Sailing the Seas: Cruising from Connecticut

By Anastasia Mills Healy

If you don’t know anyone who’s been on a cruise to the Caribbean, the Bahamas or Bermuda, then you need to get out more. It’s by far the world’s biggest cruise market, with nearly 13 million passengers in 2023, according to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA). Especially from the East Coast, a cruise vacation to this region is easy and can be cost effective. 

Nearly three-quarters of U.S. cruise passengers are on Caribbean itineraries; Alaska and the Mediterranean each come in as single digit percentages, and the rest of the world completes the pie chart with 17%. AAA projects 19 million Americans will go on a cruise in 2025, which will be the third year of record cruise passenger volume. Globally, nearly 40 million people are expected to be cruising annually in 2027, and the industry is keeping up. There are 56 more ships due for delivery by 2028. 

You might be wondering how we got here after the logistical horrors and massive financial losses cruise ships experienced during the pandemic. The simple answer is that cruise travelers are an enthusiastic bunch. Of all past cruisers, 82% intend to cruise again; 12% cruise twice a year and 10% take between three and five cruises a year. Passenger volume now exceeds pre-pandemic numbers.

Why do Americans like to cruise so much? The top reasons cited are being able to visit multiple destinations without the burdens of planning logistics and dragging luggage around, and the value for the money. 

Trends in cruising

The average cruiser is 46 but the percentage of passengers under 40 is increasing. Children, Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers are close to evenly distributed; those born 1944 and earlier make up 10% of cruise passengers. The cruise line, dates of travel and the itinerary influence the passenger make up, with long cruises not during school vacations skewing older. Some lines don’t accept children at all like Virgin Voyages and Viking River Cruises.

Multi-generational cruise travel is popular, with 30% of families traveling with at least two generations. Pick the right ship and itinerary for your needs and everyone, regardless of age, will have a great time with minimal stress. 

Shorter Caribbean cruises are rising in popularity. As recently as 2023, only 2% of Caribbean cruises were two to five days; now that number is 18%.

Interest in sustainable travel is becoming more prevalent. Many cruise lines have done away with single-use plastic and are pursuing net-zero emissions by 2050. Some are moving towards mitigations like biofuels, fuel cells and fuel flexibility. Lines that stand out for their sustainability progress include Hurtigruen and Aurora Expeditions. 

Expeditions are the fastest-growing sector of cruise tourism, increasing 71% from 2019 to 2023. Expedition ships carry fewer than 500 passengers and emphasize nature, adventure and education over shipboard amusements. They travel to destinations like Antarctica, the Arctic and the Galapagos Islands.

Embarkation ports in driving distance 

In Connecticut, we’re lucky to have multiple cruise embarkation points within driving distance. From Boston’s cruise port, you could head north in August 2025 on a seven-night Princess cruise that stops in Maine and Atlantic Canada or take a five-night Bermuda cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line in April 2026, both with prices starting around $900. 

New York-area cruises include 10 nights on an MSC ship for $733 departing from Brooklyn in April 2026 and ending in Lisbon, and a 13-night Celebrity sailing to Greenland and Iceland from Bayonne in June 2026 for $2,450. Norwegian has a 12-night New York roundtrip Southern Caribbean itinerary in February 2026, starting at $1,375. 

Cruise Critic is a comprehensive resource for consumer cruise information.

Fly to ports nonstop from Connecticut

The world’s three busiest cruise ports are in Florida: Miami, Port Canaveral and Fort Lauderdale. Port Canaveral is the one to choose if you want to combine your cruise with a Disney or Universal Park visit as it’s about an hour from Orlando, whereas Fort Lauderdale and Miami are more than a three-hour drive.

Both Tweed and Bradley have nonstop flights to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville, which all have cruise ports. You can also get to San Juan from both; New Orleans from Tweed, and Bermuda and Miami, among other ports, from Bradley.

Florida cruises are big business for Disney Cruise Line, which operates nearly constant back-to-back, three-night Bahamas roundtrip cruises from Port Canaveral that begin at about $800. Celebrity has a seven-night Western Caribbean/Mexico sailing from Tampa in mid-December 2025 beginning at $634 and Regent covers a lot of area on a 16-night sailing from Miami that includes a Panama Canal crossing, Central American and Mexican ports, and ends in Los Angeles for $9,500.

Carnival operates many affordable four-to-seven-night Mexico and Central America cruises year round from New Orleans, providing a great opportunity to get a dose of the Big Easy’s culture and cuisine.

Anastasia Mills Healy is a Greenwich-based travel writer and author of 100 Things to Do in Connecticut Before You Die and Secret Connecticut: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure.