Caribbean from Port Canaveral (Orlando) Cruise

Day 1 - Port Canaveral, Florida

Arrive: Sat 18 April 2026 / Depart: Sat 18 April 2026 at 17:00

Port Canaveral, a departure port of an MSC Caribbean and Antilles Cruise, is located just 45 miles east of Orlando and is known for its Space Coast. On the Merritt Island peninsula you can discover the phenomenal Kennedy Space Center. Here the NASA’s space vehicles are developed, tested and blasted into orbit. Set up a bit like an Orlando theme park, the vast Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex will enthrall anyone with the slightest interest in space exploration, with everything from enormous rockets and the history of the moon landings, to IMAX movies and a space shuttle launch simulation on offer. Many of the visitors who flock here are surprised to find that the land from which rockets are launched is also the home of sizeable Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge framed by several miles of rough coastline.

Day 2 - Nassau

Arrive: Sun 19 April 2026 at 10:00 / Depart: Sun 19 April 2026 at 18:00

Proclaimed a pirate republic by the early 1700s, Nassau once sheltered more than 1,000 pirates, outnumbering the hundred inhabitants of the town. While its pirate history runs deep, today Nassau, located on the island of New Providence, is the capital and commercial centre of the Bahamas and the archipelago’s largest city. AS you arrive on an MSC Caribbean and Antilles cruise, take in Nassau’s charming colonial-style buildings and pastel-coloured wooden shops that alternate with Georgian-style structures. Founded by the British in 1670, Nassau stretches from the harbour to Bay Street, the main drag through town that is replete with shops, souvenirs, restaurants and entertainment. At Straw Market, where typical Bahamian souvenirs are sold, be prepared to bargain – it’s a tradition that is almost a duty. A popular tourist area is Cable Beach, a 4-mile stretch of beach and resorts on the north central coast of New Providence, 3 miles from Nassau. Paradise Beach, on Paradise Island, is one of the best beaches in the area. For a nearly private beach experience, take an MSC excursion to Blue Lagoon Island, a private island with one of the most secluded beaches in the Bahamas, or opt for a VIP beach cabana experience at the offshore picture-perfect oasis of Balmoral Island. Book an MSC excursion to Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island, where you can enjoy a diverse choice of attractions. These range from Aquaventure, an exhilarating 141-acre waterpark where you can ride swells of rapids and fly down 7-story slides, to the Dig, a faux archaeological site that recreates the ruins of ancient Atlantis, or Predator Lagoon, home to sharks, rays, barracudas and sawfish. For something special, take a bush medicine gardens and tea tour, an exclusive Martha Stewart & MSC Cruises excursion, to learn about local traditions and botany. Then sip afternoon tea and dine on scones and dainty finger sandwiches at the lavish Graycliff Hotel, a landmark property that since 1740 has housed pirates, privateers and prisoners alike. Don’t miss the magnificent views of Nassau, Paradise Island and a good portion of the Bahamas from the top of Queen’s Staircase at Fort Fincastle. Watch as water cascades alongside the his-torical staircase, comprising 65 steps hand-carved out of solid limestone rock by 600 slaves between 1793 and 1794.

Day 3 - Miami

Arrive: Mon 20 April 2026 at 07:00 / Depart: Mon 20 April 2026 at 18:00

Miami is called the gateway to the Americas, and it’s indeed a very glamourous global city to explore at the start or end of an MSC Caribbean and Antilles cruise. Home to many cultures, the city of Miami sizzles with flavours from the Americas, beginning with Cuba and the Little Havana neighbourhood - one of the most historically significant places, while Wynwood is famous for its wall art and Puerto Rican history. Across Biscayne Bay lies the city of Miami Beach, home to the world-famous South Beach. An MSC-arranged guided private tour opens up a world of possibilities for you: enjoy the beach, take in the city’s Art Deco architecture and enjoy a drink on legendary Ocean Drive, where you can people watch, and perhaps spot a celebrity. If time permits, take a stroll on artsy Lincoln Road packed with street side cafes and shops. Facing the MSC Cruises port in downtown Miami is Bayside Marketplace - a lively commercial centre that is a staging area for boat tours of Miami. Seeing the city from the water, with its impressive skyline and waterfront mansions, is an experience in itself. The downtown area also boasts the dazzling Performing Arts Centre, the Museum of Science, the Pérez Art Museum Miami (known as the PAMM), scenic Bayfront Park and the arena where the 3-time NBA champion Miami Heat basketball team plays. Miami is renowned for its shopping. Hop on a tour to see the major city sights followed by retail therapy at one of Miami's largest and newest shopping malls: Dolphin Mall. With more than 240 retail outlets, you’re bound to need a bit of room in your luggage for your purchases. Luckily, there are several luggage stores at the mall to fill that need. Head west past the city into untamed wilderness on an MSC excursion into the Everglades. At this national park where water is the central feature, unlike any other in North America, nature enthusiasts can hop on an airboat tour through the swampland and waterways to spot alligators and a variety of birds.

Day 4 - At Sea

Day 5 - Philipsburg, St Maarten

Arrive: Wed 22 April 2026 at 08:00 / Depart: Wed 22 April 2026 at 18:00

Offering some of the best vistas in all the Caribbean, St. Maarten is the smallest inhabited island in the world shared by two nations - France in the north and the Netherlands in the south. Dubbed the true melting pot of the Caribbean, the 37-square-mile island is home to people of 47 different nationalities and more than 400 restaurants, featuring a hugely diverse variety of cuisine. The island also has two capitals: Philipsburg on the Dutch side, and Marigot in the French part. Once you arrive on an MSC Caribbean and Antilles cruise in St. Maarten, explore how the two cultures have blended their very distinct characters on one of our MSC excursions. Your St. Maarten cruise will dock in Philipsburg, founded in 1763 by John Philips, a Scottish captain in the Dutch Navy. Philipsburg, with its pastel-coloured West Indian houses, is known for its duty-free shopping along Front Street, the Great Salt Pond, which once made the island literally “worth its salt,” and attracted the attention of the French, and Fort Willem, built in 1801, with mag-nificent views of the bay and the surrounding islands. From there, several MSC excursions take you on a hilly drive to the French side of the island to experience Marigot. Originally a fishing village on a swamp for which it was named, Marigot became the capital during the reign of Louis XVI. Fort Louis, which overlooks Marigot Bay and Anguilla, was built in the late 18th century to protect the town’s warehouses of salt, coffee, sugar cane and especially rum from the English. Today, Marigot showcases quaint colourful gingerbread-like houses, tasty sidewalk bistros and a waterfront market selling fruit and vegetables, spices, local meats and fresh fish from Creole huts worth exploring. For something special, spend the day on the Dutch side of the island at the restored sugar planta-tion at Rockland Estate. Take in a history lesson at the Emilio Wilson Museum or a nature hike and 360-degree views from Sentry Hill. Participate in a hands-on cooking demonstration of authentic local cuisines with lunch at Emilio’s restaurant, in an exclusive Martha Stewart excursion curated for MSC Cruises. Also at Rockland Estate, thrill seekers can book other MSC excursions on the Flying Dutchman, a fast and furious zip line ride that will have you whizzing down the line at speeds of up to 56 mph (90 km) per hour. Then take the Pirate Sky Ride cable car back up the top to the Crow’s Nest where several platforms encircling the mountain afford panoramic views of the neighbouring islands of Saba, Sint Eustatius, Saint Barthélemy and Anguilla. Then plunge down the mountain on a Schooner Ride inner tube along a specially designed track. To experience one of the island’s hottest spots and most popular attractions, visit the famous Maho Beach, also called Airplane Beach. Don’t get too comfortable, though. This is because you watch as planes pass only a short distance above your head as they land and take off from Princess Juli-ana Airport’s short runway next door.

Day 6 - At Sea

Day 7 - At Sea

Day 8 - At Sea

Day 9 - At Sea

Day 10 - At Sea

Day 11 - At Sea

Day 12 - Funchal

Arrive: Wed 29 April 2026 at 09:00 / Depart: Wed 29 April 2026 at 18:00

As you arrive in Funchal on an MSC cruise, your ship will cast anchor in a bay protected by mountains rising straight up behind the port. The name, Funchal, derives from that of the fennel plant, the funcho still used today in the traditional sweets known as rebuçados de funcho, that one can find anywhere on the island of Madeira. An excursion will take you around the town centre, to visit historic churches, from the A Sé Cathedral, with its inlaid ceiling, to the majestic Church of the Incarnation, to the church of Carmo without a vault. Another MSC excursion will take you up to the village of Monte, from where one can admire a spectacular view of the Funchal bay. You can visit its 18th century church and the tomb of the last Austrian emperor, Charles I, and stroll around the magnificent botanic gardens. But if you like heights, there’s nothing more impressive than the Cabo Girão and its 589 metre tall cliffs, amongst the highest in the world, at the foot of which lie the cultivated lands known as Fajãs do Cabo Girão. If you’re looking for an equipped beach during your MSC cruise, another excursion will take you to Machico. Founded in the 15th century, it hosts the oldest religious building on the island, the Capela dos Milagres, and the fortresses of São João Baptista and Nossa Senhora do Amparo built in the beginning of the 16th century. The more lively tourist attraction is instead in Calheta, on the south-west coast. Splendid yachts cruising across the Atlantic are moored in the port and if you want to go for a swim there are two beautiful beaches of golden sand; in spite of the modern structures Calheta dates back to the mid-15th century. This is where they make the “Aguardente”, the best white rhum, and fundamental ingredient of Madeira’s typical drink, the “Poncha” .

Day 13 - At Sea

Day 14 - At Sea

Day 15 - Barcelona

Arrive: Sat 02 May 2026 at 08:00 / Depart: Sat 02 May 2026 at 17:00

One of the busiest cruise ports in the Mediterranean, the seaside city of Barcelona is known for its iconic architecture, colourful culture, and world-class drinking and dining. Explore Antoni Gaudí’s surreal Sagrada Família, the famous boulevard of the Ramblas, the medieval Barri Gótic, and the Museu Picasso. But there’s even more to discover in this sprawling Spanish city, an MSC Mediterranean Cruises destination: from hidden tapas bars and fabulous food markets to Europe’s biggest football stadium.

Day 16 - Cannes

Arrive: Sun 03 May 2026 at 09:00 / Depart: Sun 03 May 2026 at 19:00

A holiday to France with MSC Cruises is the perfect chance to visit Cannes. With its immaculate seafront hotels and exclusive beach concessions, glamorous yachts and designer boutiques, Cannes is in many ways the definitive Riviera resort, a place where appearances count, especially during the film festival in May. The not particularly attractive seafront Palais des Festivals is the heart of the film festival but also hosts conferences, tournaments and trade shows. Despite its glittery image, Cannes works surprisingly well as a big seaside resort, with plenty of free, sandy public beaches. Promenade de la Croisette is certainly the sight to see during your excursions, with its palace hotels – the Martinez and Carlton – on one side and their private beaches on the other. It’s possible to find your way down to the beach without paying, but not easy (you can of course walk along it below the rows of sun beds). The old town, known as Le Suquet after the hill on which it stands, provides a great panorama of the curve of Cannes’ bay. On its summit stand the remains of the fortified priory lived in by Cannes’ eleventh-century monks, and the beautiful twelfth-century Chapelle Ste-Anne. The Musée de la Castre, in the remains of Cannes’ eleventh-century priory, holds an extraordinary collection of musical instruments from all over the world, along with pictures and prints of old Cannes and an ethnology and archaeology section. MSC Mediterranean cruises also offer excursions to Nice. Since reaching its zenith in the belle époque of the late nineteenth century, it has retained its historical styles almost intact: the medieval rabbit warren of Vieux Nice, the Italianate facades of modern Nice and the rich exuberance of fin-de-siècle residences dating from when the city was Europe’s most fashionable winter retreat.

Day 17 - Genoa

Arrive: Mon 04 May 2026 at 08:00 / Depart: Mon 04 May 2026

Genoa is marvellously eclectic, vibrant and full of rough-edged style; it’s a great cruise excursion. Indeed “La Superba” (The Superb), as it was known at the height of its authority as a Mediterranean superpower, boasts more zest and intrigue than all the surrounding coastal resorts put together. During a holiday to Genoa you can explore its old town: a dense and fascinating warren of medieval alleyways home to large palazzi built in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries by Genoa’s wealthy mercantile families and now transformed into museums and art galleries. You should seek out the Cattedrale di San Lorenzo, the Palazzo Ducale, and the Renaissance palaces of Via Garibaldi which contain the cream of Genoa’s art collections, as well as furniture and decor from the grandest days of the city’s past, when its ships sailed to all corners of the Mediterranean Sea. The Acquario di Genova is the city’s pride and joy, parked like a giant ocean liner on the waterfront, with seventy tanks housing sea creatures from all the world’s major habitats, including the world’s biggest reconstruction of a Caribbean coral reef. It’s a great aquarium by any standards, the second largest in Europe by capacity, and boasts a fashionably ecology-conscious slant and excellent background information in Italian and English. Just 35 km south of Genoa, there’s no denying the appeal of Portofino, tucked into a protected inlet surrounded by lush cypress- and olive-clad slopes. It’s an A-list resort that has been attracting high-flying bankers, celebs and their hangers-on for years, as evidenced by the flotillas of giant yachts usually anchored just outside. It’s a tiny place that is attractive yet somehow off-putting at the same time, with a quota of fancy shops, bars and restaurants for a place twice its size.