Cruise Out Of Jacksonville Fl

This Is What You Need To Know About Cruise Ports In Florida

Florida cruise ports are the busiest cruise ports in the world. This guide to cruise ports in Florida has what you need to know to save time, money and aggravation.

Florida has some of the busiest cruise ports in the world. More passengers sail out of Florida cruise ports than anywhere else in the world. If you are going on a Caribbean cruise, odds are real high your sailing will depart from one of them. But, cruise ports in Florida arent just launching points for Caribbean travelers. You can also find ships sailing to other parts of the world such as South America or Transatlantic crossings to Europe.

Read on to learn the basic facts about cruising out of ports in Florida, and some key tips that you should know to help you save money, time, and aggravation.

Editors Note : Many of the facts and figures included below are based on pre-pandemic sailings. The CDC issued a no-sail order in March 2020 that halted all sailings out of Florida ports for more than a year. We expect sailings from Florida ports to recommence this summer. At this time, cruise lines have announced new sailing out of ports in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Orlando. .

Be sure to check out our new guide to traveling safely during the Covid-19 era!

Contents

• PORT OF PALM BEACH

Getting To The Jaxport Cruise Terminal

The terminal is located near the northwest corner of Dames Point, near Heckscher Drive and I-295 in Northeast Jacksonville. For those coming from the airport, taxi service is available.

For travelers who live in Florida or who are going on a roadtrip through the state, Jaxport has an on-site parking lot thats well lit and has 24-hour security. As of 2018, it cost $17 per day to park,

You Can Save Money By Skipping The Hotel

Conventional wisdom says that you should arrive at least a day before your cruise departure date if you will be flying into your embarkation city. And this is clearly sound advice. However, in many circumstances, it can also be reasonable to make a different choice.

Depending on where you live, it is entirely possible to fly into and out of Florida on the same day as your embarkation and disembarkation dates with ample time to spare. One big advantage of doing so is saving money on hotel. We have done this many times. However, this is not for the faint of heart.

You can minimize potential problems if you can book nonstop flights. Trying to switch plans en route adds more opportunities for things to go wrong. And, you should try to take the earliest flight thats practical. If your flight is scheduled to land at least 4 hours before boarding for the ship closes, that provides a nice buffer.

Although we have done this many times without incident, we have some travel companions on a recent cruise out of Tampa who werent quite so lucky. This family flew from their home state in the middle of the country on a flight itinerary that required one change of planes. If everything had gone according to plan, they would have arrived in Tampa several hours before the ship was scheduled to depart. But, several things went awry including weather delays, mechanical problems, and a plane rerouting.

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Hard Rock Hotel Daytona Beach

Record some great vacation hits at Daytona Beachs marquee beachfront destination, the Hard Rock Hotel. Rest and relax at your rhythm by reclining oceanside or spending some quality time in the full-service Rock Spa & Salon. With world-class restaurants and live entertainment.

Record some great vacation hits at Daytona Beachs marquee beachfront destination, the Hard Rock Hotel. Rest and relax at your rhythm by reclining oceanside or spending some quality time in the full-service Rock Spa & Salon. With world-class restaurants and live entertainment.

Nassau & Freeportports Of Call

Both Freeport and Nassau ports of call are similar in the sense that the ships are able to pull right into the pier. In addition, both Nassau and Freeport offer unforgettable fun activities and beautiful beaches.

Whether you like to swim with dolphins, try horse-back riding, go snorkeling, hang out at a world-renowned resort being treated like royalty all day, or you just want to interact with the locals and buy duty-free goods, you can do all that in Nassau and Freeport.

You may also want to know that the Nassau Port gives you access to the world famous, Atlantis Resort, a popular getaway destination on Paradise Island.

Carnival Fascination at JAXPORT

To experience an inclusive cruise from Jacksonville, you will sail with Carnival. To date, Carnival Cruise Line offers the only cruises to the Bahamas from Jacksonville.

Furthermore, there is only one Carnival Funship that sails from Jacksonville. Currently, that ship is the Carnival Ecstasy, but this is subject to change.

Although the Carnival Ecstasy is one of Carnivals smaller Fun Ships, you will not be disappointed.

The ship offers the same fabulous features that have made Carnival the most popular cruise line in the world.

Expect an active, high-energy and party atmosphere for the young and young at heart.

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Jacksonville Tours Shore Excursions Hotels

City Tours and Shore Excursions

• Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens: visit the JAX zoo and meet more than 20 mammals and reptiles species. Get close to 1600 animals in amazing landscape area.
• Fort Clinch State Park: it dates from 1847. The old seafront fort will guide you through the daily life of the Union Soldier in the era of the Civil War.
• Museum of Science and History: or MOSH. The exhibitions are interesting for visitor from all ages.
• Museum of Southern History: go back to the Antebellum period.
• Kingsley Plantation: if you visit this cotton plantation, you will feel like you are in the late years of the 18th century. This is the Sunshine States oldest plantation.
• Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens: along St Johns River you will find the amazing Ninah and Arthur Cummer artistick works collection. They shared the collection in 1961. Since then it rose from 60 to 5,000 works.
• Jacksonville Maritime Museum: great place to visit if you want to discover Florida naval vessels. There are a lot of interactive exhibitions and Titanic scale model.
• Anheuser-Busch Brewery Tour: chose between guided tour or own walk in the beer brewing process. If you are over 21, dont miss the Tasting Room.

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Find Your Perfect Cruise

That is it. You will notice that there are not many variations of sailings from JAXPORT. However, as you get ready to plan your family cruise vacation, there are two great things to note:

1. You will have the same fun on these cruises and,

2. Inclusive cruises from Jacksonville are available year-round.

Please return to this website to tell us about your experience when you get back and share your store at Carnival cruise review. Promise?

Thanks!

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Pre And Post Cruise Options In Jacksonville

Jacksonville Beach is a beautiful stretch of land set between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intra-Coastal Waterway. How nice it would be to spend a few days before your cruise in one of the many oceanfront hotels or resorts. Enjoy the wide sandy beaches, great shopping, and fabulous places to eat. And if thats not enough for you, Jacksonville has lots of great attractions.

Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens: This top-rated area attraction has more than 1500 animals and 1,000 species of plants. A not to be missed exhibit is the Range of the Jaguar, a two-time national award-winning South American area. Guests can walk along the 1,400-foot long boardwalk and see cheetahs, leopards, lions, and elephants in their large, open environment called the Plains of East Africa.

The Budweiser Brewery: There is a really cool free tour here that gives you an overview of the plant and how they do what they do In addition, the Beermaster Tour includes a visit to the Brew Hall, Primary Fermentation Cellar, Lager Cellar, Packaging Facility, Quality Assurance, and Finishing Cellar, including sampling directly from a Finishing Tank. For those over the age of 21 there is sampling in the Tour Center Hospitality Room where you can try the seasonal beers or new products.

For more information on cruises departing from Jacksonville, call Direct Line Cruises at 1-800-352-8088.

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Cruise Options To The Bahamas

Cruise passengers can choose from different itineraries. The four-day cruises make stops in Freeport, which is the second largest island in the Bahamas and is known for its national parks, underwater caves and Lucayan archaeological sites. In Freeport, tourists can go on a Jeep adventure, get up close to dolphins, or go sailing or kayaking. One of the four-day cruise itineraries also includes a day at Princess Cays, where passengers can rent private beach bungalows, go snorkeling, shop Bahamian crafts or tour the area on a dune buggy. Other four-day cruises have a one-day stop in Nassau, where passengers can swim with dolphins, sail on a catamaran and go snorkeling, or explore the capital city.

Those taking the five-day cruise can choose routes that stop in Nassau and Half Moon Cay or Nassau and Princess Cays. Half Moon Cay excursions include horseback riding, stingray experiences, snorkeling or going on a bike tour.

While rare, Carnival occasionally offers six or eight-day Bahamian cruises from Jacksonville. Cruise dates can be found on Carnivals website. Travelers coming to Florida should keep hurricane season in mind.

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Carnival Cruise Line Restarts Sailings From Jacksonville Florida

Carnival Cruise Line is officially back to sailing from Jacksonville, Florida.

The lines ship Carnival Spirit arrived into the city last week, and today welcomed her first passengers in nearly two years. The ships resumption in Florida also marks the first time it has sailed from the United States in nearly 10 years previously she had been sailing from Sydney, Australia since fall 2012.

To celebrate, Carnival Cruise Line and JAXPORT held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to kick off embarkation this morning.

The ship is kicking off a series of four and five-night Bahamas voyages, starting with todays five-night itinerary to Nassau and Carnival Corporations private destination on Eleuthera, Princess Cays.

Carnival Spirits Jacksonville program will also include port calls to other Bahamian destinations Freeport and Bimini.

In April, the vessel will depart on a 16-night repositioning cruise to the west coast. The Panama Canal itinerary will sail from Miami to Seattle, stopping in Jamaica, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Colombia.

After arriving in Seattle, Spirit will kick off a series of six to eight-night Alaska cruises to ports including Juneau, Skagway, Icy Strait Point, Ketchikan, and Victoria.

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Before resuming service today, Carnival Spirit underwent a dry dock in Dubai. In addition to undergoing routine maintenance, the ship was repainted with Carnivals new blue, red, and white livery.

What Cruise Lines Leave From Jacksonville Fl

The two cruise lines that depart from Jacksonville are Carnival Cruise Line and American Cruise Lines. One is a large ship and the other has small ships. And size isn’t their only difference. The ships are completely different in style and the places they go.

1. Carnival Cruise Line: the big ship makes 4- and 5-day cruises to the islands of the Bahamas from Jacksonville. Features include WaterWorks water park and Camp Carnival for kids. Adults will like the Serenity adults-only retreat, Spa Carnival, and live entertainment.

2. American Cruise Lines: these small ships offer 7-night “Great Rivers of Florida” cruises and 7-night “Historic South and Golden Isles” cruises out of Jacksonville. The ships may be small, but they have big staterooms, lounges, and observation decks. Other features include entertainment every evening, daily presentations about local topics, and complimentary cocktail hour. American’s ships are made in the USA, and carry an American crew.

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Reaching The Florida Cruise Port Near Orlando

If you fly into Orlando, the distance to Port Canaveral is 46 miles . Three other commercial airports service the area near Port Canaveral. Melbourne International Airport , Orlando Sanford International Airport , and Daytona Beach International Airport .

Miami Airport to Port Canaveral is 220 miles . And, the distance to Port Canaveral from Fort Lauderdale is 196 miles . The Tampa airport also provides another viable option. The distance from the Tampa International Airport to Port Canaveral is 136 miles .

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Carnival Cruise Ships With Itinerary Changes

Its certainly an evolving time at the moment as some cruise destinations either remain closed to the cruise industry or have implemented new complex requirements for cruise ships. Then there is also Key West, where there are calls to ban large cruise ships once again.

With all that, comes another round of itinerary adjustments for eight Carnival cruise ships. However, the impact is limited to just one sailing each. We take a look at each itinerary change and cover the new schedule for each, starting with the earliest sailing.

Carnival Horizons January 30, 2022 voyage out of PortMiami in Florida has been completely changed due to the removal of the call at Grand Cayman. Ocho Rios in Jamaica and Cozumel in Mexico have also been removed. The ship will now be calling at Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, Grand Turk in the Turks and Caicos islands and Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic.

Carnival Sunshines January 31 sailing out of Charleston in South Carolina has been adjusted with the cruise line dropping Nassau in the Bahamas. Instead, the ship will be visiting Bimini in the Bahamas and still calling at Princess Cays.

The Carnival Pride, February 5 eight-day sailing out of Tampa, Florida, has dropped the call at Grand Cayman and added Costa Maya in Mexico instead. The original calls to Costa Rica and the partial transit of the Panama Canal will remain.

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Dont Assume That Guys Offering Taxi Service Mean Private Rides

Heres a disembarkation tip that is particularly relevant for Florida cruise ports. If you have not pre-arranged a ride to the airport, either through the cruise line or a third-party service, you will step outside looking for a taxi. Now in many large cities, you will often find legitimate car service guys hanging around asking people if they want rides because something happened to their original fare.

If you step outside and get approached by someone who otherwise looks legitimate, be sure to ask if it is a private ride or a group taxi. Oftentimes, the term taxi may be used loosely, and its actually a shuttle van.

We missed a plane with this mistake. We had done the early morning walk off the ship so that we could catch an early flight in Miami. They loaded all of our luggage into the cargo trailer. We stepped into a van and there was already one guy in it. That was fine since we were all going to the airport. But what we did not realize was that the driver would proceed to drive by several other terminals looking for additional fares. And, since we werent full, the driver made a whole other loop around the port for a second try.

Turns out that the guy who first approached us worked for a shuttle company. And the shuttle company had someone stationed at each terminal to solicit folks and hustle them into the van. Although this team of folks was moving rather efficiently, it still added an extra 20-30 minutes that we hadnt expected.

Available Inclusive Cruises From Jacksonville

Note: Itineraries listed above are subject to change at anytime by the cruise line, which re-positions ships at will.

How to Book Inclusive CruisesFrom Jacksonville

Booking a cruise ship vacation from Jacksonville is easy.

If you have a Travel Agent, call that person. If you dont, use the search box below to find your cruise.

Or, you may visit our booking website, Petes Travel Center to book.

Finally, you may call the cruise line directly to book Jacksonville cruises.

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Where Is Jacksonville Cruise Port Located

The official address for Jaxport cruise terminal facility is:

• 9810 August Drive
• Jacksonville, FL 32226

The cruise terminal is located on the final bend of the St Johns River before it flows out into the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the commercial and military port and is considered a temporary cruise terminal. There are plans to build a dedicated cruise port terminal along the river in the near future, possibly at Dames Point.

From I-295 south, take exit 41 Zoo Parkway/Heckscher Drive. Turn left on August Drive and follow signs into the cruise terminal and onsite parking lot.

Carnival Ships Out Of Jacksonville

American Cruise Lines: these small ships offer 7-night Great Rivers of Florida cruises and 7-night Historic South and Golden Isles cruises out of Jacksonville. The ships may be small, but they have big staterooms, lounges, and observation decks.

Carnival Elation is the top-ranked ship sailing from Jacksonville. . note that the pool is pretty small, so it can be difficult to find a spot unless you head out early.

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Carnivals five-day Bahamas cruise, a round-trip from Jacksonville, features a day in Key West and an afternoon and evening in Nassau, as well as In Key West, the southernmost point of the continental United States, Carnival presents 16 shore excursions. See the sights of the island with a guided bike

The Carnival Organization of Jacksonville, Inc. invites you to STAY TO GET AWAY at our exciting two-day staycation right here in Northeast Florida. The Jacksonville Caribbean Festival features a live stage concert with music and cultural performances, until 9:00pm .

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Find Cheap, Last-Minute cruises from Jacksonville to your desired Departing from Jacksonville, Florida. Nov 10, 2018. carnival cruise Lines, Carnival Elation.

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