What you can do in port in the Caribbean

Ships dock on the west side, at the international pier or at Punta Langosta, beside San Miguel.

The west-side water is calm and about 80°F. A boat from those piers drifts over Palancar Reef, a coral wall where you can see parrotfish and, sometimes, a turtle. The east side of the island is rocky and the water is rough, and the snorkel boats do not use it. In San Miguel you can order grilled snapper, or ceviche, raw fish cured in lime.

Most ships tender into George Town, or use a pier when one is available.

A taxi from the town center to the pale sands of Seven Mile Beach takes about 15 to 20 minutes. A boat ride reaches Stingray City, a shallow sandbar where southern stingrays swim right up to the boat.

The sailing names the pier: Falmouth, Ocho Rios, or Montego Bay.

Dunn’s River Falls is at Ocho Rios. The ride from that pier is short. Falmouth’s pier is beside the town, and you can walk the Georgian streets. Dunn’s River is not in Falmouth.

The pier is a built port at Mahahual.

You can walk from the terminal to the town and the beach, or take a short shuttle. The water on this coast is warm. A boat takes you to the reef. You do not swim there from the ship.

Nassau

Ships dock at Prince George Wharf, downtown.

Ships dock at Prince George Wharf. Walk out through Festival Place onto Woodes Rogers Walk, then left onto Bay Street. The straw market, a covered hall of woven bags, hats, and carvings, is about five minutes from the gate. Parliament Square, the pink colonial buildings, is a couple of minutes farther along Bay Street. Junkanoo Beach is about 10 to 15 minutes west along the water, past the British Colonial. Cable Beach is on the north shore. A taxi from the pier takes about 15 to 20 minutes, and the sand is pale. A short taxi across the bridge reaches Paradise Island. A conch fritter is chopped conch fried in a seasoned batter.

Ships use Havensight or Crown Bay.

Charlotte Amalie has old warehouses and the 99 Steps. You can walk there from Havensight. From Crown Bay the ride is short. The ride over the hill to Magens Bay takes about 20 to 30 minutes. The beach is a long curve of pale sand, and the water on that north shore is usually calm.

Ships use the pier at Pointe Blanche or tender into Philipsburg.

Great Bay Beach is in front of the town. Orient Bay is on the east side, about 30 minutes by taxi, and the water there is the Atlantic, so it is rougher than the bay in town. Maho Beach, beside the airport, is about 15 to 20 minutes from Philipsburg.

Some cruises start at Fort-de-France, when MSC Opera or a smaller French ship is based there. Other ships only stop. They dock at Fort-de-France, not at the small coves down the coast.

A bakery in town sells a croissant, layered dough of flour and butter, or a pain au chocolat, that dough around a bar of chocolate. The covered market on Rue Isambert sells an accra, salted cod mashed with herbs and fried. You drive from this pier to the coves. They are not beside the dock.

Ships dock at St. John’s, at Heritage Quay or the deep-water harbor.

Nelson’s Dockyard is a Georgian naval yard at English Harbour, about 30 to 40 minutes across the island. Dickenson Bay, on the west, has pale sand and calm water, about 15 minutes from St. John’s. Half Moon Bay, on the east, has reef and more surge. In St. John’s you can order fungi and saltfish, cornmeal cooked with salted cod.

San Juan

Ships dock beside the blue cobblestone streets of Old San Juan.

From the pier you can walk up to El Morro and the cathedral. If you prefer a beach, a short taxi ride east brings you to Condado, which faces the open Atlantic. In town you can order mofongo, mashed fried plantain with garlic.

These islands are on a southern routing, usually from San Juan, or on a longer loop from Florida.

They are not on a seven-night western Caribbean cruise with Cozumel. In Aruba the ship docks at Oranjestad. A taxi from there goes up the west coast to Eagle Beach. The sand is pale, and the water is calm. In Bonaire the reef starts close to shore, which is why people snorkel from the coast. In Curaçao the ship docks at Willemstad. You can walk to the Handelskade, the colored waterfront, and the Queen Emma Bridge swings open for ships.

Perfect Day at CocoCay and Castaway Cay are stops the cruise line built.

The ship docks at a sheltered cove. The water is warm and calm. There is no town and no local kitchen. The grill serves the ship’s burgers, not island food.