Island Princess: 20-Night Transcanal

Vancouver cruise port is the main gateway to Alaska, and nearly every Alaska cruise that runs the full Inside Passage route starts or ends here. The terminal is at Canada Place, a distinctive sail-shaped building right on the downtown waterfront.

Los Angeles cruise port is in San Pedro, a harbor neighborhood at the southern tip of the city, about 25 miles from downtown LA and 18 miles from LAX. The port is called the World Cruise Center, and it's the main departure point for Mexican Riviera, Hawaii, and Pacific Coast itineraries.

Stretched along Banderas Bay with the Sierra Madre mountains rising directly behind the shoreline, Puerto Vallarta draws about 290,000 residents year-round and far more during the winter cruise season. The city has managed to grow as a tourist destination while keeping its Mexican identity intact, particularly in the Zona Romantica and the malecon (boardwalk) areas where local life and tourism coexist on the same streets.

Aruba's capital sits just 15 miles off the Venezuelan coast, and it's one of the southern Caribbean's most popular cruise stops for good reason. Five berths across three air-conditioned terminals handle up to five ships at once, with water depths of 32 to 36 feet.