Florida is widely regarded as the cruise capital of the world, with some of the busiest cruise ports anywhere. Between Port Miami, Port Everglades, and Port Canaveral, I rarely need to travel far to cruise as a Florida resident.
In this way, cruising from Florida is extremely convenient and budget-friendly for me. Like any Florida resident, I am fortunate to have easy access to some of the world’s newest, biggest, and most advanced cruise ships. That said, I never limit myself to just sailing from Florida.
I am always eager to explore new destinations, even if it means flying across the world for a bucket-list sailing. For example, I recently flew all the way to Singapore for a 12-night cruise through Asia, and last fall, I traveled to the Land Down Under for an Australian cruise from Sydney. I've even traveled all the way to Mauritius for a once-in-a-lifetime safari cruise across South Africa.
While Royal Caribbean has a heavy presence in Florida, the cruise line operates globally with sailings all over the world. That's why I was especially excited when Royal Caribbean announced Ovation of the Seas would be sailing from Los Angeles, California as the biggest ship to ever sail from the port.
After sailing on every ship in Royal Caribbean’s fleet, I’ve found the Quantum class to be one of my favorites. These cruise ships feature a sleek, modern design, plenty of amenities, and often sail to more exciting destinations. I’ve sailed on nearly every Quantum class ship in Royal Caribbean’s fleet, so I was especially excited to finally check Ovation of the Seas off my list.
Additionally, I hadn’t cruised from the West Coast in more than 15 years. In fact, my last West Coast cruise was in 2008 on the now-retired Monarch of the Seas from San Diego. Needless to say, I was overdue for a West Coast cruise! And I couldn’t resist a great deal on a 5-night cruise to Cabo San Lucas for one of Ovation of the Seas' inaugural sailings from Los Angeles.
Even better, this itinerary featured an overnight port stay in Cabo San Lucas, which is one of my favorite itinerary features! Having an overnight allows you more time to experience the destination, and you typically aren't as rushed during your time ashore. I was thrilled that my mom wanted to join this cruise for our first mother-daughter cruise together!
Although we had a great time during our cruise from California and loved visiting Cabo San Lucas for the first time, I probably won’t be sailing again from the West Coast anytime soon.
First, it wasn’t easy getting to the West Coast for this cruise.
I live in the Florida Panhandle, so I usually prefer cruising from Port Canaveral in Central Florida. It’s just a 6-hour drive, so this port is the most convenient with many different itineraries and cruise lines to choose from. I also have family in Orlando, so I never need to spend extra money on a hotel room the night before a cruise.
However, there are only so many destinations you can visit when you cruise from the same disembarkation port. You tend to repeat a lot of the same itineraries aboard the same cruise ships. Don’t ask how many times I’ve been to Cozumel, because I’ve lost count!
For this itinerary, I planned to fly into LAX the night before the start of our cruise (as you always should). My local airport is on the smaller side, so I usually have to connect through Atlanta, Georgia. Between my four hour layover and two different flights, my total travel time was over ten hours from Florida!
Since I don’t fly to the West Coast very often, I honestly just forgot how long it takes to get from Florida to Los Angeles! I was naive to think my travel day wouldn’t be that long.
In hindsight, I probably should’ve done a little more planning. I did end up needing to take an extra day of PTO just to account for the long travel day. By the time I landed in LAX, I realized the travel time was almost as long as flying to Europe!
To top it off, this flight wasn’t cheap either. It ended up costing close to $500 for the round-trip airfare. That’s nearly what I paid for my upcoming trip to Denmark later this summer.
At the end of the day, I just want to make the most of my time and money when I travel. For me, that often means discovering new places to explore if I am going to spend more than ten hours at the airport!
Navigating the massive LAX airport was also more stressful than I anticipated.
I’m no stranger to navigating big airports, but I definitely appreciate the ease and convenience of smaller airports. For example, when I cruise from Miami, I actually prefer flying into Fort Lauderdale’s Hollywood International airport instead. It’s close to PortMiami and far easier to navigate than the busier Miami airport.
For this cruise, my mom and I flew separately into LAX, as she was traveling from South Dakota and I was coming from Florida. Knowing how hectic large airports can be, especially when navigating them alone, my mom decided to wait in the Delta SkyClub lounge until I landed a few hours later.
I was thankful she had a comfortable and safe place to relax until I arrived. I’m also glad my mom didn’t try to navigate the airport on her own, as it was more stressful and complex than either of us anticipated. After I landed in the late evening, we made our way to the hotel before boarding Ovation of the Seas the following day.
We eventually found the free airport shuttle to the designated ride-share and taxi area, but the signage was a little confusing, especially considering it was late at night. It didn’t help that other travelers on the shuttle didn’t seem too eager to offer directions. To make matters worse, my mom and I were both exhausted from a long day of flying across the country.
The ride-share area at LAX was unlike anything I’ve seen before, featuring a slew of temporary-looking white tents scattered across the parking lot. Ride-share prices were also unusually high for such a short distance. I was being quoted over $40 for a quick 5-minute ride, which is outrageous!
We ended up taking a taxi instead for $20 to the hotel, although the experience wasn’t exactly warm and welcoming from our taxi driver. All that to say, we couldn’t wait to go to sleep and board Ovation of the Seas the next morning for our cruise!
Since LAX offers the most flight options and is the closest airport to Royal Caribbean’s World Cruise Terminal, it’s definitely the most practical choice. However, I think most can agree the size and chaos of the airport can be overwhelming. Next time, I’d plan to arrive earlier in the day and prearrange a transfer to make the experience smoother.
Cruise options are still pretty limited from the West Coast.
Royal Caribbean is planning to expand its West Coast presence in the coming years, and operations are already ramping up! Before Ovation of the Seas arrived, Royal Caribbean had previously deployed Navigator of the Seas — an older Voyager class ship — as the largest ship to depart from Los Angeles in 2021. Prior to that, Royal Caribbean hadn’t operated in California for over a decade.
Navigator of the Seas started offering shorter itineraries to Mexico, and there’s clearly a strong demand for it. Now, the addition of new ships will provide even more opportunities for West Coast locals to cruise with Royal Caribbean.
In 2026, Serenade of the Seas will be sailing from San Diego as the third ship for Royal Caribbean to operate in California. In addition, Quantum of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas will also have a stint calling California home this fall when both ships arrive in October 2025.
Although Royal Caribbean is expanding its presence, itineraries are still limited largely to Mexico. These sailings feature ports of call to Ensenada, Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, and Mazatlan, along with one unique repositioning cruise back to Asia.
With just a handful of cruise ships offering mostly short getaway itineraries to Mexico, these sailings tend to be better suited for local California residents. Comparatively, I’m lucky to have a variety of itineraries from Florida throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, Bahamas, and South America. You can even cruise all the way to Europe on transatlantic cruises from Florida!
There are still some destinations that I haven't visited throughout the Caribbean, such as the ABC Islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. Rather than flying to the West Coast, I’d prefer to focus on visiting new ports of call that are more easily accessible from Florida.
However, Royal Caribbean has the largest West Coast presence.
Compared to other cruise lines, Royal Caribbean’s commitment to the West Coast is unmatched. Loyal Royal Caribbean cruisers now have more chances than ever to set sail on some of the cruise line’s best ships.
For example, sister-brand Celebrity Cruises only offers limited sailings from Los Angeles, primarily consisting of one-time Panama Canal repositioning cruises. Additionally, Carnival Cruise Line and Norwegian Cruise Line operate sailings from California, but typically with just one or two ships throughout the year.
With Royal Caribbean expanding its West Coast presence, cruisers can now explore Baja Mexico on a wider variety of itineraries. For the summer, Ovation of the Seas will rotate between 3-night, 5-night, and 6-night cruises until she repositions to Southeast Asia in the fall. Until then, guests can experience some of the most popular ports of call throughout Mexico.
During my recent 5-night cruise to Cabo San Lucas, my mom and I were blown away by how beautiful the city was. We were pleasantly surprised by the port, including how clean, safe, and well-maintained it was. The scenery was also absolutely breathtaking, making Cabo San Lucas one of the nicest places I’ve visited in the country.
In hindsight, I wish I had booked a longer itinerary to experience more of the region during my trip to the West Coast, as I haven’t visited ports like Puerto Vallarta or Mazatlan.
Even still, I’m not sure if I’ll cruise again from California anytime soon.
Royal Caribbean is deploying more mega ships to cruise from California, which is great news for those living on the West Coast. With an increasing number of amenity-packed ships sailing from the region, the cruise line is clearly making a long-term investment in the West Coast market.
However, I’ll probably stick to cruises from Florida. For me, this is mostly due to the distance and cost to travel to California.
During our sailing, nearly everyone we met was from the local area, which likely reflects Royal Caribbean’s target audience for these itineraries. Most people hadn't traveled as far as we had for the 5-night sailing to Cabo. That said, I had a fantastic time on the cruise itself, and I loved experiencing Ovation of the Seas for the first time. The entertainment, dining options, and onboard amenities are some of Royal Caribbean's best. My mom and I had a wonderful mother-daughter vacation together and cherished our time onboard.
As a frequent cruiser, I’ve found that some itineraries are best enjoyed once, and that’s perfectly okay. For me, it just makes more sense to stick with cruises from Florida for convenience. If I want a quick weekend getaway cruise to Mexico, I can do that without flying across the country.
However, for those living on the West Coast, Royal Caribbean’s California sailings are a convenient and appealing option. Just like I wouldn’t want to fly across the country for a short cruise, I imagine many Californians feel the same about flying to Florida. I’m genuinely excited that West Coasters get to experience, in my opinion, one of Royal Caribbean’s best ships with Ovation of the Seas.
