The Caribbean still reigns supreme when it comes to cruising, but there’s a whole new world to explore. Classic ports such as the Bahamas are recovering, new itineraries are opening up in Japan for the 2020 Olympics, and luxury options abound in the Seychelles. Here are eight places to prioritize in 2020.
1. Japan
Remember when Olympic organizers in Rio de Janeiro slept on cruise ships and called them “floating hotels”? Tokyo will do the same for its turn in the spotlight. From July 24 to Aug. 9, the city is chartering at least one large ship to serve as a floating hotel in response to a shortage of rooms on dry land. But you’d be better off going a more traditional route: Two of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.’s Shanghai-based ships, Spectrum of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas, will offer itineraries that overnight at Tokyo’s new terminal. Passengers with tickets can easily get to events and then sail on to other, less frenetic parts of the country.
Windstar Cruises LLC is betting that the summer’s television coverage will drum up tourism interest for Japan in general, so it’s skipping the marquee games and sending its 312-passenger, all-suite Star Breeze to the country for a series of temple- and garden-centric sailings this fall. But the most peaceful way to sail might be a three-night trip on Guntu, a 38-passenger design ship that’s like a floating ryokan on the Seto Inland Sea, complete with traditional open-air onsen baths in some of its suites.
The trip we’re most likely to book: Star Breeze 10-night sailing, from $3,599 per person.