Celebrity Apex - Portugal & Bermuda Transatlantic

Where this cruise calls, day by day

6 ports and 8 sea days over 13 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Southampton

   United KingdomDepart

   Britain's main cruise homeport, on Southampton Water at the head of the Solent. Almost nobody calls here as a port day - you join or leave your ship at one of five terminals (Mayflower, Ocean, QEII, City and Horizon), which are spread across the working docks and reached by taxi or coach rather than on foot. The city itself was heavily bombed in 1940, so the old core is patchy: surviving medieval walls, the Bargate, and a good maritime museum.

   • SeaCity Museum and its Titanic exhibition - the ship sailed from Berth 44 here
   • Walking the medieval town walls and the Bargate
   • Day trip to Winchester Cathedral, about 20 minutes by train
   • The New Forest for wild ponies, roughly 30 minutes by road

   Getting ashore

   Ships berth alongside; terminals are 2-4 km from the city centre and from Southampton Central station, so use a taxi or the cruise line coach, and allow about 80 minutes by train to London Waterloo.

   Best months

   Apr-Oct (peak turnaround Jun-Aug)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3

   Vigo

   SpainPort

   A big Galician fishing and shipbuilding city on a long ria, greener and rainier than anywhere else on this coast. Vigo's old town is small and steeply stacked above the port, known for oyster sellers shucking on the street, but the city is most often used as the nearest sea access to Santiago de Compostela. The Cies Islands, a protected archipelago at the mouth of the ria, are the local alternative.

   • The Casco Vello and the oyster stalls on Rua da Pescaderia
   • Santiago de Compostela's cathedral, about 1.5 hours away
   • A ferry to the Cies Islands and Praia das Rodas, weather permitting
   • Baiona, with its fortress headland and the replica of Columbus's Pinta

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock at the Estacion Maritima right in the city, so the old town is a few minutes uphill on foot.

   Best months

   Jun-Sep (Galicia is wet much of the rest of the year)

4. Day 4

   Lisbon

   PortugalPort

   Ships come in under the Ponte 25 de Abril and tie up alongside the Tagus with the city climbing the hills in front of you, which makes this one of the better arrivals in Europe. Lisbon spreads across seven hills, so a port day means trams, funiculars and a lot of stairs. The monastery and tower at Belem are a separate district downriver and need their own leg of the day.

   • Jeronimos Monastery and Belem Tower, plus a pastel de nata at Pasteis de Belem
   • Sao Jorge Castle and the Alfama lanes below it
   • Tram 28 through Graca, Alfama and Estrela
   • A half-day to Sintra and the Pena Palace, about 40 minutes out

   Getting ashore

   Most ships berth at the Lisbon Cruise Terminal at Santa Apolonia, close enough to walk into Alfama in about ten minutes.

   Best months

   Apr-Jun and Sep-Oct

5. Day 5 · At sea

6. Day 6

   Ponta Delgada, Azores

   PortugalPort

   The main town of Sao Miguel, and usually the only land a transatlantic itinerary touches between Europe and the Americas. The island is volcanic and green rather than tropical, with crater lakes, hot springs and hydrangea hedges along the roads. Weather changes fast here, so the viewpoint that is socked in at ten can be clear by noon.

   • Sete Cidades, the twin crater lakes seen from the Vista do Rei viewpoint
   • Furnas, with its steaming fumaroles and cozido cooked in the ground
   • Lagoa do Fogo and the north-coast tea plantation at Gorreana
   • Whale and dolphin watching from the harbour

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock at the Portas do Mar terminal in the middle of town; you walk straight off into Ponta Delgada.

   Best months

   Jun-Sep (mildest and driest; rain is possible any month)

7. Day 7 · At sea

8. Day 8 · At sea

9. Day 9 · At sea

10. Day 10 · At sea

11. Day 11

    Royal Naval Dockyard

    BermudaPort

    Bermuda is not the Caribbean and does not behave like it — this is a mid-Atlantic call, usually two or three nights alongside, and ships berth at the old Royal Navy dockyard on the far western tip because they cannot fit into Hamilton or St. George's. The dockyard is a restored fortress complex of limestone warehouses turned into shops. Everything else is a ferry or bus away; there are no rental cars on the island.

    • National Museum of Bermuda inside the Keep
    • Horseshoe Bay and the pink-sand south shore beaches
    • Fast ferry across to Hamilton
    • St. George's, the UNESCO-listed old town at the far east end

    Getting ashore

    Docked at King's Wharf or Heritage Wharf with shops at the gate; Hamilton is about 20 minutes by fast ferry and Horseshoe Bay roughly 25 minutes by bus or taxi.

    Best months

    Apr-Oct — this is a summer-season port; the water is cold and much of the island winds down Nov-Mar

12. Day 12 · At sea

13. Day 13 · At sea

14. Day 14

    Port Canaveral, FL

    United StatesArrive

    Canaveral is Orlando's cruise port, which is the whole point: most passengers arrive off a theme-park week or straight from MCO, about 45 miles and an hour west. The terminals - 1, 3, 5, 6, 8 and 10 - are modern and low-rise, wedged between a working cargo harbour and a Space Force launch complex. Launches are visible from the ship and worth checking the schedule for.

    • Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, half an hour north - the Saturn V hangar alone eats three hours
    • Cocoa Beach and the original Ron Jon Surf Shop, open around the clock
    • Jetty Park, where you can watch your own ship sail out from the beach
    • Historic Cocoa Village for a slower afternoon of shops and riverfront bars

    Getting ashore

    Cruise Terminals 1, 3, 5, 6, 8 and 10 are spread along the harbour with their own parking garages; Orlando International is roughly 45 miles west (45-60 minutes clear of traffic) and Melbourne is closer at about 35 minutes.

    Best months

    Nov-May (Aug-Oct is peak hurricane season; summer afternoons bring daily thunderstorms)