job of splitting the tours into smaller groups. For guests who want to explore on their own, Swan Hellenic has arranged for a complimentary shuttle to take them into town.
Our first stop was at San Felipe Castle, which we did not actually tour, but were able to photograph from the outside.
Locals were on hand for photo ops and a table with fresh fruit was on offer, all included in our excursion at no additional charge.
Even the local police officers got into the act, encouraging tourists to get their photos taken with them. There was a lot of police presence everywhere we went on this excursion.
Much of this excursion involves walking through quaint pedestrian streets of Cartegena with interesting architecture.
Local artists can be seen throughout the city creating their works of art and offering them for sale.
This excursion even included a stop at a local restaurant where we were treated to a local fruit drink and Arepas, a fried dough pocket filled with egg and ground meet.
Throughout the tour, the guide would stop at various points of interest to explain the history of a statue or Cartegena in general. Unfortunately, Swan Hellenic does not use QuietVox portable receivers, so if you are not close to the tour guide, you will trouble hearing the commentary.
Many streets in Cartegena’s tourist district are decorated with colorful flags or umbrellas to provide a little respite from the hot sunshine.
Local vendors can be seen throughout the city pushing their carts through the streets to drum up business.
We made one brief stop at a local emerald jewelry store. We were only there for about ten minutes. I am not sure how many tourists decide to purchase a $5,000 piece of jewelry in under ten minutes?
At the conclusion of the tour, the coach drops us Port Oasis Cartegena which is an animal sanctuary that you must walk through to get back to the ship. This is actually one of the highlights of visiting Cartegena, and it is completely free! In fact, you can simply walk (or take a shuttle) from the ship to this sanctuary.
Rather than stand in the hot sun and wait for the shuttle to take ma back to the ship, I decided to walk back. The ship is docked about 3/4 of the mile from the port entry so it was a fairly easy walk.
Once back on board, I was treated to a tour of the ship’s bridge by Captain Ukkonen. All guests on this cruise were offered an opportunity to tour the bridge.
San Blas Islands and Covid
Rickee tests positive for Covid, I get a separate stateroom, and caviar is served at the Captain’s Farewell Reception.
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning, SH Diana is anchored off the coast of San Blas Islands. But, the morning did not start well for us. Rickee had been fighting a bad headache for a couple of days and when a slight cough came on last night, she decided it was time to see the ship’s doctor.
Protocol requires a Covid test and, sure enough, Rickee tested positive, making this her third Covid cruise. She is a Covid magnet!
This experience did give us the opportunity to check out the medical clinic on board, which I must say was quite impressive for a small ship. It is very well equipped and they have a doctor on board as well as at least one nurse (there may have been others, I am not sure).
The doctor was very thorough and had a great bedside manner. She told us that Rickee would have to be quarantined in the stateroom until the end of the cruise, unless she tested negative in the meantime, which she did not.
Fortunately, I tested negative and, as a result, I was provided a second stateroom (#628) just a few doors down from our Junior Suite. While Rickee spent the rest of the day resting, and reading, I decided to try another cheeseburger from the Pool Grill. This one was just as good as the second one I tried.
I did not feel like taking the Zodiac to the island without Rickee, but I did watch the Zodiacs shuttle guests to and from the island. Everyone said they experienced the best snorkeling of the cruise here.
This evening was the Captain’s Farewell Reception and Renato, (Food and Beverage Manager) along with Chef Eddy, prepared a table with caviar for guests to enjoy. I do not eat caviar, but Rickee loves the stuff. So, I had Renato fix her a plate and I ran it down to her suite for her to enjoy.
Nikki greeted everyone in Observation Lounge, then introduced Captain Kai Ukkonen.
Captain Ukkonen welcomed the guests and then brought the entire crew of SH Diana on stage for well-deserved recognition.
A hand-drawn map of our cruise was offered up for auction and raised $1,000 for the Crew Welfare Fund!
The Captain’s Farewell Dinner menu included Beef Tataki (delicious), Asparagus Soup (delicious) and the featured main course was Surf and Turf, a beef filet topped with a lobster tail.
The filet was cooked perfectly medium and was tender. The lobster, unfortunately, was very fishy and I could not eat it. I am not a huge fan of lobster anyway, so I did not ask for a replacement, I just enjoyed the beef.
Tomorrow, we will be docked in Cartegena, Columbia.
Panama Canal Transit
We cross from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic through the Panama Canal.
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning, SH Diana is scheduled to make her very first transit through the Panama Canal. Guests begin to gather at the bow as the ship makes her way under the Bridge of the Americas on the Pacific side of the canal.
As SH Diana enters the Miraflores Locks, locals are on hand to cheer us on.
After we enter Miraflores Locks we, wait for water levels to rise to the level of the next lock.
Four powerful electric “mules” are used keep the ship centered in the lock.
Transiting the Panama Canal should be on every cruiser’s bucket list. It truly is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
A few hours later, we are entering the final lock on the Atlantic side of the canal. A transit through the canal takes only hours, while navigating around the horn of South America can take several weeks.
What a great day to be onboard SH Diana as she completes her maiden transit through the canal! Tomorrow, we will be in San Blas Islands.
Fuerte Amador, Panama
We take a small boat tour of Lake Gatun.
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning, SH Diana is docked at Fuerte Amador, the port for Panama City.
We gather on Deck 5 for the Small Boat Tour of Gatun Lake. This was an optional excursion for $169/pp. Swan Hellenic did offer an included Panama City Tour excursion.
By 8:15, guests are disembarking SH Diana. A motor coach is waiting for us on the pier to take us to Gamboa, where we will board our small boats.
The coach ride took a little more than an hour. Our first stop was a bathroom break at the Gamboa Resort before we head to the marina.
The marina is not far from the resort and we walk down a paved road to get to the marina.
There are three boats waiting for us at the marina, yet I think our group may have only filled two of the boats.
Everyone puts on the provided life vests and the way the boats are designed, everyone gets a “window” seat. The boats are covered on top to block sun and rain, but not on the sides, as we would soon learn.
Our first stop was to look at a mother crocodile looking over her baby crocs. They are almost impossible to see on the small rocks, but when they moved around, you could spot them.
Later in the tour, at another location, the guide reached down and grabbed a baby crocodile out of the water and passed it around for everyone to hold. Below, Rickee holds the baby croc.
At another location, we stop to look at a tree trunk where small fruit bats are just clinging to the tree.
During the tour, lunch boxes were provided with a chicken tortilla wrap, granola bar and apple juice box.
We did observe some monkeys in trees along the shore, but you have to have a really good camera and lens to get photos of those. And then, the rain began. We had been warned that there was a good chance of rain and were advised to bring rain coats. I did not even pack a rain coat for this trip, but Rickee did. I did have a cheap, plastic Pancho.
Unfortunately, we had already put on our life vests. Here’s a pro tip: DEFINITELY bring a rain coat, and put it on BEFORE you don your life vest. We tried holding the raincoat and pancho over us to block the rain, but the small rain quickly turned into a downpour and water was coming into the boat from all sides. We were SOAKED when we got off the boat.
The rain only lasted about 30 minutes at the end of the tour, but everyone, even those with raincoats, got soaked. Then it was back on the coach for the one-hour-plus ride back to SH Diana.
This was a good excursion and one we would recommend. A raincoat, and really waterproof pants, would make a huge difference in the experience.
The highlight of today was being invited to have dinner with Hotel Director, Nicolas Longin. Nicolas has a long and interesting history in the cruise industry, and we have even sailed with his wife, Vicki Van Tassel, when she was a Cruise Director for Silversea. We enjoyed a great meal and great conversation.
Tomorrow, we will be transiting the Panama Canal.
Emberá
The weather prevented us from visiting the Emberá people on their island, so they brought their culture to SH Diana.
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning started with breakfast in Swan Restaurant where Rickee ordered Eggs Benedict.
The weather and sea conditions look a little sketchy for our Zodiac ride to the island.
We watch the expedition team returning from their scouting journey of the island and can tell that it appears there will be no island visit for us today. Sure enough, the announcement is made that sea conditions are too rough to risk a beach landing.
The good new is, the Emberá people have no problem with bringing their show to SH Diana! Here the Chief of the tribe greets us and gives us some insight into their culture.
The Emberá children ranging in ages from 5 to 10 prepare to dance for us.
Local musicians play their traditional music while the children invite guests to join them on the dance floor.
After the dancing, guests are offered the opportunity to get a traditional Emberá tattoo. Of course, Rickee is one of the first to volunteer.
The tattoos are temporary and will wear off in about a week.
The Emberá are expert basket weavers and wood carvers. They bring many of their baskets, carvings and beadwork on board for guests to shop from.
For lunch today, we head back to the Pool Bar and Grill on Deck 7 aft. Here you can get burgers, chicken sandwiches, pizza, shrimp skewers and more.
I decided to give the cheeseburger another try, and I am glad I did. My first cheeseburger suffered from a stale bun, but this bun was fresh, soft and perfectly toasted. The bun can make all the difference. I would place this cheeseburger solidly in the top 3 cruise line cheeseburgers! The fries are also hot, crispy and delicious.
Guest lecturer, Ben Clark, talks about his involvement in the exploration of Mars. Very interesting and a good presentation.
This afternoon, Alex gave an interesting and enlightening lecture on the history of The Panama Canal.
The dinner menu this evening features one of our favorites, Cream of Mushroom soup. Rickee made her main course the Waldorf Salad while I went back to another Rib Eye steak. Both were very good.
The Cream of Mushroom soup was velvety smooth with just a hint of truffle.
Rickee’s Waldorf Salad was a combination of grapes, apples, lettuce, cucumber and surprisingly, tomatoes.
My second Rib Eye was not quite as massive as the first one a couple of evenings ago, but it was more than I could finih and cooked perfectly.
Tomorrow, we are docked at Fuerte Amador where we are scheduled to enjoy a small boat ride.
Cebaco Island, Panama
We visit Cebaco Island today for a private beach experience.
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning, SH Diana is anchored off the coast of Cebaco Island, Panama.
We board the Zodiac for the short ride to Cebaco Island.
After we arrive, Nikki, the Expedition Leader, informs guests of which area on the beach are available for our use. Some areas are restricted for safety and privacy reasons.
Zodiacs shuttle guests to and from Cebaco Island. You can see lava rock formations in the forground.
The crew has set up a refreshment station on the beach so that every can stay hydrated!
While there are no facilities on this beach, such as umbrellas and loungers, there are both sunny and shady areas.
We only stayed on the beach for a short time, just long enough to shoot some video and photos. We are able to hitch a ride on a Zodiac back to SH Diana in plenty of time for lunch on board.
This afternoon, Lynn, the ship’s photographer, gives a very interesting presentation on composition rules for better photography.
At our daily briefing (every evening at 6:30pm), we learn about the Emberá people that we will visiting tomorrow.
Dinner this evening is again in Swan Restaurant and I am anxious to try the Beef Wellington. Rickee ordered the Chicken Yakitori. Both dishes were delicious.
My Beef Wellington was cooked perfectly. Unfortunately, my carnivore diet meant I had to strip away the crusty pastry, but the meat was tender and delicious.
Tomorrow we will be visiting the Emberá people, an indigenous tribe in Panama.
Golfito
We do Golfito on our own with a little shopping and some Champagne.
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning begins with an amazing sunrise as we sail to Golfito, Costa Rica.
My carnivore diet allows me to enjoy bacon and an omelette this morning in Swan Restaurant.
While most guests are on tours in Golfito, we decided to stay onboard and enjoy the ship.
I enjoyed a lecture on astronomy and SETI from guest lecturer, Ben Clark.
We decide to get off SH Diana to do a little exploring. Our mission is to find a souvenir magnet and, if possible, a toothbrush. Believe it or not, Rickee forgot to pack her toothbrush!
Disembarking in golfito
We walk along the pier to the security gate. It is VERY hot and humid today.
Just outside of the security gate is a local souvenir shop. It does not look like much from the outside, but they have a large selection of souvenirs inside. They accepted US Dollars and even gave change back in US Dollars.
souvenir shop next to port entrance
First goal achieved, we found a monkey magnet!
About 3 blocks from the ship was a supermarket where Rickee found her toothbrush! Second goal accomplished. Time for champagne!
To celebrate our victory, we enjoy a glass of Champagne on our large balcony. Well, maybe more than one glass of Champagne.
An amazing sunset this evening just outside of Observation Lounge.
At cocktail hour, the waitress brings around plates of beef jerky. I can honestly say, in 145 cruises, I have never seen beef jerky offered as a hors d'oeuvre. It was actually very good.
For dinner each evening, waiters offer a selection of one red and one white wine. Wine, beer and cocktails are complimentary.
I ordered the Always Available Rib Eye steak with peppercorn sauce. It was a huge portion and perfectly cooked. I will be having this again.
Tomorrow, we will be anchored off the coast of Cebaco Island, Panama.
Manuel Antonio Park - Quepos, Costa Rica
The best wildlife spotting today was after the excursion ended!
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
This morning starts with a carnivore breakfast of bacon and sausage in Swan Restaurant.
Carnivore breakfast
We opted for the included excursion: Nature Walk & Beach Manuel Antonio. While we had no interest in going to the beach, we wanted to see the wildlife in the park. After a dry landing in Quepos, we boarded a bus for the short ride to the park entrance.
There were about 20 guests in our group
Once we arrived at Manuel Antonio, a few guests opted to head to the beach while most of us wanted to check out the wildlife. Our tour guides began leading us down the paved path and, before long, we spotted a green snake. Can you see it?
The guides did a good job of locating and pointing out wildlife along the path.
The guides brought along powerful telescopes so that we could see sloths and other animals high up in the trees.
The photo below was taken with my iPhone through the lens of one of the guide’s telescope. This is a destination that would have been better photographed with my mirrorless camera with a good zoom lens.
On the way back to the bus, we spotted several Iguanas warming themselves on rocks near the water.
Once back at the bus, we were entertained by several Capuchin monkeys that were scrounging for food nearby.
After the 6:30pm daily briefing, it is time for dinner in Swan Restaurant (7pm). This was our first evening meal with full table service in Swan Restaurant (we skipped dinner last night). Rickee had the Chicken Marsala and I ordered the Osso Buco. Both were very good. Service was crisp and efficient.
Dinner menu
Tomorrow, we will be in Golfito. We were in Golfito a few years ago, so we will stay onboard SH Diana and enjoy the ship.
Curu Wildlife Refuge
We see some amazing wildlife at Curu Wildlife Refuge
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
Our first full day on SH Diana and we are getting to enjoy our first included excursion, a visit to the Curu Wildlife Refuge. We grab our life vests and waterproof backpacks and have about 15 minutes for a quick breakfast before heading to BaseCamp on Deck 3.
After boarding the Zodiac for the short ride over to the island, we get another safety briefing from our Zodiac pilot.
There are about 20 people in our group as we head out on the 3-hour walking tour.
Navigating through the jungle requires crossing several interesting bridges.
A wide variety of vegetation can be found here.
I was lagging behind the tour group when I spotted this strange looking fellow scurrying around behind me on the path. Do you know what this is?
I like to fall back, away from the group, so I can get better photos and video. I wish I had brought my mirrorless camera.
At the end of the tour, we re-board the Zodiacs for the ride back to SH Diana in time for lunch.
We decide to try the light lunch options at Club Lounge on Deck 7 aft. Rickee opted for the steak sandwich (below), which unfortunately, was woefully undercooked.
My cheeseburger with fries was a better choice, but the bun was a little stale. Steaming or toasting the bun would have made a big improvement.
This evening was the Captain’s Welcome Reception held in Observation Lounge (Deck 7 forward). We had the opportunity to meet Captain Kai Ukkonen and all of the senior officers.
Tomorrow, we will be in Quepos and will be exploring the Manuel Antonio Park.
Embarkation in Puntarenas and Our First Day Onboard
Follow along with us on our 11 nights onboard Swan Hellenic SH Diana
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
Pre-Cruise in Santa Ana, Costa Rica
Follow along with us on our 11 nights onboard Swan Hellenic SH Diana
Ship: Swan Hellenic - SH Diana
Itinerary: 11-Night Puntarenas to Cartagena
Our three-hour-and-twenty-minute flight from DFW to SJO (San Jose, Costa Rica) was scheduled to depart at 10:20am. We arrived at the airport just before 8 am to ensure we would have enough time to get through security and perhaps visit the Admiral’s Club lounge or Capital One lounge.
We were pleasantly surprised to see very few people at the airport this morning. We checked our luggage and were through the TSA checkpoint in under ten minutes.
Capital One Lounge - Gate D23 - DFW International
Fortunately, the Capital One lounge was not too crowded when we arrived and we were able to get in. Any Capital One Venture X credit cardholder can gain free access to the lounge and bring a guest. We find this lounge to be far superior to the Admiral’s Club lounge. The atmosphere is more modern and the complimentary food and drinks are far superior.
We were in the first group to board the flight as today we have upgraded to Business Class. In fact, we were in seats 1E and 1F (bulkhead). This aircraft was an older Boeing 737-800 and the Business Class seats are showing their age. The seats were comfortable, but legroom was no better than you would get in the exit row in Economy. In fact, I think there is more legroom in the exit row!
As we were the first to board, we had no trouble finding space in the overhead bins for all of our hand luggage (no under seat storage at the bulkhead).
Each seat had a flip up armrest revealing a storage pocket large enough to hold an iPad. There was a universal electrical outlet here, but no USB ports, so make sure to bring an adapter with you.
The Business Class service was sort of a mixed bag. We were not offered any pre-departure drinks. Once the plane had reached cruising altitude, the flight attendants did bring us a bowl of nuts and offer drink service. We each ordered the Champagne, which was served in a glass and was quite good.
In Business Class, you can now pre-order your preferred meal on the AA website 30 days before your flight, which we did. American does appear to have leveled up their meal service in Business Class from our last flight in 2023.
I ordered the Beef Short Rib (below) which was served with macaroni and cheese, a salad, and a grilled shrimp with fruit. The beef was very tender, and served hot. The mac and cheese and salad looked good, but I am on a carnivore diet so could not partake. However, I did enjoy the grilled shrimp, which was surprisingly good.
Beef Short Rib w/Mac & Cheese
Rickee had pre-ordered the fruit and cheese plate which was very good. The grapes were excellent and there was a variety of cheeses to enjoy. After all meals were served, a flight attendant came through the cabin with a basket of warm breads from which to choose.
Fruit and Cheese plate
The uneventful flight landed in San Jose about 20 minutes ahead of schedule and we had to wait on the tarmac for quite some time for a gate to become available.
It took about 15 minutes to get through Immigration and another 10 minutes for our luggage to arrive at baggage claim. After exiting baggage claim, we started scanning through the long line of limo/taxi drivers and transportation services holding signs for arriving passengers. We found our greeter holding a Swan Hellenic sign along with a sign for Globus and Costsaver (other tour operators).
We were the first guests to arrive and the greeter asked us to stand and wait for the other guests to arrive. Little by little, others began to arrive and we met a few of the other guests on our cruise. We ended up waiting for more than an hour for one other couple to arrive, and finally, the transportation company decided to go ahead and transfer us to the hotel. It turned out that the missing couple had already arrived at the hotel so we waited for no reason!
We were all very ready to get to the hotel by the time the van arrived curbside. Swan Hellenic’s pre-cruise hotel is the Hilton Garden Inn in Santa Ana, which is about a 45- minute drive in traffic. And, there is a LOT of traffic!
When we entered the lobby of the hotel, which, by the way, is very nice, we found a hospitality desk for Swan Hellenic guests. The desk was staffed by personnel from the transportation company that picked us up from the airport. We were asked to complete a health questionnaire and shown the schedule for the next morning which was on a whiteboard next to the desk. Interestingly, the schedule on the whiteboard was different from the one in the information packet we were given, but we were told that we should ignore the one in our packet, and go by the one on the whiteboard.
Our room was on the fourth floor with two queen beds and was very large, very clean and modern. There were plenty of US-style 110 volt outlets and USB ports at the desk and bedside. The hotel is located next to a small and modern “mall” with shops and restaurants. We saw pizza, Japanese, Indian, and Costa Rican restaurants all within easy walking distance of the hotel. This would definitely be a good option for any pre-cruise stay if you are boarding a ship in Puntarenas.
Tomorrow morning we have to have our luggage outside of our hotel room by 11:30am, identify our luggage in the lobby at 12:30pm and board the bus for the transfer to Puntarenas at 1:00pm. The drive to Puntarenas takes about two hours, so we should be embarking SH Diana around 3pm.
More to come.