Order of the Ditch

Star Breeze Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America

Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 75

Overall rating:

4.3 out of 5
Verified Review
Star Breeze

7 Night Costa Rica & Panama Canal Westbound (Colon To Puerto Caldera)

Sail date: January 28, 2017

Ship: Star Breeze

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 100

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 7 years ago

Review summary

The Order of the Ditch is the award you receive when you transit the Panama Canal.  We did so on 1/29/17.  We boarded the Sea Breeze in Colon and did the full transit in daylight.  It was a fantastic journey.  The experience was memorable, but our fellow passengers, the staff and crew made the journey even more special. Traveling on a small ship is exciting, but there was nothing small about the services, food, activities and energy throughout the 7 day journey from Panama to Costa Rica.  Every detail - the barbecue on the beach, the tours, the cultural shows on board, the "sail away" each evening - all made this journey very special. If this trip is on your "bucket list" - do it with Windstar - they really excel!

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
Our cabin was changed from 100 to 229. Abdul was our steward and he kept our room in perfect condition. Loved the towel creations each night!

Ship tip

I was a little concerned about the Zodiac and the wet landings, but the crew is so good at their job there was no need to worry. We did not need the "beach" shoes I bought, we wore our flip-flops - took them off to get in and out of the Zodiak.

Ports of call

Colon, Panama

3 out of 5
The bus took us from the hotel in Panama to the ship. We did however, enjoy watching the port in action - the cranes and trucks!

Panama Canal Transit

3 out of 5
It is a long day but definitely worth the time watching - truly a wonder!

Balboa, Panama

3 out of 5

Isla De Coiba (Coiba Island)

3 out of 5
The crew worked from early morning setting up the beach barbecue. It was great!

Bahia Drake, Costa Rica

3 out of 5
A small town with a large grocery store - fun to look at the merchandise and stop to have a beer at Carolina's before heading back to the ship.

Puerto Quepos, Costa Rica

3 out of 5
A good size commuter town - lots of people coming and going. Took the Tiki Canopy Zip Line tour - fantastic!!!! A great group of guides that are professional but also entertaining. Stopped for a beer at Dos Locos before heading back to the ship.

Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica

3 out of 5
Last day - the luggage had to be out of our room at 11:00 last night. We had breakfast (a full breakfast was offered) and waited for our bus transfer to the airport.
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2 Comments

Cruisersnoozer    1 year ago

Thanks for the review!

Gwbigdog    2 years ago

Thanks for sharing