Santos to Rio de Janeiro, Buzios, Salvador de Bahia, Maceió, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tangier, Barcelona, La Goulette, Palermo, Naples & Livorno

One view at a time.

Rio de Janeiro cruise calls use the Píer Mauá passenger complex on Guanabara Bay near downtown. Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf, and Copacabana require timed transport from the pier; allow buffer for traffic and security queues on busy days.

Búzios is a resort peninsula east of Rio de Janeiro with more than twenty beaches. Ships anchor and tender in, and the day is about the beaches and the Rua das Pedras strip of shops and restaurants.

Mercado crafts, Bahia’s music, or Carnival history.

Salvador was Brazil's first capital and is the heart of Afro-Brazilian culture, with music, food and festivals to match. Its colonial Pelourinho district is UNESCO-listed and linked to the lower town and port by the Lacerda Elevator.

Jaraguá history, a coastal pause or city craft stalls

Maceió is the capital of the Brazilian state of Alagoas, known for clear natural pools formed by coral reefs off its beaches. The seafront at Pajuçara and the reef pools reached by raft at low tide are the main draws.

City squares, tropical planting, historic streets.

Santa Cruz docks in the middle of Tenerife's capital, so the market and the auditorium are a walk. The island's real sight is inland and above: Teide, the highest peak in Spain, reached by a road that climbs through cloud into a lunar caldera.

Medina browsing, Kasbah collections, or the American Legation.

Tangier is a Moroccan port on the Strait of Gibraltar with a long history as a crossroads between Europe and Africa. The medina, the kasbah and views across the strait are the main draws, and the Caves of Hercules lie a drive west.

Port Vell waterfront, maritime history, Gothic Quarter streets.

Barcelona is the busiest cruise port in the Mediterranean and one of the few where the city genuinely rewards arriving early. The terminals are at Moll Adossat, out along the breakwater past the old harbour, close to the bottom of La Rambla but not walkable from it with luggage.

Bardo mosaics, a Carthage site, or Sidi Bou Saïd streets.

La Goulette is the port of Tunis, Tunisia's capital. The ruins of ancient Carthage, the clifftop village of Sidi Bou Said and the Bardo Museum's mosaics are the usual excursions.

Baroque streets, archaeology, an old harbor.

Palermo docks close to the centre of a city that rewards walking more than touring: Arab-Norman churches, three street markets and a baroque core that has not been polished for visitors. Monreale and its cathedral mosaics are twenty minutes uphill and are the one thing worth leaving town for.

Spaccanapoli streets, archaeological galleries, castle views.

Naples docks at the Stazione Marittima in the middle of the city, which is unusually convenient and makes the day a choice rather than a transfer. Pompeii is half an hour by train, Capri is a ferry, and Naples itself is the best street food in Italy if you would rather stay put.

Seaside terrace, covered market halls, canal-side streets.

Livorno is a working Tuscan port and almost nobody stays in it: this is the call for Florence, about ninety minutes away, and Pisa, about thirty. That is the decision, and it is a real one, because Florence in a single shore day is a rushed and expensive pleasure.