Ruby Princess - Mexican Riviera from San Francisco

Where this cruise calls, day by day

6 ports and 5 sea days over 10 Nights.

1. Day 1

   San Francisco, CA

   United StatesDepart

   Arriving here is the point: ships pass under the Golden Gate Bridge and berth at Pier 27, on the Embarcadero within sight of Coit Tower and a walk from the Ferry Building. It serves as a turnaround port for Alaska and Hawaii sailings and an occasional day call. Fog can swallow the bridge entirely even in July, so the famous approach is not guaranteed.

   • Alcatraz Island, which sells out weeks ahead and cannot be booked on the day
   • The Ferry Building marketplace and the Embarcadero waterfront
   • Cable car from Powell Street over Nob Hill
   • Golden Gate Park, the Presidio and the view back at the bridge from Fort Point

   Getting ashore

   Docks at Pier 27 on the Embarcadero; Fisherman's Wharf and the Ferry Building are walkable in either direction.

   Best months

   Year-round (Sep-Oct warmest and least foggy; Jun-Aug is peak fog season)

2. Day 2 · At sea

3. Day 3 · At sea

4. Day 4

   Cabo San Lucas

   MexicoPort

   Cabo is a tender port, and one of the better ones - the boat drops you at the marina in the middle of town rather than a mile from anywhere. The setting does the work: desert mountains falling straight into the Pacific, with the granite arch at Land's End a ten-minute panga ride from the dock. Expect timeshare pitches from the moment you step onto the boardwalk.

   • Water taxi to El Arco and Lover's Beach
   • Médano Beach, the one bay in town that is safe to swim
   • Snorkelling at Chileno Bay or Santa María
   • Grey and humpback whale watching in winter

   Getting ashore

   Tender port - about 10-15 minutes to the marina, which puts you in the centre of town; heavy Pacific swell occasionally cancels the operation.

   Best months

   Nov-May is dry and mild, with whales Dec-Apr; Aug-Oct is humid and hurricane-prone

5. Day 5

   Mazatlán

   MexicoPort

   Mazatlán's berth is inside a busy commercial cargo port, so the first thing you see is containers and cranes. The fix is a pulmonía - the open-sided golf-cart taxis unique to this city - and ten minutes to Centro Histórico, where Plaza Machado and a restored 19th-century opera house make the case for Mazatlán better than the Golden Zone hotels do. Ships avoided the port for two years over cartel violence before returning.

   • Plaza Machado and Teatro Ángela Peralta in the old town
   • The malecón and the climb up to the El Faro lighthouse
   • Stone Island (Isla de la Piedra) for beach and coconut groves
   • The cliff divers at the Glorieta on the seafront

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock in the commercial port; a pulmonía or taxi reaches Old Town in about 10 minutes, and walking out of the port area is long and dull.

   Best months

   Nov-May is dry and mild; Jul-Oct is humid, rainy and hurricane season

6. Day 6

   Puerto Vallarta

   MexicoPort

   The Terminal Marítima is at the north end of the bay, next to the marina and a cruise-oriented shopping mall, so Vallarta proper - the Malecón, the Zona Romántica, the tiled church dome - is a 10 to 15 minute taxi away. Banderas Bay is deep and calm, humpbacks winter in it, and the town behind the seafront is a real one with an art scene and a long-established gay quarter.

   • The Malecón sculpture walk and the Zona Romántica
   • Playa Los Muertos
   • A boat to Yelapa or the Marietas Islands
   • Humpback whale watching, December to March

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock at Terminal Marítima; downtown is 10-15 minutes by taxi, and timeshare touts work the terminal exit hard.

   Best months

   Nov-Apr is dry and warm; Jul-Sep is hot, humid and the heart of the rainy season

7. Day 7

   Manzanillo

   MexicoPort

   Manzanillo is Mexico's busiest Pacific cargo port and the cruise berth is in the middle of it, with containers stacked on both sides. The town is modest - a malecón with an outsized blue sailfish sculpture and a hill of steep streets - and the swimmable beaches are around the bays to the north at Santiago and Miramar. Few ships call and there is little tourist infrastructure.

   • The malecón and the Pez Vela sailfish monument
   • Playa La Audiencia in Santiago Bay
   • Las Hadas, the white Moorish resort from the film 10
   • Playa Miramar for surf

   Getting ashore

   Ships dock in the commercial port; downtown is a short walk or taxi and the better beaches are 20-30 minutes north.

   Best months

   Nov-May is dry and pleasant; Jun-Oct is humid, wet and hurricane-prone

8. Day 8 · At sea

9. Day 9 · At sea

10. Day 10 · At sea

11. Day 11

    San Francisco, CA

    United StatesArrive

    Arriving here is the point: ships pass under the Golden Gate Bridge and berth at Pier 27, on the Embarcadero within sight of Coit Tower and a walk from the Ferry Building. It serves as a turnaround port for Alaska and Hawaii sailings and an occasional day call. Fog can swallow the bridge entirely even in July, so the famous approach is not guaranteed.

    • Alcatraz Island, which sells out weeks ahead and cannot be booked on the day
    • The Ferry Building marketplace and the Embarcadero waterfront
    • Cable car from Powell Street over Nob Hill
    • Golden Gate Park, the Presidio and the view back at the bridge from Fort Point

    Getting ashore

    Docks at Pier 27 on the Embarcadero; Fisherman's Wharf and the Ferry Building are walkable in either direction.

    Best months

    Year-round (Sep-Oct warmest and least foggy; Jun-Aug is peak fog season)