Carnival Paradise - Belize, Roatan & Cozumel from Tampa
Carnival Paradise's longest regular route from Tampa trades her usual quick Cozumel runs for a deeper 6-night Western Caribbean circuit. Tender in for cave tubing and Mayan ruins from Belize City, spend a day at Carnival's new Isla Tropicale development on Roatan, then wrap up with an evening departure from Cozumel.
Price Range
$
Budget
*Prices vary by cabin type, sailing date, and availability. Confirm rates with Carnival Cruise Line before booking.
Ship Details — Carnival Paradise
View full Carnival Paradise details
Year Built
1998
Tonnage
71,925 GT
Passengers
2,606
Crew
920
Decks
11
Class
Fantasy
Itinerary & Route Map
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Where this cruise calls, day by day
5 ports and 2 sea days over 6 Nights.
- Day 1
Tampa, FL
United StatesDepartTampa's terminals sit in Channelside, in the city rather than out on an industrial spit, so you can walk from the ship to an aquarium and a row of restaurants. The catch is the Sunshine Skyway Bridge: everything sailing from Tampa has to fit under it, which caps ship size and keeps the megaships in Miami. Tampa International is about 20 minutes away.
- The Florida Aquarium, next door to the terminals
- Ybor City and Seventh Avenue - the old cigar district, reachable on the TECO streetcar
- The Tampa Riverwalk from Channelside up to Armature Works
- Busch Gardens if you have a full day and like roller coasters
- Getting ashore
- Cruise Terminals 2, 3 and 6 sit in Channelside within a few blocks of each other; Tampa International is about 10 miles out, usually 20 minutes.
- Best months
- Nov-Apr (summer is hot, wet and inside the hurricane window)
Day 2 · At sea
- Day 3
Belize City
BelizePortThe barrier reef keeps ships several miles offshore, so everyone tenders - a 20 to 30 minute ride each way that eats an hour of the day and gets cancelled outright in a stiff easterly. Tenders land at Fort Street Tourism Village, a fenced shopping compound; Belize City beyond it has a serious crime problem and is not a place to wander. The day is really about what is inland.
- Cave tubing through the Caves Branch river system
- Altun Ha or Xunantunich Maya ruins
- Snorkelling Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray Alley
- The Belize Zoo, which keeps only rescued native animals
- Getting ashore
- Tender port - ships anchor several miles out and the run to Fort Street Tourism Village takes 20-30 minutes each way.
- Best months
- Dec-Apr is dry and the tender ride is calmest; Jun-Nov is wet with hurricane risk peaking Aug-Oct
- Day 4Roatán port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Roatán
HondurasPort - Day 5Cozumel port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Cozumel
MexicoPort Day 6 · At sea
- Day 7
Tampa, FL
United StatesArriveTampa's terminals sit in Channelside, in the city rather than out on an industrial spit, so you can walk from the ship to an aquarium and a row of restaurants. The catch is the Sunshine Skyway Bridge: everything sailing from Tampa has to fit under it, which caps ship size and keeps the megaships in Miami. Tampa International is about 20 minutes away.
- The Florida Aquarium, next door to the terminals
- Ybor City and Seventh Avenue - the old cigar district, reachable on the TECO streetcar
- The Tampa Riverwalk from Channelside up to Armature Works
- Busch Gardens if you have a full day and like roller coasters
- Getting ashore
- Cruise Terminals 2, 3 and 6 sit in Channelside within a few blocks of each other; Tampa International is about 10 miles out, usually 20 minutes.
- Best months
- Nov-Apr (summer is hot, wet and inside the hurricane window)
What to know about this sailing
Drawn from 44 traveler threads about Carnival Paradise's Tampa Western Caribbean runs (2015-2025), 228 about these ports on other ships, the itinerary data and the port notes above.
Belize is the far point, so the sea day out of Tampa goes straight there, and Roatán and Cozumel fall on the way back as shorter hops before the second sea day home; Cozumel's evening departure is what makes the long day there possible. Belize is the only tender of the three, and the route threads explain why that matters beyond the hour it costs: a 2025 thread on Western Caribbean itineraries noted lines have cut Belize City and Grand Cayman calls precisely because they are tender ports, and the Paradise threads that mention Grand Cayman treat it as a stop that may be missed in a swell - on this route that risk transfers to Belize. It is a six-night stretch of a ship whose archive is entirely four- and five-night Cozumel and Grand Cayman runs, and the five-night sibling is the only other Paradise sailing in the catalog. Price is the argument: this is the cheapest way to do Belize, Roatán and Cozumel together in the catalog by a wide margin, with Carnival Vista's seven-night versions a couple of hundred dollars up, Ruby Princess from Galveston and Symphony of the Seas (Cozumel and Roatán only) a tier above, and Icon of the Seas at more than three times the fare.
What posters report from Paradise is mostly about the homeport and the hull rather than these ports. The Tampa crowd skews older: a 2023 thread comparing Paradise with Serenade of the Seas was told Tampa runs a much older average age, one late-twenties reply put a recent Carnival sailing at sixty to seventy percent retirees, and a 27-year-old who sailed solo in March 2022 found people his age present but not dominant. The two longest Paradise threads are complaints - a 2017 first-timer whose five-night lost Grand Cayman to engine trouble and a 2024 pair whose January sailing hit rough Gulf seas on day one and whose dining hopes went unmet - and in both the replies sided with the ship: weather and port closures are not the line's fault, and an old, cheap ship is what the fare buys. The decisive thread is from March 2025: offered Paradise's five-night for about the same money as an eight-night on a newer Royal Caribbean hull, every reply took the newer ship. On the ports the route threads are consistent - cave tubing in Belize is the excursion posters rate highest, and Tulum from Cozumel the one they warn off as a long, hot bus ride. This suits drive-to Florida travellers who want three real ports at the lowest fare and can accept a 1998 ship as the price; it does not suit anyone who would pay a couple of hundred dollars more per person for Carnival Vista's seven-night take on the same ports, the trade posters made when offered one.
Questions about this sailing
Can the Belize City stop on Carnival Paradise get cancelled?
It can. Belize is a tender port kept offshore by the reef, and a 2025 thread on Western Caribbean itineraries noted lines have trimmed Belize City and Grand Cayman calls for exactly that reason. The Paradise threads about the ship's shorter runs treat Grand Cayman the same way - a stop that may be skipped in rough water and replaced with a sea day rather than another port - and a 2017 first-timer had Grand Cayman dropped when the ship could not make speed.
What are the best excursions in Belize, Roatán and Cozumel?
Cave tubing in Belize, by a margin: two posters on Tampa Western Caribbean threads called it the best excursion they had done, one booking a third-party operator that included lunch. Altun Ha is the ruin posters found worth the bus from Belize, while Tulum from Cozumel drew warnings about a long, hot and pricey bus ride, with several preferring a Cozumel beach day at Chankanaab. In Roatán, Maya Key and Little French Key both got recommendations from repeat visitors.
What is the crowd like on Carnival Paradise out of Tampa?
Older than the ship's party reputation suggests. A 2023 bachelor-party thread was told Tampa departures run a much older average age, and a late-twenties poster on a recent Carnival sailing put the crowd at sixty to seventy percent over 65. A solo 27-year-old on a March 2022 five-night found a decent number of people his age without it being a twenties crowd. A 2015 poster warned the four-night runs had a booze-cruise atmosphere; a 2023 reply said the midweek four-nighters are calmer than the weekend ones.
Onboard Amenities
Cruise Highlights
About the Ship
What Travelers Say About Carnival Paradise
Reviews of the ship itself — the same for every Carnival Paradise sailing. Distilled from 92 traveler threads, Cruise Critic member reviews and travel blogs.
Carnival Paradise is one of Carnival's oldest active ships, a Fantasy-class vessel launched in 1998 and lightly refreshed in 2023 that sails short 4-5 night cruises out of Tampa to Mexico and the Caribbean. Its appeal is squarely about value and convenience rather than flash: it's small, easy to navigate, and routinely among the cheapest ways to get on a cruise. The vibe is casual, social and unpretentious, drawing budget-minded travelers, first-timers and groups looking for a quick, affordable getaway rather than the theme-park spectacle of Carnival's newer megaships.
What People Love
- Among the cheapest ways to cruise from Tampa - aggressive pricing makes it a favorite for budget travelers and first-timers
- Small Fantasy-class footprint means quick walks from cabin to pool, dining or theater with no long elevator waits
- Crew and dining staff earn consistent praise for friendly, attentive service that regulars say makes the trip
Common Complaints
- Ship launched in 1998 and shows its age - dated 90s decor and worn finishes are a frequent complaint
- Cabins are small (around 185 sq ft), functional but dated with limited storage
- Main pool is undersized for the passenger load and gets packed 'like sardines' on sea days