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Frommer's Guide
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FEATURES AND EVENTS
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Locale: Dozens of cruise ports all over the United States.
General Information:
For more information about cruise departures, visit our Cruise area, with information on everything from planning, to purchasing to packing.
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You may visit some pretty exotic places on your cruise, but the departure port doesn't have to be one of them. Sure, you can still fly off to Hawaii, Europe, or the South Pacific to embark on the cruise of a lifetime. But you don't have to. This year you'll find more and more cruises departing from American cities. And it's not just the traditional departure ports like Miami and New York. Smaller cities like Norfolk, Virginia, and Astoria, Oregon are getting into the act. In fact, you may well live within driving distance of your next cruise and not even know it.
Read on for more information about the great destinations you can visit on cruises departing from your area of the country.
East-Coast Departures
The eastern seaboard is home to a number of cruise ports. As you might guess, eastern ports offer a huge number of Caribbean cruises, as well as the chance to voyage to Europe by sea. But you can visit a surprising variety of other destinations from ports such as…
- Baltimore: Celebrity Cruises operates out of Baltimore, offering cruises to the Caribbean, as well as tours of coastal New England and Canada.
- Boston: Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Royal Caribbean International all ply the waters of Boston Harbor. Available itineraries include New England/Canada, as well as Caribbean departures.
- Charleston (South Carolina): The Caribbean is the name of the game here--Carnival Cruise Lines and Celebrity both serve the city.
- Ft. Lauderdale: Like better-known Miami, Fort Lauderdale is served by most major cruise lines. Its particular claim to fame is that it is the main U.S. embarkation point for Windstar Cruises. From here, you can set sail for ports including those in the Caribbean and South America, as well as the Panama Canal.
- Jacksonville: Celebrity Cruises' Zenith sails out of Jacksonville to many points in the Caribbean. If you're looking for a longer escape, this is the ship for you, as itineraries tend to last in the 10-day to two-week range.
- Miami: Cruise through the Panama Canal, visit South America, or book passage to that old stand-by, the Caribbean. You can visit these destinations from Miami on Carnival, Celebrity, Norwegian, or Royal Caribbean.
- New York City: Long a departure point for transatlantic cruises, today you can embark on a trip to coastal New England and Canada, the Caribbean, and even South America (by way of the Panama Canal) on most cruise lines.
- Norfolk (Virginia): Carnival and Norwegian Cruise Line use Norfolk as a gateway to the Caribbean.
- Philadelphia: Several cruise lines, including, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Celebrity, and Holland America Line depart from Philadelphia to various points in the Caribbean, as well as Bermuda. The range of cruise lines means you'll be able to choose from a variety of intineraries, from six days to two weeks.
- Port Canaveral (Florida): Though it may not have a lot of name recognition outside of the cruise industry, Port Canaveral is a major port for many cruise lines, and is the departure point for all Disney Cruise Line cruises. Most cruises departing from Port Canaveral have Caribbean itineraries.
- West Palm Beach: Travelers in the West Palm Beach area can now take advantage of luxurious Caribbean cruises on Radisson Seven Seas departing from their home port.
West-Coast Departures
The West Coast has long been the capital of cruises to Mexico and Alaska. But you'd be surprised how many options are open to you from ports such as…
Los Angeles: L.A. is a gateway for Carnival, Princess Cruises, and Royal Caribbean. Set sail here for Mexico, the Pacific Coast, and the Panama Canal.
San Diego: Alaska, the Pacific Coast, Mexico, the Panama Canal, even Hawaii are among the itineraries available from this West-Coast cruise center.
San Francisco: More and more cruise ships are sailing under the Golden Gate these days, and they're not just passing through anymore. This year, San Francisco is the embarkation point for cruises to Alaska and the Panama Canal, as well as coastal jaunts.
Seattle: Like San Francisco, Seattle is a gateway to Alaska and the Panama Canal.
Seward (Alaska) : Not far from Anchorage, Seward is the end point of many Alaska cruises--and the departure point for just as many others.
Gulf-Coast Departures
 Lesser-known than their coastal counterparts are the port cities on the Gulf of Mexico. Easy access to the Panama Canal means you can visit just about any region of the world on cruises from cities such as…
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Galveston: Carnival and Royal Caribbean both use Galveston as a base for cruises all over the Caribbean.
- Houston: Houston is a Royal Caribbean departure city for many Caribbean and Panama Canal cruises.
- New Orleans: One of the few things that can entice a visitor to leave the fun capital of the South is the variety of Caribbean and Panama Canal cruises departing New Orleans. Both Carnival and Royal Caribbean serve the Crescent City.
- Tampa: Many cruise lines serve Tampa. The Caribbean is the major destination, but Holland America runs cruises to Europe out of Tampa.
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Inside Scoop |
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Inside Scoop:
Vancouver, British Columbia, is easily accessed by car or ferry from the United States. If you're comfortable with a quick jaunt north of the border, you'll enjoy an even greater variety of departures on most cruise lines. Itineraries of cruises departing from Vancouver include Alaska, Hawaii, the Pacific Coast, the Panama Canal, and more.
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