Set Sail from California for Hawaii, Alaska, and Beyond

Many people don't know that many new ships are home porting here in California from San Francisco and Los Angeles.  It's more affordable to take a cruise you can just drive to.  Many itineraries will fit anyone's schedules from 3 days to 28 days.  New ships include the Carnival Panorama (Long Beach), Discovery Princess (Los Angeles), Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas (Los Angeles), Norwegian Bliss (Los Angeles), Royal Caribbean's Ovation of the Seas (Seattle) and Disney Wonder (San Diego) which replaces the smaller Disney Magic.  Cunard's Queen Anne will be sailing for Alaska from Vancouver as well as its maiden World Cruise starting from London in 2025.

Here are some ideas:

California Coastal Cruises - Can be round trip or one way up the west coast, can be as short as 4 days; typically around March/April and Sept/October, also bookending Alaska Season

Hawaii Cruises - Can be round trip or one way; typically book-end the Alaska Season so either availability in early May or late September

Mexico Cruises - Typically round trip, starting from 3 days to 7 days

Alaska - Can be round trip from Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle; the most scenic will be a one way either north or south bound from Vancouver.  For Alaska since it is so short a season, book at least a year in advance to get the best cabin locations and pricing.