Caribbean, Bahamas & Bermuda
Southern Caribbean cruises
Southern Caribbean cruises reach the far end of the island chain: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao off the coast of Venezuela, and lush, mountainous islands such as Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, Dominica and Martinique. They’re far from Florida, so most sailings start in San Juan or run 8 to 14 nights from Fort Lauderdale or Miami. The ABC islands are dry and rarely hit by hurricanes, making this the Caribbean’s most dependable route in late summer and fall.
- Season: Year-round; best December to April. The ABC islands stay a good bet even in hurricane season (June 1 to November 30).
- Typical length: 7 nights from San Juan; 8 to 14 nights from Florida
Photo: UpstateNYer, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Season
- Year-round; best December to April. The ABC islands stay a good bet even in hurricane season (June 1 to November 30).
- Typical length
- 7 nights from San Juan; 8 to 14 nights from Florida
- Best months
- Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Dec
- Main departure ports
- San Juan, Fort Lauderdale, Miami
- Ports covered here
- 11
- Cruise lines
- 14 lines sail here
What a Southern Caribbean cruise is like
The Southern Caribbean is really two worlds. The ABC islands, Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, are low, sunny and semi-arid, with cactus, divi-divi trees, Dutch colonial towns and a trade wind that almost never stops. To the northeast rise the volcanic islands of the Lesser Antilles, from Guadeloupe and Dominica down through Martinique, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Grenada, plus flatter, coral-fringed Barbados: green, steep and wet, with rainforest, waterfalls, French Creole culture and spice plantations.
Distance shapes the trip. A 7-night sailing from San Juan can visit five or six islands with barely a sea day, while round trips from Florida need two or three sea days each way and usually run 10 to 14 nights; an ABC-only loop can fit into about 8 nights from Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Port Canaveral. Panama Canal partial transits often stop in Aruba or Curaçao and at Cartagena, Colombia, on the way.
This route suits travelers who have already done the Bahamas and Cozumel and want more variety: shore-diving Bonaire’s reefs, hiking to Dominica’s waterfalls, touring rum distilleries in Barbados and Martinique, or strolling across Willemstad’s floating bridge. Longer sailings attract a quieter, often older crowd. If time is short, a 7-night Eastern or Western Caribbean week is far easier to fit in.
Best time to cruise Southern Caribbean
- Jan: Best time to go
- Feb: Best time to go
- Mar: Best time to go
- Apr: Best time to go
- May: Good time to go
- Jun: Good time to go
- Jul: Good time to go
- Aug: Good time to go
- Sep: Shoulder season
- Oct: Shoulder season
- Nov: Good time to go
- Dec: Best time to go
- No regular sailings
- Shoulder season
- Good time to go
- Best time to go
Southern Caribbean in JanuaryBest time to go
January is dry across the Windward Islands, and the ABC islands are breezy, sunny and in the mid-80s °F. Curaçao opens its long Carnival season with the Tumba Festival, a music contest that crowns the year’s road march, and Aruba’s first parades follow. Barbados and San Juan departures are in full swing, and the first half of the month offers better fares than the holidays.
Southern Caribbean in FebruaryBest time to go
Carnival season peaks before Lent with Curaçao’s Gran Marcha and Aruba’s Grand Parade, while Martinique and Guadeloupe close their celebrations by burning King Vaval on Ash Wednesday. Rainfall is low from Grenada to Dominica, making February one of the best months for rainforest hikes. Expect full ships during school-break weeks.
Southern Caribbean in MarchBest time to go
March is the sunniest stretch on St. Lucia and Barbados, with low humidity and clear views of the Pitons. The ABC islands are at their driest, and their cactus-and-limestone landscapes look almost desert-like. Small-ship sailings through the Grenadines enjoy settled seas, and spring break affects these longer routes far less than short Florida trips.
Southern Caribbean in AprilBest time to go
The Bequia Easter Regatta fills Admiralty Bay with traditional island sailboats, a lovely sight on Grenadines voyages. April stays dry and warm across the region, and water temperatures off Bonaire and Curaçao are ideal for long snorkels. Some ships leave for Europe by month’s end, so San Juan schedules thin slightly.
Southern Caribbean in MayGood time to go
St. Lucia’s arts and music festival season usually lands in May, and the Windward Islands enjoy the last dry weeks before the rains. It’s hot and humid on the volcanic islands but still breezy in the ABCs. Fewer ships are based in San Juan, and fares on longer Florida sailings are noticeably lower.
Southern Caribbean in JuneGood time to go
The trade winds blow hardest around Aruba and Bonaire in early summer, which delights windsurfers at Lac Bay but can make tender stops and catamaran trips choppier. The rainy season begins in Grenada, St. Vincent and St. Lucia, usually as short, intense showers. Hurricane season starts, but the ABC islands rarely see storms.
Southern Caribbean in JulyGood time to go
Hurricane Beryl, which struck the Grenadines in early July 2024, showed that the southern Windwards aren’t immune to early storms. Even so, the ABC islands remain the region’s safest summer bet. Barbados builds toward its Crop Over festival with calypso tents and street parties, and family travel lifts demand on San Juan sailings.
Southern Caribbean in AugustGood time to go
Barbados crowns Crop Over with Grand Kadooment on the first Monday of August, and Grenada’s Spicemas carnival follows a week or so later. Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire are hot, sunny and largely outside the storm belt, so ABC itineraries are the top choice from Florida this month. Volcanic islands farther north are wetter and more exposed.
Southern Caribbean in SeptemberShoulder season
September is the wettest month on many of the volcanic islands, and Dominica, Martinique and Guadeloupe sit on the path of long-track Atlantic storms. The ABC islands, by contrast, are usually calm and dry, with the warmest, clearest water of the year around Bonaire. Very few ships sail from San Juan, and fares are at their lowest.
Southern Caribbean in OctoberShoulder season
Dominica hosts the World Creole Music Festival late in the month ahead of Independence on November 3, and St. Lucia celebrates Jounen Kwéyòl, Creole Day, in October. The ABC islands enter their short rainy season, typically brief showers. Storm risk lingers for the Windwards, and fall-season ships begin returning to Florida.
Southern Caribbean in NovemberGood time to go
Dominica marks Independence on November 3 and Barbados on November 30, both with parades and national dress. Drier weather returns to the Windwards toward the end of the month, and San Juan’s winter season gets underway. Early November sailings are good value; long Thanksgiving voyages from Fort Lauderdale fill with families and retirees.
Southern Caribbean in DecemberBest time to go
Aruba’s Christmas season brings gaita music and holiday lights to Oranjestad, and Curaçao sees out December 31 with pagara, enormous strings of firecrackers set off outside businesses. Dry, breezy weather settles across the region, ideal for hiking St. Lucia or Grenada. Holiday sailings are the priciest of the year, while early December is quiet.
Average weather across Southern Caribbean ports
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F (°C) | 8228 | 8228 | 8228 | 8328 | 8329 | 8429 | 8429 | 8530 | 8630 | 8530 | 8429 | 8328 |
| Low °F (°C) | 7926 | 7826 | 7826 | 7926 | 8127 | 8127 | 8228 | 8228 | 8328 | 8328 | 8228 | 8027 |
| Rain in (mm) | 1.436 | 1.026 | 1.229 | 1.538 | 2.359 | 3.077 | 3.282 | 3.794 | 3.999 | 4.8121 | 4.8121 | 2.052 |
| Daylight (hrs) | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 |
Southern Caribbean cruise highlights
- 1
Punda, Otrobanda and the floating bridge, Curaçao
Willemstad is split by St. Anna Bay into Punda and Otrobanda, joined by the swinging Queen Emma pontoon bridge. Wander past the pastel gables of the Handelskade, grab a local lunch at the Old Market, and visit the Mikvé Israel-Emanuel Synagogue, the oldest synagogue in continuous use in the Americas.
- 2
Eagle Beach and Arikok National Park, Aruba
Wide, white Eagle Beach, with its wind-bent fofoti trees, is a short taxi ride from the Oranjestad cruise terminal. For contrast, jeep tours bump through the cactus-and-boulder landscape of Arikok National Park to the Natural Pool, a rock-sheltered seawater basin on the wild north coast.
- 3
Shore diving and flamingos, Bonaire
Bonaire’s entire coastline is a protected marine park, and yellow-painted stones along the coast road mark dive and snorkel sites you can walk into straight from the shore. In the south, pink salt pans attract feeding flamingos, and rows of tiny stone slave huts are a sobering reminder of the island’s salt trade.
- 4
Harrison’s Cave and Carlisle Bay, Barbados
Trams carry visitors through the stalactite chambers of Harrison’s Cave in the island’s limestone heart. Closer to the Bridgetown port, Carlisle Bay’s sheltered water holds several shallow shipwrecks where snorkel boats stop to swim with sea turtles, and Mount Gay rum, with roots in the early 1700s, runs tastings nearby.
- 5
Soufrière and the Pitons, St. Lucia
Gros Piton and Petit Piton, twin volcanic peaks near the old French town of Soufrière, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Day trips combine a boat ride down the west coast with a soak in the warm mud pools at Sulphur Springs, Diamond Falls Botanical Gardens and a lunch with Piton views.
- 6
Waterfalls and whales, Dominica
Dominica calls itself the Nature Island and earns it: Trafalgar Falls are a short drive from Roseau, Titou Gorge offers a swim through a narrow canyon to a cascade, and Champagne Reef fizzes with volcanic bubbles. Boat tours look for the sperm whales that live off the west coast year-round.
- 7
Spice estates and Grand Anse, Grenada
The Spice Isle grows nutmeg, cocoa and cinnamon; tours visit spice and chocolate estates and the cool pools of Annandale Falls or Grand Etang lake. Grand Anse, a long arc of soft sand, is minutes from St. George’s, and snorkelers can explore the Underwater Sculpture Park at Molinere Bay.
- 8
Martinique and Guadeloupe
These French overseas regions run on euros, croissants and accras de morue, salt-cod fritters, and distill rhum agricole from fresh-pressed cane juice. In Martinique, visit Saint-Pierre, the former capital destroyed by Mont Pelée in 1902, or the Balata Garden; in Guadeloupe, the rainforest of Guadeloupe National Park on Basse-Terre.
Typical Southern Caribbean itineraries
- 1
7-night Southern Caribbean round trip from San Juan
Weekly island-hopping loops visit a mix such as St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia, Barbados and St. Maarten, or Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire with a sea day each way. Fly in a day early and spend an evening in Old San Juan.
- 2
8-night ABC islands from Florida
Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, with two or three sea days each way from Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Port Canaveral. A smart pick from August to October, since all three sit below the main storm belt.
- 3
10- to 14-night Southern Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale
Holland America, Celebrity and Princess combine the ABCs with Grenada, St. Lucia, Barbados, Antigua or Dominica, sometimes calling at Grand Turk or a Bahamas private island on the way. Plenty of unhurried sea days.
- 4
7-night small-ship voyages from Barbados
Sailing and boutique ships from lines such as Star Clippers, Windstar and Seabourn explore the Grenadines and Windward Islands, anchoring off Bequia and the Tobago Cays and calling at St. Lucia and Martinique.
Southern Caribbean ports of call
Aruba
Aruba is a dry, sunny Dutch Caribbean island outside the main hurricane belt, and ships dock right in downtown Oranjestad. It’s one of the best beach ports in the Caribbean: Eagle Beach and Palm Beach are 10 to 20 minutes away by taxi or bus. Off-road tours of Arikok National Park, shipwreck snorkeling and Dutch-Caribbean food fill out the day.
Curaçao
Curaçao’s capital, Willemstad, is one of the most photogenic cruise ports in the Caribbean, with candy-colored Dutch colonial buildings lining the harbor and a floating pontoon bridge linking its two halves. Ships dock within walking distance of the UNESCO-listed old town, and the island’s west coast has some of the region’s best small beaches and snorkeling.
Bonaire
Bonaire is a small, quiet Dutch Caribbean island famous for some of the best shore snorkeling and diving in the world, with a protected marine park wrapping the entire coastline. Ships dock in the walkable little capital, Kralendijk, and visitors snorkel straight from the shore, take a water taxi to uninhabited Klein Bonaire, or tour the flamingo-filled salt pans of the south.
Barbados
Barbados is a polished, easygoing island where ships dock at Bridgetown’s deep-water harbor, a short ride from Carlisle Bay’s calm beach and shipwreck snorkeling. Visitors come for powdery west and south coast beaches, the birthplace of rum at Mount Gay, the underground stream cave at Harrison’s Cave and the wild Atlantic scenery at Bathsheba. It’s also a busy cruise homeport.
St. Lucia
St. Lucia is a steep, rainforest-covered island whose twin volcanic spires, the Pitons, are among the most famous sights in the Caribbean. Ships dock in Castries, the capital, and most visitors head south along the coast by road or catamaran to Soufrière for the Pitons, the Sulphur Springs mud baths and Diamond Falls.
Grenada
Grenada, the Spice Isle, is a green, hilly island where ships dock in St. George’s, one of the prettiest harbor towns in the Caribbean. It’s a short ride to the 2-mile (3 km) sweep of Grand Anse Beach, and popular trips include the Underwater Sculpture Park, rainforest waterfalls, and nutmeg and chocolate estates.
Dominica
Dominica is the Caribbean’s wild, mountainous nature island, with rainforest, waterfalls, hot springs and resident sperm whales instead of big resorts or white-sand beaches. Most ships dock in the small capital, Roseau, a short drive from Trafalgar Falls, the bubbling snorkel site at Champagne Reef and the swim-through canyon of Titou Gorge.
Martinique
Martinique is a lush, mountainous French island where ships dock in or near Fort-de-France, the capital. The highlights are rhum agricole distilleries, the volcano-ruined town of Saint-Pierre below Mount Pelée, the treetop walkways of the Balata Garden and southern beaches like Les Salines, all wrapped in French and Creole food and culture.
San Juan
Departure port
Antigua
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is a butterfly-shaped French island in the Southern Caribbean, and ships dock in Pointe-à-Pitre, its main city, right by the markets and the striking Memorial ACTe museum. A port day here can mean rum distilleries and white-sand beaches on flat Grande-Terre, or rainforest waterfalls in the national park on mountainous Basse-Terre.
Cartagena
Cartagena, on Colombia’s Caribbean coast, is one of the most beautiful colonial cities in the Americas, with a walled old town of flower-draped balconies, plazas and churches that’s a UNESCO World Heritage site. Ships dock at a cruise terminal about 15 minutes from the walls, and a day here usually combines the Old City, the massive Castillo San Felipe and the street art of Getsemaní.
More ports in this region
Where Southern Caribbean cruises start
Cruise lines that sail Southern Caribbean
Southern Caribbean cruise tips
- Pick the right fly-in port. San Juan gets you the most islands per week; Barbados is where many small and luxury ships start; Fort Lauderdale and Miami work if you’d rather avoid flying and don’t mind more sea days.
- Bring euros or a card for Martinique and Guadeloupe. US dollars are widely accepted on the ABC islands and most English-speaking islands, often alongside the local currency.
- Mountain roads on St. Lucia, Dominica and Grenada are narrow and slow, so a 20-mile trip can take an hour. Ship tours or reputable drivers with a set return time are worth it here.
- The trade winds are strong in the ABCs. Hold on to hats on deck, tie up loose beach gear, and expect choppy catamaran rides; the shore reefs of Bonaire and Curaçao are calmest on the leeward west side.
- Bonaire and Aruba restrict reef-harming sunscreens, so pack a mineral or reef-safe one, and never stand on coral while snorkeling.
Southern Caribbean cruises: FAQs
What islands are in the Southern Caribbean?
Usually Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, plus Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, Dominica, Martinique, Guadeloupe and St. Vincent. Itineraries also often include Antigua and St. Kitts, and Panama Canal or longer routes add Cartagena, Colombia.
When is the best time to cruise the Southern Caribbean?
December to April, when the volcanic islands are driest and the ABCs are breezy and sunny. The ABC islands also work well from June to October because they lie south of the usual hurricane tracks.
How long is a Southern Caribbean cruise?
Seven nights from San Juan or Barbados, about 8 nights for an ABC-only loop from Florida, and 10 to 14 nights for routes from Fort Lauderdale that combine the ABCs with the Windward Islands.
Are Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao outside the hurricane belt?
Mostly, yes. They sit far enough south that direct hurricane hits are rare, though nearby storms can bring rough seas or squalls. That’s why cruise lines often favor ABC itineraries during the peak months of August to October.
Do I need a passport for a Southern Caribbean cruise?
It’s strongly recommended. US citizens on round trips from San Juan or Florida can generally use a birth certificate and photo ID, but sailings that start in Barbados require a passport, and you’d need one to fly home from any foreign island. Canadians should carry one.
Which cruise line is best for the Southern Caribbean?
Celebrity, Holland America and Princess run the most long Southern Caribbean voyages from Fort Lauderdale. Royal Caribbean and others sail weekly loops from San Juan, and Star Clippers, Windstar and Seabourn are the picks for the Grenadines’ small harbors.
Updated November 2026 by the BookMyDreamCruise editorial team. How we research and fact-check.
Sources: Wikidata, NASA POWER climate data.