African Shores To Roman Splendor

Walvis Bay is a port town on Namibia's coast. Its lagoon flamingos, Dune 7 and the nearby desert are the main sights.

Príncipe is the smaller of São Tomé and Príncipe’s main islands in the Gulf of Guinea. Expedition and small-ship calls typically tender to local landings; rainforest trails and coastal villages are the draw. Facilities are limited—follow the ship’s landing plan.

Sekondi-Takoradi is a port city in Ghana. Cape Coast and Elmina castles are excursions.

Banjul is the capital of The Gambia at the mouth of the Gambia River. Cruise ships use harbour facilities when scheduled; Albert Market and Arch 22 are typical city stops from the pier.

Mindelo is the main town of São Vicente in Cape Verde, known as the islands' cultural capital and for its music. Colourful colonial buildings, the fish market and Monte Verde views are the 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.

Almería is a port city in Andalusia. The Alcazaba fortress and the Cabo de Gata natural park are the draws.

Explanada palms, Santa Bárbara views, or MARQ archaeology.

Alicante is a Mediterranean port city on Spain's Costa Blanca, with a palm-lined promenade and town beach near the harbour. Santa Bárbara Castle on Mount Benacantil gives the views, and the old quarter of Santa Cruz sits below it.

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.

Sète is a Mediterranean port town in Occitania, crossed by canals. Its seafood, canals and Mont Saint-Clair viewpoint are the highlights.

Monte Carlo is the best-known quarter of Monaco, home to the Casino and grand hotels. The Prince's Palace, the old town on the Rock and the Oceanographic Museum are close by.

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.

Fort walls, renewed archaeological galleries, medieval squares.

Civitavecchia is Rome's port, and it is not in Rome. It is about eighty kilometres northwest on the coast, roughly an hour and a quarter by train from Termini, and the town itself is a working port with a fortress and not much else. Almost everyone treats it as a transfer rather than a place.