For Alabamians, getting to a port is an easy and inexpensive drive to Mobile, from which several of Carnival’s southbound, roundtrip cruises embark. Onsite parking is plentiful, with a daily fee.
Four-day cruises depart on Thursdays and return on Mondays, visiting Mexico’s resort city Cozumel.
Five-day trips to Mexico departing on Mondays stop in Cozumel and Playa del Carmen; Saturday departures visit Cozumel and Costa Maya.
Shore excursions include: (1) in the Mobile area, tours of the historic district, Bellingrath Gardens or the USS Alabama; (2) in Cozumel, anything imaginable from visiting the ancient Mayan pyramid at Chichen Itza to sea-trekking (walking on the bottom of the ocean while attached to an air supply via a “bell” helmet); (3) in Playa del Carmen, visiting the ruins of the Mayan city of Tulum, playing golf or fishing; and (4) in Costa Maya, anything from visiting a jungle to a beach safari to biking.
Alabamians’ next closest port is New Orleans, from which Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean sail. Carnival’s itineraries are the same as their Mobile embarkations, plus a seven-night western Caribbean excursion stopping in Montego Bay, Jamaica; the island of Grand Cayman; and Cozumel.
Royal Caribbean has at least seven different sailings from the Crescent City, a sampling of which is a five-night roundtrip, stopping in Cozumel and Costa Maya; a seven-nighter with stops in Grand Cayman, Aruba and Puerto Rico; and a 10-night cruise visiting five ports, including Key West, Fla.; Jamaica; and the island of Hispaniola.
The next nearest ports for Alabamians are Houston and Galveston, Texas; Charleston, S.C.; and Tampa, Port Canaveral and Jacksonville, Fla. Where do most ships head to from these ports?
• Houston: Norwegian sails from Houston to the Mexican ports of Cancun and Cozumel, as well as Honduras and Belize.
• Galveston: This port is serviced by Carnival, Celebrity, Princess and Royal Caribbean cruise lines. Celebrity’s ultimate voyages depart from here, with 11- or 12-night sailings through the Panama Canal, plus a 16-day trans-Atlantic cruise with stops in Key West, the Bahamas, the Azores, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Spain, France and Italy.
• Charleston: From this South Carolina port, Carnival and Norwegian set sail for the Bahamas, plus Cozumel and Cancun.
• Tampa: In addition to the luxurious five-star-plus Radisson Seven Seas Cruise Lines, Carnival, Celebrity, Holland America and Royal Caribbean embark from this port. Radisson’s trips feature seven- and 10-day cruises calling in Mexico, Grand Cayman and Honduras.
• Port Canaveral: Carnival, Disney, Holland America, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean serve this port. Holland America operates a seven-day cruise going to St. Maarten and St. Thomas.
• Jacksonville: Fairly new as a cruise port, two lines embark from here: Celebrity and Carnival. Celebrity offers 11- and 14-day sailings with less common ports of call such as St. Kitts and Barbados.
Share with others: