Star Pride Panama/Costa Rica

[AliceandRalph]

We are just returned from the Star Pride, Colon to Puerto Caldera.  It was an excellent trip!  The weather was hot, sunny and seas were calm, the other guests were a very friendly and fun bunch and the staff were kind and attentive.  Food was above expectation, chef John Eliot runs a great kitchen!  The canal transit was interesting, I would recommend going to the question and answer with the local specialist  as it was very interesting. In Panama we took a taxi to Casco Viejo and did a walk around, it was easy to see in a few hours. The beach day was perfect,  I did the morning snorkel which was fun, the water was warm and although not the most plentiful fish or coral it was a nice boat ride and did see some different things. The people that did the hike said it was fun too but a bit muddy and hot, they enjoyed it and just rinsed off at the beach.  In Puerto Jimenez  we booked a tour through Changing Tides Tours which was excellent, best dolphin watch ever, (saw hundreds!) and a snorkel stop to cool off, saw some nice fish too. Our guide David was a marine biologist doing a study to identify individual dolphins locally and was full of information. The ship had the marine platform out that day , which was great! They had water skiing and the inter tube for behind the boat which was a ton of fun. We heard the chocolate tour was worthwhile too.  In Quepos we arranged a hotel visit. The people we spoke to that did the zip line loved it. FYI the excursions from the boat go early that day ( 7-7:30am),  the same company (Titi canopy tours) offers a later morning trip if you want to book independently.   From Quepos we took a taxi to Arenas del Mar hotel on the beach,( same beach as Manuel Antonio park) had an excellent lunch and saw a sloth, a troop of squirrel monkeys and some white face monkeys all while enjoying a beautiful ,relaxing and peaceful beach.  There is also Buena Vista Beach Club on the same beach closer to the park , they have a nice outdoor dining area and supply loungers , drinks and food, restrooms for a reasonable fee.   There was an on deck bbq one night which was fun too, they put out a huge spread of food and had live music and dancing on the deck after dinner, it was a beautiful night for it too.