Costa Rica & Panama Canal
Starts and Ends in
Call Us for Pricing
pp twin share
Departing
01 Jan 2001
Duration
0 days
Activity Level
Daily shore excursions, guided hikes & outings
Moderate
Season
2025, 2026, 2027
Discovery Expeditions
Sloth hanging from a branch
Costa Rica | Credit: Shutterstock
Hiking in Green Tropical Jungle
Costa Rica | Credit: Shutterstock
Colourful Keel-Billed Toucan
Standup Paddleboarding
Bartolome, Costa Rica | Credit: Pia Harbour
Squirrel Monkey
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Playa Escondilla and Playa Manuel Antonio
Costa Rica
Costa Rica & Panama Canal
Highlights
In true expedition style we encourage exploration and adventure, offering flexibility in challenging environments in a way that puts you among the action to see and do as much as possible. This itinerary is only a guide and subject to change due to ice and weather conditions.
Dr Roger Kirkwood
Expedition Leader
Roger has been exploring polar regions for over 40 years. In 1984, he first travelled to Antarctica as a krill research assistant on an Australian Antarctic Division, marine science expedition. He caught the Antarctic bug and returned nine more times to study zooplankton, seals, penguins and albatross. Mostly he was based in remote field camps – such as in the northern Vestfold Hills, on a glaciated Heard Island, on rock stacks in Drake’s Passage, and he spent a year beside an emperor penguin colony 60 km from Mawson Station – he did his PhD on emperor penguin foraging ecology.
As a marine biologist, Roger has published over 100 research and public articles, and four books - two text books and two children’s books. Away from his polar research, he has held a range of research positions - a fisheries biologist for Tasmanian Sea Fisheries and CSIRO Fisheries, a wildlife manager for Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife, a senior researcher for Phillip Island Nature Parks (investigating seals and seabirds in Bass Strait), and a project team leader at Wageningen Marine Research (in the Netherlands - studying human impacts on marine mammals in the Wadden and North Seas). Currently he lives in Victoria, Australia (with wife Marjolein and kids Jay and Emily), where he works as a contract biologist.
Since 1999, Roger has been a Naturalist and Expedition Leader for Aurora Expeditions - usually in the Antarctic, but also in Scotland and the Arctic. Combined with his academic training and field experience, he holds a Coxswain’s boat-driving ticket and SCUBA experience. He loves his work and is always keen to share his extensive wildlife knowledge with our curious passengers.
Linda Steutel
Naturalist
Linda is an is an experienced Doctor, specialising in Emergency, Aviation and Wilderness Medicine, who has discovered the secret to being balanced and happy. For her, it’s alternating her medical career with expedition guiding! Linda’s lifelong passion for the outdoors, nature and meeting people from different cultures has seen her travel and work in different countries around the world. Eventually her adventurous spirit led her to the polar regions, working as a physician on expedition cruise ships. After working in remote and wild destinations, Linda was inspired to pursue a career in guiding, to satisfy her passion for nature while inspiring people to become ambassadors for these regions. After completing a three-year International Wilderness Guide course, she has guided in European Alps, Pyrenees, Canadian Rocky Mountains, the polar regions and counting!
Dr Ben Maddison
Naturalist & Historian
Avid historian and climber, Ben’s love of history began during his high school years. His passion for history led to an MA in Social and Industrial history and a PHD in Australian history. For many years, Ben was an academic specialising in polar, colonial and working class history in the History Department at the University of Wollongong, New South Wales.
An active researcher, Ben is published extensively in Australian and international historical journals. His book Class and Colonialism in Antarctic Exploration, 1750– 1920 (Pickering & Chatto, 2014) is a study of Antarctic exploration ‘from below’, focusing on the sailors, sealers, whalers, cooks, mechanics, engineers, stokers and radio operators, who were all necessary in bringing the upperclass 'hero explorers' to the continent and supporting their expeditions. He is currently writing A History of the Southern Ocean (forthcoming, Routledge 2018), gazing out on his subject matter from Bruny Island, Tasmania, where he lives.
When not writing, Ben engages in his other lifelong passions for exploring wild places. Ben has pioneered climbs in Tasmania, Victoria, NSW, Greenland and North Wales and he is currently developing new rock climbing routes in the Bruny Island area.
Meet our Expert Team
Each voyage is accompanied by our highly acclaimed expedition team who we believe are the best in the business. Many are recognised leaders in their fields, keen to share their daily insights on shore and onboard. While your actual team may vary between voyages, every member of our Expedition Team is among the world's best remote area specialists.
Included Activities
Lectures on wildlife, our environment, history and destinations
Marine Mammal Spotting
Photography
Scenic Cruising
Trips Ashore
Walking
Zodiac Cruising
Bird Watching
Wildlife Watching
Paddling
Snorkelling
Stand-Up Paddleboarding
Our Ship
The Sylvia Earle
Capacity
130 Passengers Maximum
Year built
2022
Cabins
71
Length
104 m
Decks
8
Speed
10-12 knots
Loyal Travelers
We love celebrating our loyal expeditioners who return to explore with us. After your first Aurora Expeditions voyage, you’ll automatically achieve Bronze Adventurer status. The more voyages you embark on, the higher you climb—progressing to Silver and eventually Gold!
Solo Travelers
Voyages with Aurora Expeditions are such a fantastic choice for solo travelers, giving you the chance to experience the world’s most remote and incredible destinations with like-minded travelers and our expert guides, while on board our small, social and welcoming ships.
Your Big Adventure Awaits: Preview a Real Expedition
See what an expedition with us is really like. For every expedition, we produce a Voyage Log to send to all passengers. The log is a beautifully crafted, day-by-day recap featuring breathtaking photos, real guest experiences, and a complete list of wildlife sightings. From dramatic landscapes to daily activities, it’s the perfect way to envision your own journey. Browse a recent Voyage Log and start imagining your big adventure.