Explora Journeys — Caribbean Celebrations and Island Horizons — 16 Nights — Luxury

San Juan

Settle into one of the Caribbean's great hotels and let San Juan begin on your own terms. The city, the beach, the rum — all of it is right there.

Accommodation: Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, San Juan

San Juan

A full day at your leisure in Puerto Rico's capital. Old San Juan, the Condado beachfront, the rainforest, the restaurants — the day is yours.

Accommodation: Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, San Juan

San Juan

Transfer to the San Juan Cruise Port Terminal and board EXPLORA III. Embarkation runs 12:00–14:00, departure at 17:00. As the old fortifications of El Morro shrink in the wake behind you, the Caribbean stretches ahead — nine countries, sixteen nights, and a New Year at sea.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, San Juan

Antigua has 365 beaches — one for each day of the year, the island claims. The colonial capital of St. John's, the restored Georgian naval base of English Harbour, Shirley Heights and its panoramic views over the bay — Antigua rewards those who venture beyond the waterfront. Shore excursions include Ziplines through the Rainforest Canopy and an Accessible Adventure.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, US Virgin Islands

Pointe-à-Pitre

Guadeloupe is shaped like a butterfly, the two wings joined at a narrow strait. French in its café culture and boulangeries, Caribbean in everything else. The market at La Darse is fragrant with vanilla, rum and fresh sugarcane. The Chutes du Carbet waterfall crashes through the forest of Basse-Terre. Shore excursions include the Rum Distillery and Mangrove Forest Tour.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Pointe-à-Pitre

Cruz Bay (Saint John)

Two thirds of Saint John is protected as a US National Park — the trails through its tropical forest are undeveloped, the beaches uncrowded, and the snorkelling at Trunk Bay is among the finest in the Caribbean. Shore excursions include Kayak and Snorkel off Cas Cay and a Safari-Bus visit to scenic Saint John.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Cruz Bay (Saint John)

New Year's Eve Fireworks, Puerto Rico | Overnight | Arrival 23:30 (31 Dec), Departure 02:00 (1 Jan). EXPLORA III anchors off the coast of Puerto Rico as midnight approaches, and the New Year begins over the Caribbean — under an open sky, at sea, surrounded by music and the light of fireworks reflected on dark water.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, US Virgin Islands

Samaná

The Samaná Peninsula is one of the Caribbean's last genuinely wild places — lush with coconut palms and cacao trees, threaded with rivers and waterfalls. Between January and March, humpback whales gather in the bay to calve and sing. Shore excursions include the El Limón Waterfall Hike and a Whale Watching Excursion.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Samaná

Puerto Plata

The Silver Coast — Puerto Plata's Victorian heritage district, the cable car to the summit of Mount Isabel de Torres, the Amber Museum with its thirty-million-year-old specimens. Shore excursions include the Heritage Scenic Railway and a Coastal Sailing Experience.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Puerto Plata

A full day at sea in the Caribbean — the water a shade of blue that has no precise name, the horizon unbroken in every direction. The ship's restaurants, pools and spa are yours.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, US Virgin Islands

Miami

South Beach is only the beginning. Miami also has the Wynwood Walls murals, the food halls of the Design District, the Cuban sandwiches and café cortadito of Little Havana. Shore excursions include a Cultural and Architectural Miami Adventure and an Everglades Airboat Experience.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Miami

Miami

Two full days on open water heading south and east toward the islands. These are the days when the ship reveals itself most fully — the rhythm of meals, sea and sky that Explora Journeys has built its philosophy around.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Miami

At Sea (continued)

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, US Virgin Islands

Cruz Bay (Saint John)

A second visit to Saint John and reason to see what the first didn't allow for. The reef at Trunk Bay, the Reef Bay Trail through the forest, the cays off the coast — Saint John rewards returning.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Cruz Bay (Saint John)

Gustavia

Saint Barths is the Caribbean island where the French decided to do things properly — the food, the wine, the fashion, the architecture all reflecting a culture that takes pleasure seriously. Gustavia's tiny harbour is lined with superyachts and the boutiques that service them.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Gustavia

St. John's

Antigua again, and different again. English Harbour and Nelson's Dockyard — a restored Georgian naval base and UNESCO World Heritage site — with restaurants overlooking the same water where the British fleet once provisioned for the battles that shaped the Atlantic world.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, St. John's

Road Town (Tortola)

The capital of the British Virgin Islands is a working town rather than a resort — which is precisely what makes it interesting. The Callwood Rum Distillery has been producing rum in the same stone building since the eighteenth century. Sir Francis Drake Channel is one of the great sailing waters of the world.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Road Town (Tortola)

Basseterre

Saint Kitts was formed by volcanoes and still shows it — the peak of Mount Liamuiga rises through cloud forest to a crater that rewards the climb. The Brimstone Hill Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was once called the Gibraltar of the West Indies. Shore excursions include the Heritage Scenic Railway and a Rainforest Zip-line.

Accommodation: EXPLORA III, an Explora Journeys vessel, Basseterre

San Juan

The city you left sixteen nights ago is waiting, the old fort unchanged at the harbour entrance. Disembark and transfer to the Condado Vanderbilt.

Accommodation: Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, San Juan

San Juan

Your final morning in Puerto Rico, to spend as you choose. Transfer to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport for your onward journey.

Accommodation: Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, San Juan