Top 10 Best Cruise Ship Destinations

Island-hopping from Santorini to Mykonos to Crete by sea lets you experience 5,000 years of civilization without unpacking more than once.

Calving glaciers, breaching humpback whales, and bald eagles circling above forested islands deliver a wildlife spectacle that makes Disneyland look like a parking lot.

St. Thomas, San Juan, and the Bahamas in a single sailing remains the gateway cruise that hooks first-timers, even if seasoned cruisers call it basic.

Small expedition ships are the only way to properly explore Darwin's archipelago, where sea lions nap on your tender boat and blue-footed boobies pose shamelessly.

Crossing the Drake Passage earns you the right to stand on a continent with no permanent residents, watching penguin colonies that stretch to the horizon on ice shelves older than civilization.

Barcelona, Marseille, Rome, and Naples in a week delivers more history per nautical mile than any itinerary, though the port crowds test your patience at every stop.

Cherry blossom season sailings from Tokyo to Kyoto via Hiroshima combine onsen culture with temple visits and sushi so fresh the fish was swimming that morning.

Nearly 2,000 limestone karsts rising from emerald waters create a seascape so surreal that overnight junk boat cruises here feel like sailing through a painting.

Polar bears outnumber humans in this Arctic archipelago where expedition cruises navigate pack ice and visit the Global Seed Vault — civilization's ultimate insurance policy.

Island-hopping from Santorini to Mykonos to Crete by sea lets you experience 5,000 years of civilization without unpacking more than once.

Calving glaciers, breaching humpback whales, and bald eagles circling above forested islands deliver a wildlife spectacle that makes Disneyland look like a parking lot.

St. Thomas, San Juan, and the Bahamas in a single sailing remains the gateway cruise that hooks first-timers, even if seasoned cruisers call it basic.

Small expedition ships are the only way to properly explore Darwin's archipelago, where sea lions nap on your tender boat and blue-footed boobies pose shamelessly.

Crossing the Drake Passage earns you the right to stand on a continent with no permanent residents, watching penguin colonies that stretch to the horizon on ice shelves older than civilization.

Barcelona, Marseille, Rome, and Naples in a week delivers more history per nautical mile than any itinerary, though the port crowds test your patience at every stop.

Cherry blossom season sailings from Tokyo to Kyoto via Hiroshima combine onsen culture with temple visits and sushi so fresh the fish was swimming that morning.

Nearly 2,000 limestone karsts rising from emerald waters create a seascape so surreal that overnight junk boat cruises here feel like sailing through a painting.

Polar bears outnumber humans in this Arctic archipelago where expedition cruises navigate pack ice and visit the Global Seed Vault — civilization's ultimate insurance policy.