Solar eclipse: Cruise guests among first to experience 2024 eclipse

Sailing down the Gulf of California, guests onboard Swan Hellenic's SH Diana witnessed the total eclipse, with the line stating the guests "were quite possibly the first people in the world to see it".

Paul D. Maley, from NASA Johnson Space Center Astronomical Society, was onboard the cruise to offer insights to guests as well as Dr. Michael Shara, from the American Museum of Natural History.

Maley commented: “What a fantastic experience! I’ve now been privileged to see 84 eclipses of the sun, but this one was by far the longest and most awesome. Experiencing it from the sea put it in a class of its own!”

The eclipse occurred on the seventh day of an eight-night cultural expedition cruise from Acapulco to La Paz.

Measuring four minutes and 25 seconds, the eclipse was almost double that of the 'Great American Eclipse' of August 21, 2017.

Swan Hellenic CEO Andrea Zito adds: “It’s been a pleasure to offer our guests this very special private eclipse experience in the waters of the Gulf of California.

And for them to have perhaps been the first in the world to see it! We always aim for Swan Hellenic guests to see what others don’t.”

Discover more about Swan Hellenic here.