Queen Elizabeth - Western Caribbean & Belize from Miami

Where this cruise calls, day by day

6 ports and 4 sea days over 9 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Miami, FL

   United StatesDepart

   PortMiami is the busiest cruise port on earth and behaves like it: a lettered row of terminals strung along Dodge Island - A for Royal Caribbean, B for Norwegian, C for MSC, D through F for the Carnival brands, V for Virgin. Traffic funnels in over the Port Boulevard causeway or through the tunnel under Government Cut, and on a Saturday with six ships turning around, both back up.

   • Ocean Drive and the Art Deco district in South Beach, 20 minutes across the causeway
   • Wynwood Walls and the warehouse murals around it
   • Calle Ocho in Little Havana - a cortadito and the domino tables at Maximo Gomez Park
   • Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, a 1916 bayfront villa in Coconut Grove

   Getting ashore

   Terminals A-G and V sit on Dodge Island, reached by the Port Boulevard causeway or the PortMiami Tunnel; Miami International is about 8 miles west, usually 20-30 minutes but longer on a heavy turnaround morning.

   Best months

   Nov-Apr (Aug-Oct is peak hurricane season and August ashore is punishing)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3

   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

4. Day 4 · At sea

5. Day 5

   Montego Bay

   JamaicaPort

   The cruise terminal sits out in the Freeport industrial zone on a spit west of the city, so nothing is walkable and everyone leaves by taxi or coach. Montego Bay itself is Jamaica's tourist capital - the Hip Strip and Doctor's Cave Beach are ten minutes away and the plantation-era great houses are in the hills behind. It is also the nearest port to Negril, though that is 90 minutes each way.

   • Doctor's Cave Beach and the Hip Strip
   • Rose Hall Great House and its Annie Palmer legend
   • Bamboo rafting on the Martha Brae
   • Jerk chicken at Scotchies

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock at the Montego Bay Cruise Terminal in Freeport; the Hip Strip is a 10-15 minute taxi and there is nothing at the pier itself.

   Best months

   Dec-Apr is driest; Aug-Oct is hurricane season

6. Day 6 · At sea

7. Day 7

   Belize City

   BelizePort

   The 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

8. Day 8

   Cozumel

   MexicoPort

   Cozumel is an island 12 miles off the Yucatán that runs almost entirely on cruise traffic - three piers, up to six ships at once, and a downtown built to absorb them. Which pier you draw matters more than anything else: Punta Langosta puts you in San Miguel on foot, while Puerta Maya and the International Pier sit a few miles south and need a taxi. The reason to come is underwater, on the Palancar and Colombia reefs.

   • Snorkel or dive Palancar Reef
   • Chankanaab Park's lagoon and shore snorkelling
   • A beach club day at Mr. Sancho's or Nachi Cocom
   • San Gervasio Maya ruins in the island's interior

   Getting ashore

   All ships dock; Punta Langosta is a walk into San Miguel, while Puerta Maya and the International Pier are 3-4 miles south, about 10 minutes by taxi.

   Best months

   Dec-Apr is driest and calmest; Jun-Nov is hurricane season, and sargassum can wash ashore May-Aug

9. Day 9 · At sea

10. Day 10

    Miami, FL

    United StatesArrive

    PortMiami is the busiest cruise port on earth and behaves like it: a lettered row of terminals strung along Dodge Island - A for Royal Caribbean, B for Norwegian, C for MSC, D through F for the Carnival brands, V for Virgin. Traffic funnels in over the Port Boulevard causeway or through the tunnel under Government Cut, and on a Saturday with six ships turning around, both back up.

    • Ocean Drive and the Art Deco district in South Beach, 20 minutes across the causeway
    • Wynwood Walls and the warehouse murals around it
    • Calle Ocho in Little Havana - a cortadito and the domino tables at Maximo Gomez Park
    • Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, a 1916 bayfront villa in Coconut Grove

    Getting ashore

    Terminals A-G and V sit on Dodge Island, reached by the Port Boulevard causeway or the PortMiami Tunnel; Miami International is about 8 miles west, usually 20-30 minutes but longer on a heavy turnaround morning.

    Best months

    Nov-Apr (Aug-Oct is peak hurricane season and August ashore is punishing)