Carnival Firenze - Baja Getaway: Catalina & Ensenada

Where this cruise calls, day by day

4 ports and 1 sea day over 4 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Long Beach, CA

   United StatesDepart

   Carnival's Long Beach terminal is housed in the geodesic dome originally built to display Howard Hughes's Spruce Goose, which makes it the strangest cruise terminal on the West Coast. The Queen Mary is permanently moored alongside as a hotel and museum. It is almost entirely a turnaround port for short Mexico runs, and downtown Long Beach is across the water rather than out the door.

   • Tour or stay aboard the Queen Mary, moored beside the terminal
   • Aquarium of the Pacific in Rainbow Harbor
   • Shoreline Village and the waterfront bike path
   • Naples canals and gondola rides in Alamitos Bay

   Getting ashore

   Docks at the dome terminal next to the Queen Mary; downtown Long Beach is a short taxi or a long walk around the harbour.

   Best months

   Year-round (Sep-Nov warmest and clearest)

2. Day 2

   Catalina Island, CA

   United StatesPort

   Catalina sits 22 miles off the Los Angeles coast and feels a century removed from it. Ships anchor off Avalon and tender in to a small harbour town of pastel buildings where private cars are so restricted that residents wait years for a permit and most people drive golf carts. The round Casino building on the point never held gambling - it is a 1929 ballroom and theatre.

   • Tour the Catalina Casino's Art Deco theatre and ballroom
   • Glass-bottom boat or semi-submarine over the kelp forest at Lovers Cove
   • Descanso Beach Club and the coastal path around the bay
   • Zip line or an interior Hummer tour into the island's bison country

   Getting ashore

   Tender only into Avalon; the town is compact and entirely walkable from the tender landing.

   Best months

   May-Oct (Sep-Oct warmest water and clearest; winter swell causes tender cancellations)

3. Day 3

   Ensenada

   MexicoPort

   Ensenada is on most California itineraries because US law requires a foreign stop, and the town knows it. The port is a working commercial harbour with a short shuttle or walk to Avenida López Mateos, a strip of cantinas, curio shops and pharmacies. It is far better than that sounds if you leave the strip - the Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico's serious wine region, starts about an hour inland.

   • La Bufadora, the sea geyser 45 minutes south
   • Valle de Guadalupe wineries
   • Hussong's Cantina, open since 1892
   • Fish tacos at the Mercado Negro

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock; the main tourist street is a 15-20 minute walk, or a short shuttle from the terminal gate.

   Best months

   Apr-Oct is warm and dry; winter here is cool, grey and windy - this is Baja's Mediterranean end, not the tropics

4. Day 4 · At sea

5. Day 5

   Long Beach, CA

   United StatesArrive

   Carnival's Long Beach terminal is housed in the geodesic dome originally built to display Howard Hughes's Spruce Goose, which makes it the strangest cruise terminal on the West Coast. The Queen Mary is permanently moored alongside as a hotel and museum. It is almost entirely a turnaround port for short Mexico runs, and downtown Long Beach is across the water rather than out the door.

   • Tour or stay aboard the Queen Mary, moored beside the terminal
   • Aquarium of the Pacific in Rainbow Harbor
   • Shoreline Village and the waterfront bike path
   • Naples canals and gondola rides in Alamitos Bay

   Getting ashore

   Docks at the dome terminal next to the Queen Mary; downtown Long Beach is a short taxi or a long walk around the harbour.

   Best months

   Year-round (Sep-Nov warmest and clearest)