Twenty-six Cruise Ships Will Visit the Caribbean This Season from Miami
Eleven cruise-ship companies will be sailing from PortMiami during the winter of 2015-16. Carnival Cruise Lines will field seven ships at PortMiami this year, the most of any cruise line. Norwegian Cruise Lines will field five ships this year at PortMiami.
Three ships from luxury cruise-line company Oceania will visit the port before the sailing season ends in March. Celebrity Cruise Lines, Disney Cruise Lines and Regent Seven Seas Cruise Lines each will host two cruise ships this season at Port Miami. Five cruise lines will be porting just one ship in Miami this winter.
Norwegian Escape, the brand-new mega-cruiser from Norwegian Cruise Lines, arrives at PortMiami in November. The new ship features a new stage show, a nursery, an area with 24-hour butler service – even a spa room that snows on you! Also among the newcomers at PortMiami this season:
- MSC Divina, a two-year old ship inspired by the elegance of Sophia Loren;
- Azamara Journey, which will make a couple partial transits of the Panama Canal;
- AIDA Avita, a luxury cruise liner that caters to German-speaking passengers.
Altogether, 26 ships will depart PortMiami on Caribbean cruises this winter season. Cruise lines operating out of PortMiami this winter season including:
Carnival Cruise Lines (7)
Carnival Cruise Lines will begin the winter season with five cruise ships stationed at PortMiami. In February that number grows to seven, as Carnival Sensation and Carnival Fantasy arrive.
Six of the line’s seven Miami-based ships will offer opportunities to visit Amber Cove, Carnival’s brand new Eastern Caribbean port in Dominican Republic. The new port opens in November.
Carnival Ecstasy (2,634 maximum capacity) – which specializes in three-day trips and four-day trips to the Bahamas – is the only Miami-based ship in the line not scheduled to port in Amber Cove this year. However, the classic-rock bands Heart and Boston each will have their own theme cruise aboard Carnival Ecstasy this winter. Carnival Splendor (3,006 max) will specialize mainly in Western Caribbean cruises, although it will sail Eastern Caribbean during the holiday season.
Three Carnival ships will be alternating trips to Eastern Caribbean with trips to Western Caribbean from PortMiami this winter season. Carnival Glory (2,974 max) will alternate weeklong trips to the two regions. Carnival Victory (2,758 max) also will alternate Eastern Caribbean and Western Caribbean voyages, but they’ll be shorter, five-day cruises. Aboard Carnival Breeze (3,690 max), Eastern Caribbean cruises will last either four days or eight days. Western Caribbean trips will last eight days.
Both ships arriving in February will specialize in shorter trips to Eastern Caribbean, Western Caribbean and Bahamas. Carnival Sensation (2,634 max) will travel mostly to Western Caribbean on four-day trips and five-day trips. Carnival Fantasy (2,675 max) will focus mainly on three-day trip and four-day trips to Bahamas. Each late-arriving ship also will make a few five-day runs to Eastern Caribbean this winter.
Carnival also will operate one cruise ship out of Port Everglades this season.
Norwegian Cruise Lines (5)
Norwegian’s newest ship, Norwegian Escape, debuts at PortMiami in November. The ship will alternate between Eastern Caribbean trips and Western Caribbean trips. Another Norwegian ship will travel to Eastern Caribbean on week-long voyages. One Norwegian ship will sail short trips to the Bahamas, while two of Norwegian’s five ships stationed in Miami this winter will ply the Panama Canal.
Norwegian Escape (4,248 max) will be the fifth-largest cruise liner ever deployed. The ship will feature four gigantic water slides, the largest ropes court at sea, a miniature golf course, and a full-court basketball gym. The cruising world’s first Margaritaville will open aboard ship, as well as a boardwalk filled with restaurants. The ship’s hull has been painted by world-renowned artist and ecologist Guy Harvey.
Norwegian Getaway (3,963 max), which debuted last year, will offer voyages to Eastern Caribbean that will last either seven or eight days. Norwegian Sky (2,450 max) will sail three-day and four-day trips to the Bahamas this season. All Bahamas trips will include visits to Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay, while the four-day voyage adds a stop on Grand Bahama Island.
Norwegian Jewel (2,376 max) arrives in February to board for a trip through the Panama Canal to Los Angles. Norwegian Pearl (2,394 max) will run a pair of round-trips to Panama that will include partial transits of the Canal. The ship returns to PortMiami in March for another set of Canal runs.
Oceania Cruise Lines (3)
Privately owned premium cruise line Oceania Cruises operates five cruise ships. Three of those ships will embark from PortMiami for a handful of Caribbean cruises during the upcoming holiday season.
Oceania Riviera (1,250 max) will be in port from December through March. Each Caribbean trip this season will be distinctive, with unique itineraries and port stops. The 20-day Caribbean Escapade, with 14 different port visits, and the 14-day Sunny Getaways, which sails Southern Caribbean, are the featured events. The ship will also sail three 10-day Caribbean voyages, plus one seven-day trip and one 12-day trip, this season.
Oceania Regatta (824 max) also arrives at PortMiami in December, following a round-trip run to Los Angeles. Like Oceania Riviera, no two trips will be the same. There’s the 10-day Mayan Mystique tour; the 14-day Island Paradise tour; the 16-day Sand, Sea and Stars trip; and the 20-day Tropical Bliss trip. The ship departs on a 73-day South American voyage in January.
Sister ship Oceania Insignia (824 max) departs PortMiami in early January on a 180-day, round-the-world cruise. You can book portions of the trip, such as a 16-day sail to Barbados or a 36-day voyage to Cape Town.
Celebrity Cruise Lines (2)
Celebrity Cruise Lines will operate two cruise ships out of PortMiami this winter season. One ship will offer seven-day cruises, while the other ship will specialize in five-day sails as well as extended trips.
Celebrity Reflection (3,046 max) will alternate weeklong trips to Eastern Caribbean and Western Caribbean. Voyages to Eastern Caribbean will include stops in San Juan, Charlotte Amalie and Phillipsburg. Western Caribbean cruises will port in Cozumel, George Town and Ocho Rios.
Celebrity Eclipse (2,850 max) will mix short jaunts to Western Caribbean with longer voyages to Southern Caribbean. The Western Caribbean cruises are scheduled for five days. The ship’s voyages to the Southern Caribbean will last either nine days or two weeks.
Celebrity also will operate four ships that sail the Caribbean this season from Port Everglades.
Disney Cruise Lines (2)
While Disney Cruise Lines will operate two ships out of PortMiami this winter season, only one will be on station at a time.
Disney Magic (2,400) arrives at PortMiami in October. The 11-deck ship will cruise to Bahamas and Western Caribbean through January, when it returns to Port Canaveral. All of the ship’s sailings – four-day Bahamas, five-day Bahamas, five-day Western Caribbean – include a stop in the cruise line’s port at Castaway Cay in Bahamas.
Sister-ship Disney Wonder (2,400 max) arrives from Galveston in February take over the line’s Caribbean sailing duties. Other port stops include Nassau, Key West, George Town and Cozumel. The ship departs in May on a transatlantic voyage through the Panama Canal that ends in San Diego.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises (2)
Two ships from Regent Seven Seas Cruises will arrive at PortMiami near the end of the winter season. Both ships will sail a handful of Caribbean routes before departing for the season in late March and early April. The luxury line is a division of Norwegian Cruise Lines.
Regent Seven Seas Navigator (490 max) will run a series of unique Caribbean voyages this season. Choose between four 10-day cruises, all featuring different port visits. A seven-day Caribbean cruise also is available. The ship will complete a 25-day voyage in February – which includes a partial transit of the Panama Canal – before departing for Barcelona the next month.
The larger Regent Seven Seas Mariner (700 max) arrives in March to sail the Caribbean for a month before returning to San Francisco in late April. The ship will sail a 12-night Atlantic voyage back-to-back with a 14-night Southern Caribbean cruise. Passengers can combine the two sails into one 26-day extravaganza!
Royal Caribbean International (1)
Royal Caribbean has announced plans to construct a massive deep-water terminal at Port Miami, which should be functional by 2018. The new port terminal will be designed to accommodate mega-sized ships, like the two giants the company houses at Port Everglades. Right now, the world’s second-largest cruise line operates only one cruise ship out of PortMiami.
Majesty of the Seas (2,744 max) will runs short trips to Bahamas this winter season. Three-night and four-night voyages include port visits to Nassau and Coco Cay. The latter is Royal Caribbean’s private Bahamas port. The ship also will sail a holiday cruise that will include a visit to Key West, in addition to the two Bahamas stops.
Princess Cruise Lines (1)
Like Royal Caribbean, most of Princess Cruise Line’s Caribbean cruises depart from Port Everglades. Five of the line’s cruise ships are based at the Fort Lauderdale port. Only one Princess ship will cruise the Caribbean from PortMiami this season.
In December, Ocean Princess (828 max) will run one 14-day Caribbean Connoisseur trip, which includes stops in Martinique and Antigua. The popular cruise already is sold out. The ship heads out on a 64-day South American adventure in early January. Cruisers also can select portions of the trip, which include a 17-day or 24-day trip to the Antilles and Brazil.
MSC Cruise Lines (1)
With a dozen cruise ships, MSC Cruises is the world’s largest privately owned cruise line. The line is part of global shipping giant Mediterranean Shipping Company, the second largest container shipper in the world. Only one ship from MSC Cruises will be stationed at PortMiami this winter.
Like Regent Seven Seas, MSC offers a unique itinerary for each Caribbean cruise. You can choose from 19 separate sailings aboard MSC Divina (3,959 max) this winter season, ranging from a three-night trip to Bahamas to an 11-night voyage to Southern Caribbean. There are eight different trips to choose from that will last seven days, while four different voyages will take 10-days. Two different eight-night trips aboard the 15-deck vessel also are available this season.
Azamara Club Cruises (1)
As the luxury division of Royal Caribbean International, Azamara Club Cruises operates two cruise ships. One of those ships will spend the winter season sailing the Caribbean from PortMiami.
Azamara Journey (694 max) arrives at PortMiami in December for a series of extended voyages. The ship will sail three trips to the West Indies, each of which begins with a visit to St. John and ends with a stop in Virgin Gorda. Those trips will last 10 days, 11 days or 12 days. Another 10-day voyage – called Temples, Jungles and Beaches – travels to Mexico, Belize and Haiti.
The ship also will travel twice to Panama and back, voyages that include a partial transit of the Panama Canal. It departs PortMiami for France in April.
AIDA Cruise Lines (1)
One of 11 brands operated by Carnival Cruise Lines, AIDA Cruise Lines caters to German-speaking cruisers. The cruise line will operate one ship this winter from PortMiami.
AIDA Avita (1,266 max) will alternate two basic trips this season, each of which lasts 10 days. The first covers Western Caribbean, including port visits to Port Canaveral, San Juan and Tortola. The second trip ventures into the Gulf of Mexico as well as Eastern Caribbean, with stops in Tampa, New Orleans and Cozumel. The ship arrives at PortMiami in November, and heads for Germany in March.