Mardi Gras - Eastern Caribbean

Where this cruise calls, day by day

5 ports and 3 sea days over 7 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Port Canaveral, FL

   United StatesDepart

   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)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3

   Nassau

   BahamasPort

   Nassau's berth is at the foot of Bay Street, so you are downtown five minutes after the gangway - a convenience that also means up to six ships emptying into the same few blocks. The terminal was rebuilt in 2023 and works well. What lies beyond is a mix of colonial government buildings, duty-free jewellers, and hair-braiding and taxi touts who do not take a first no.

   • Atlantis Aquaventure day pass on Paradise Island
   • The Queen's Staircase and Fort Fincastle
   • Junkanoo Beach, about ten minutes on foot
   • Blue Lagoon Island by boat

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock at Prince George Wharf and you walk straight into downtown; Cabbage Beach on Paradise Island is a 15-minute taxi or a short water-taxi hop.

   Best months

   Dec-Apr for dry, cooler weather; Aug-Oct is peak hurricane season

4. Day 4

   Puerto Plata

   Dominican RepublicPort

   Two purpose-built cruise terminals serve the same north-coast town: Carnival's Amber Cove, a self-contained resort compound east of the city, and Taino Bay, which opened in 2021 much closer in. Both are designed to keep you inside them, and many passengers never leave. Puerto Plata itself — Fort San Felipe, the gingerbread houses around Parque Central — takes a taxi and some initiative.

   • Mount Isabel de Torres cable car to the Christ statue and botanical gardens
   • Fortaleza San Felipe on the waterfront
   • 27 Charcos de Damajagua, a canyoning route of waterfall jumps
   • Playa Dorada or the beach at Sosúa

   Getting ashore

   Both are docked berths but neither is in town — Amber Cove is roughly 20-25 minutes by taxi from Puerto Plata, Taino Bay about 10.

   Best months

   Dec-Apr; the north coast is wetter than the south year-round and Aug-Oct carries hurricane risk

5. Day 5

   Grand Turk

   Turks and Caicos IslandsPort

   Grand Turk is seven miles of scrub and old salt ponds with a resident population smaller than the ship calling on it. Carnival's cruise center is a self-contained beach compound — pool, bar, Margaritaville — with good sand at the pier and a wall that drops into deep water a few hundred yards offshore. Cockburn Town, the actual settlement, is quiet, weathered and a short taxi away.

   • The beach at the cruise center, running into Governor's Beach
   • Wall diving and snorkeling on the offshore drop-off
   • Cockburn Town's Front Street and the Turks & Caicos National Museum
   • Gibbs Cay stingray excursion

   Getting ashore

   Docked at the Grand Turk Cruise Center with a beach at the gate; Cockburn Town is about 10 minutes by taxi.

   Best months

   Dec-Apr; the island is dry and low-lying year-round, with Aug-Oct hurricane risk

6. Day 6 · At sea

7. Day 7 · At sea

8. Day 8

   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)