Long Beach, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Vancouver. Two of them you can drive to from the West Valley in a day. Pick a port below and you will see the sailings that are actually leaving it.
Carnival · Mexico and Hawaii · sails all year
The cheapest door into cruising in America, and about six hours from the West Valley on the I‑10. Carnival keeps Panorama and Radiance here. The short runs go to Catalina Island and Ensenada; the nine‑day loop goes down the Mexican Riviera to Cabo, Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta. Long‑stay parking is at the pier, so you leave the car where the ship is.
Disney and Norwegian · Mexico and Catalina · autumn to spring
The easiest embarkation on the coast and the prettiest — the terminal is downtown on the Embarcadero, walking distance from the Gaslamp Quarter. About five and a half hours from the West Valley on the I‑8, with no mountain passes. Disney bases a ship here in the cooler months; Norwegian runs the longer Mexican Riviera loops.
Carnival and Princess · Alaska, Mexico and Hawaii · sails all year
The only West Coast port where leaving is the attraction: every ship sails out under the Golden Gate Bridge with the whole passenger list on deck for it. Pier 27 is on the Embarcadero near Fisherman’s Wharf. Carnival and Princess split the year here — Alaska in the summer, Mexico and the long Hawaii crossings the rest of it.
Norwegian, Princess, Carnival and Cunard · Alaska · May to September
America’s Alaska port, and the practical one. Sailings leave Seattle all summer, call at Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan, stop in Victoria on the way home because the law requires a foreign port, and bring you back to the airport you flew into — which is why most people choose Seattle over Vancouver. Two terminals, so check which one your ticket names.
Holland America, Princess, Celebrity and Disney · Alaska · May to September
Canada Place, under the white sails on the downtown waterfront, is the loveliest cruise terminal on this coast and the traditional start of the Alaska season. Vancouver is where the one‑way Gulf of Alaska voyages tie up — the ones that connect to the Denali land tours. You will need a passport, and the city is worth a day of its own.
Two things worth knowing before you book.
Fly in the night before. Every ship from these ports sails in the afternoon and none of them wait. A cancelled morning flight is the commonest way people miss a cruise, and insurance rarely covers a sailing missed because of a late aircraft. If you are driving to Long Beach or San Diego, the unhurried way is to go over the day before and stay near the terminal.
Take a passport. Every Alaska itinerary calls in Canada, and a passport is required outright if you fly into or out of Vancouver. Sailings to Ensenada or the Mexican Riviera that start and end at the same American port may accept a birth certificate and photo identification — but that will not get you home by air if you miss the ship in Cabo. Confirm what you need with the cruise line before you sail.
Each port has its ships, its itineraries and what they were costing when we last checked in our full guide: West Coast Cruises, part of The Cruise Companion in the Guild Travel Library. See also Alaska Cruises and Mexican Riviera Cruises.
Curated by Our Guild Explorers · October 2026
Destinations Guild is an independent travel company and a proud partner of Trip.com and of CruiseDirect. The links on this page go to CruiseDirect, who take the booking; you pay the same price and the Guild earns a small commission that keeps our guides free. Ships and seasons change — confirm the ship, the itinerary and the fare with the cruise line or CruiseDirect before you book.