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EXPLORA III · Caribbean & Central America

14 nights, San Juan to San Juan

December 13, 2026 – December 28, 2026 · 14 nights · 11 stops · round-trip

Explora's name for it: An Extended Journey through Wild Beauty and Tropical Festivities

Fourteen nights, eleven calls, a loop that begins and ends at the Old San Juan piers, where Explora III ties up steps from the cobbled colonial grid and its two harbor-mouth forts. From there the route threads the eastern and central Caribbean, then swings west all the way to Miami and Jamaica before working back. The pace is mostly port-heavy, so plan it island by island. In Anguilla you tender straight onto Sandy Ground Beach and taxi out to Shoal Bay East, the sand the island is actually known for. Grand Turk drops you a short walk from a leeward beach and a reef wall good enough that wall snorkeling here is genuinely worth the time. Ocho Rios is built around Dunn's River, which you climb in a human chain, best done on the first slot before several ships funnel onto the same rock staircase.

This sailing rewards a traveler who wants the Caribbean read closely, beach by beach and town by town, with frequent stops and short tenders. It is not for someone chasing sea days or a slow, do-nothing rhythm; with eleven calls in fourteen nights, the days fill. Miami sits oddly mid-loop as a big U.S. port rather than an island, so weigh whether that contrast appeals or interrupts.

Explora III is all-suite and all-oceanfront throughout.

San Juan (open port guide)San JuanRoad Bay (open port guide)St. John's (Antigua) (open port guide)Basseterre (open port guide)Grand Turk (open port guide)Miami (open port guide)Ocho Rios (open port guide)Catalina Island (open port guide)Jost Van Dyke (open port guide)Philipsburg (open port guide)Charlotte Amalie (Saint Thomas) (open port guide)Charlotte Amalie (Saint Thomas)

The itinerary, port by port

11 calls over 14 nights, round-trip from San Juan. Open any port for my full day-ashore guide, what to see, when to go, and how the day actually runs.

Getting there: Flights to San Juan (SJU) are already bookable for these dates. I watch the fare for booked clients so you book at the right moment. When to book your flights →

  1. Embark
    San Juan

    San Juan's old quarter is a walled Spanish colonial town on a headland, founded in the early 1500s, with two stone forts run by the U.S. Port guide →

  2. 2
    Road Bay

    Road Bay is Anguilla's main harbor, sheltering the small fishing village of Sandy Ground on a wide curve of pale sand. Port guide →

  3. 3
  4. 4
    Basseterre

    Basseterre is the Georgian-era capital of St Kitts, a small twin-island Caribbean nation where the cruise pier puts you a five-minute walk from a colonial town center built around a circular junction… Port guide →

  5. 5
    Grand Turk

    Grand Turk is the small, low-rise capital island of the Turks and Caicos, a former salt-raking colony of donkeys, ponds, and pastel Bermudian houses that never urbanized. Port guide →

  6. 6
    Miami

    Miami is the busiest cruise port in the United States, set on Dodge Island in Biscayne Bay a mile or two off downtown. Port guide →

  7. 7
    Ocho Rios

    Ocho Rios is Jamaica's north-coast adventure hub, built around one famous waterfall you climb in a human chain and a cluster of rivers, gardens, and beaches within a few minutes' drive. Port guide →

  8. 8
    Catalina Island

    Catalina is a low-key island an hour off the Southern California coast, where the small port town of Avalon ends at clear, kelp-forested water that draws snorkelers and glass-bottom boats. Port guide →

  9. 9
    Jost Van Dyke

    Jost Van Dyke is a four-mile sliver of the British Virgin Islands with roughly 300 residents, no traffic lights, and a beach-bar culture that built the BVI's reputation. Port guide →

  10. 10
    Philipsburg

    Philipsburg is the Dutch-side capital of Sint Maarten, a narrow strip of town wedged between Great Bay and a salt pond. Port guide →

  11. Disembark
    Charlotte Amalie (Saint Thomas)

    Charlotte Amalie is the capital of the U.S. Port guide →

Fares on this departure, decoded

Reading the fare fine print is the job. Here's what this sailing currently carries:

Invitation to Discover More
Explora's discovery fare, available across most of the calendar. Onboard credit where the offer applies.
Founders Fare
A founding-era fare on a selected set of sailings. Onboard credit where the offer applies.
Air-Inclusive Fare
A fare that folds airfare into the voyage price on a smaller set of sailings.

The ship and your suite

This sailing is aboard EXPLORA III, all-suite, every suite with a private ocean-front terrace. Suites run from the entry Ocean Terrace to the Owner's Residence; the right tier depends on how you travel. Compare suites → · What's included →


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