From On Board Swan Hellenic in North Africa: Astapor (Essaouira)

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary: Atlantic Horizons: Portugal to Canary Islands
Location: Essaouira, Morocco

(C) HBO

I thought I was a Game of Thrones expert, but I only found out today that the ramparts of UNESCO World Heritage-listed Essaouira here in Morocco were used as the slave port of Astapor. You know, that scene where Daenerys lines up the Unsullied to become her private army in Season 3? Yeah, well I stood right there in the 18th-century Skala de la Ville. [shivers]

From On Board Swan Hellenic in North Africa: Casablanca

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary: Atlantic Horizons: Portugal to Canary Islands

Location: Casablanca, Morocco

No prizes for guessing the first thing that comes to mind at the mention of this location. The irony of that whole scenario is that not a single frame was shot in Morocco and none of the cast or crew ever set foot in the country. In 1942, the Moroccan city was in enemy hands (as was depicted in the movie), so the notion of filming there was unthinkable.

From On Board Swan Hellenic in Western Europe: The pirates of Portimão [video]

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary:  Atlantic Horizons: Portugal to Canary Islands

Location: Algarve, Portugal

Portimão port and fort ruins. (Gennadiy Skorokhod)

The Algarve region of Portugal is full of stories, and they're not all happy endings. Explorers, princes, pirates and slaves are just part of the volumes of tales surrounding this rich maritime precinct along the southernmost coast of Portugal. 

From On Board Swan Hellenic in Western Europe: Santiago de Compostela

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary: Western Europe cruise from Ireland to Portugal

Location: Ferrol, Spain

I really should feel guilty arriving by luxury ship and taking a comfy coach to the famous Catedral Basílica de Santiago de Compostela. 

From On Board Swan Hellenic in Western Europe: Bilbao, Spain

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary: Western Europe cruise from Ireland to Portugal

Location: Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain

 

Spain, not Spain. Even within the enormity of Europe and its myriad cultures and histories, Bilbao in the Basque Country stands out as a singularly fascinating city for many reasons.

With SH Diana docked at the region's major port of Santander, we boarded coaches for a visit to Bilbao, an easy hour-or-so by expressway. After a rocky start in Ireland, the weather has certainly turned in our favour, with warm, mild days and even some welcome sunshine, making our walking tours a most pleasant experience.

From On Board Swan Hellenic Diana in Western Europe: Royan, France

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary: Western Europe cruise from Ireland to Portugal

Location: Royan, France

To say Royan is like nowhere else in France is no exaggeration. Yes, it's a famous seaside resort town which enjoyed its heyday during la Belle Époque. Its renown, carefree social scene featured horse-drawn carriages, tinkling tram bells, and outdoor cafe terraces where vacationers drank absinthe and enjoyed fashionable sea bathing and thalassotherapy (sea therapy) in the fresh Atlantic air.

From On Board Swan Hellenic Diana in Western Europe: Roscoff, Brittany

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary: Western Europe cruise from Ireland to Portugal

Location: Roscoff, France

SH Diana enters the port of Roscoff in Brittany (Gennadiy Skorokhod/Swan Hellenic)

I'll be honest, I knew absolutely nothing about the port town of Roscoff before we tied up this morning. Further to that, I knew little else about the enigmatic region of Brittany in the far northwest corner of France. So, my day here was 100 per cent discovery and enlightenment.

From On Board Swan Hellenic in Western Europe: Waterford, Ireland

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Vessel: SH Diana (IMO: 9921740)

Itinerary: Western Europe cruise from Ireland to Portugal

Location: Waterford, Ireland

Yesterday I was reunited with Swan Hellenic Diana in Dublin for their Western Europe cruise from Ireland to Portugal. While it may not be “expeditionary” in the classic sense, it is nevertheless a superb small ship experience with expeditionary elements. I had a couple of days scuttling around Dublin before boarding, enjoying this historic city. Our first stop after Dublin was Waterford, a brand as much as a town in this ancient European republic.

RELATED STORY: SH Diana Ship Review

For anyone outside of Ireland, the mention of Waterford is automatically associated with the famous crystal creations that adorn everything from kitchen cabinets to world champions’ trophy rooms. Sure, these exquisite, handcrafted items have put Waterford on the world map, but in reality, as Ireland’s oldest city, Waterford was first set foot by the Viking Ragnall more than 1,000 years ago. Or so the legend goes.

From On Board AmaWaterways on the Mekong: When the boats stopped coming to Cái Bè

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Vessel: AmaWaterways AmaDara

Location: Cái Bè, Vietnam

 Cái Bè 2011. The floating market is alive and well. (Roderick Eime)

In my 25 years travelling to Vietnam and the Delta, I am continually amazed by the constant changes, and here in Cái Bè, the channel once thronging with aquatic commerce has all but vanished.

From On Board: Tân Châu’s enduring silk tradition

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Vessel: AmaWaterways AmaDara
Location: Tân Châu, Vietnam

Shore excursions in Vietnam's Mekong Delta invariably yield discoveries, and today is no different. We witnessed the labour-intensive hand-woven silk in Phnom Penh, but here at Tân Châu it is more of an industry, albeit with methods dating back well into the last century.

From On Board: The Mekong with AmaWaterways: A river of history

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As the Mekong spreads across the horizon, the towers of Phnom Penh signal AmaDara’s approach to the Cambodian capital. I first came here 25 years ago and have been drawn back repeatedly by the city’s peculiar mixture of tragedy, faded glamour and restless reinvention.

From on Board: Travelling through time in Melanesia

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Expedition guide and lecturer, Dr. Jacqueline Windh, was confronted with an unusual offer on her recent visit to Papua New Guinea’s remote Sepik River region.

“You want to buy?”

The man curled his fingers around the croc’s snout and thrust the animal towards me. His friend’s black eyes glimmered with shy hopefulness as he held up its tail. The croc’s body hung between them, the pale yellow scales of its belly shifting and gliding as it slowly writhed and curved its spine.

From on Board: North to Alaska with Windstar

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Alaska cruising has always been a favourite with Aussies and even in these tougher times, we're still heading to one of the world's last true wildernesses. Ros Freeman reports.

There could only be one answer to the question Caroline posed. "Would you like to join me on an Alaskan cruise?"  "Yes! Yes! Yes! I’d love to!"

Alaska is somewhere I’ve never been. My knowledge of it was scant. It’s cold. It’s an American state, though oddly detached from mainland USA. And there’s all sorts of fantastic wildlife including huskies who, despite the often sub-zero temperatures, always seem incredibly happy. I like nothing better than going to some place of which I know so little. Alaska fitted that perfectly.

From On Board: Swan Hellenic in the Philippines

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After two and a half days at sea northwest of Raja Ampat, SH Minerva reached the first of the Philippines’ 7,641 islands—though only 7,107 remain at low tide. Spread across 1,800 kilometres of turquoise sea, the archipelago is home to more than 117 million people, yet many islands remain tiny, remote and accessible only by Zodiac.

From on Board: SH Minerva in Raja Ampat

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Lauded as the “last snorkelling paradise on earth,” Raja Ampat is some 1,200 kilometres north of Darwin and sets a high bar, one that feels even higher at 4 a.m. when the alarm sounds for a flight from Bali to Sorong. Not a morning person at the best of times, three hours on a small plane is not an obvious way to begin a luxury cruise.

From On Board: South Atlantic with Oceanwide Expeditions

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Landing on the Edge: Tristan da Cunha and the South Atlantic Islands

From Hans Verdaat, Expedition Leader, Oceanwide Expeditions

Out here in the South Atlantic, plans are always provisional. The charts are precise, the briefings thorough, but the ocean still has the final say.

From On Board: Day 13: SH Minerva in Melanesia; Pray for Mansinam

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Vessel: SH Minerva
Location: Mansinam Island West Papua
Itinerary: Wild Eden of Papua New Guinea

Just to prove all shore excursions have their unique qualities and surprises, so too it is with Mansinam Island (Pulau Mansinam).

From On Board: SH Minerva in Melanesia; Enriching journeys [video]

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One of the hallmarks of expedition cruising is enrichment, and to this end, Swan Hellenic, via Expedition Operations Manager Jane Wilson, has assembled a stellar cast of lecturers and supporting staff to deliver a series of talks that help us interpret both the human and natural environment in which we're travelling. 

From On Board: Day 9: SH Minerva in Melanesia; Manam Mayhem

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Vessel: SH Minerva
Location: Manam Island PNG
Itinerary: Wild Eden of Papua New Guinea

Prepare for boarders!

Even with the worst of Cyclone Maila behind us, some residual effects linger. Consequently, the seas were again too rough for a safe landing at Manam Island, much to the dismay of our resident volcanologist, Professor Brent, who had his heart set on going ashore on the still-active volcano.

From On Board: Day 8: SH Minerva in Melanesia; Magic in Madang

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Vessel: SH Minerva
Location: Madang PNG
Itinerary: Wild Eden of Papua New Guinea

Today will live in my memory as one of the most outstanding experiences anywhere in PNG.

As you know, PNG is one of the most ethnically diverse countries anywhere in the world and today reaffirmed my reflex answer when people ask me “what is your favourite country to visit?”