Top 10 MORE Repositioning Cruise Itineraries
If you haven’t read or watched our original list, please start here- Top 10 Repositioning Routes
It has been 3 years since we wrote that list and produced the video and, in that time, we have enjoyed some more repositioning cruises ourselves, have research plenty more and we also have received some incredible feedback from you our readers and viewers.
If you are new to cruising or are just not sure what a repositioning cruise route is, it is basically where you start at one port and end at another.
Unlike a closed loop cruise, where you start and end at the same port, you will likely have fewer days at sea, spend more time cruising in the region you want to sail in, and you can also spend time before and after your cruise staying in great cities.
Thankfully, there are incredible repositioning cruise routes that can be enjoyed around the world and with more and more cruise lines offering these types of cruises, it seems to perfect time to create a new list looking at our top 10 more repositioning cruise itineraries.
Our Top 10 More Repositioning Cruise Itineraries
Spice Route
This one just had to top a list such as this one for us as it is one that we have taken ourselves.
The Spice Route, also known as the Maritime Silk Road, links the east with west via a series of ports linking China and Japan to Europe via India and the Middle East.
There are numerous options for this route with many itineraries also including the chance to sail through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal but for us, our journey would take us from Singapore to India, via Malayasia, Thailand and Sri Lanka.
After such as an incredible journey, we just had to place it as number one in this list but apart from our memories, it is still worthy of its place thanks to the incredible variety of the ports available to visit and the number of ships and lines offering the journey.
Vancouver to Honolulu (As nominated by mikeb2777 and juanitafurtado8805 on YouTube)
A huge thank you to both Mike B and Juanita Furtado on YouTube who recommended this one on our last video, it’s a great suggestion.
We had partially covered it by featuring Pacific Coastal cruises in our last list, and that is how many of the journeys start as you sail from Vancouver, down to Seattle in the USA.
From there however you won’t see land for days as you head across the mighty Pacific Ocean and to the Hawaiian Islands before ending in Honolulu.
These journeys offer the chance to take in the snowy surrounds of Canada and then the sun-soaked beaches of Hawaii for a holiday to remember.
Some lines allow you to make it even more memorable by offering longer itineraries that sail up the inside passage to Alaska before setting off southwest to Hawaii.
Sydney to Cape Town
This is one for people with plenty of time and money at their disposable but if you are lucky enough to do it, it would be a journey that lives long in the memory.
You start with the chance to explore the popular tourist city of Sydney before often calling into Melbourne and Perth before setting off on an adventure of a lifetime across the Indian Ocean towards southern Africa.
Many ships will call into the Indian Ocean islands such as Mauritius or Madagascar before sailing around the coast of South Africa and ending in Cape Town.
Welcomed by the iconic Table Mountain, cruises can enjoy a safari before heading back home.
Sydney to Pacific Islands (As nominated by mikeb2777 on YouTube)
A huge thank you to Mike B on YouTube for this suggestion as it is another repositioning route that is offered by a few different lines but as it is often a trip that sees the ship continue to the other side of the Pacific, it can be a tricky one to book.
With only a handful of ships offering it each cruise season, it can be a costly adventure but one that is well worth it as you set sail along the eastern seaboard of Australia before heading east to paradise islands such as New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, French Polynesia, the Cook Islands and American Samoa- a Rugby League fans dream!
UK to Iceland
If you were to simply look at a globe, you may think that there is not too much of interest on a cruise between the UK and Iceland as there is little other than the Atlantic Ocean between the 2.
That is far from the case however as ships taking the more direct route will call into islands such as the Shetland Isles and Orkney before heading north to the remote Faroe Islands and then onto Iceland.
Another popular route is to head northeast from the UK, sail up the coast of Norway and offer cruisers the chance to see the idyllic Norwegian Fjords before heading northwest to the east coast of Iceland.
Both routes will end in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik, which is somewhere you can base yourself before exploring the volcanoes, waterfalls and glaciers of Iceland and then flying home.
Mediterranean Explorer
A regular Mediterranean cruise will see you depart a port such as Barcelona or Civitavecchia, cruise around the Med and then end up back at the same port but that then see’s you spend time double back in the same area and often visiting similar ports.
Many lines sailing in the region will offer the chance to start at one port and end at another but if you want to visit the widest range of ports and have the most variety in your cruise, an itinerary starting in the western Med and ending in the eastern Med (or vice versa) will give you just that.
One such route that is offered by a variety of lines is starting in Barcelona and ending in Athens that allows often allows you to visit the likes of Italy, France, Egypt, Cyprus, Malta, Israel, the Aegean Sea and the Greek Islands for a trip full of history, culture and great food.
Northern European Cities
This is a route that is hugely popular during the festive period as you can sail to cities such as Copenhagen, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Zeebrugge (for Bruges) and ports in the southeast of England offering access to London.
Each of those destination comes alive in December with huge Christmas Markets and plenty of festive cheer, but it is a route that can be sailed all year around for those wanting to enjoy the history, culture and great shopping opportunities of some of Europe’s top cities.
A popular option for this route is to start in Southampton and then end in a port such as Copenhagen but there are a few different options depending on the line you choose to sail with.
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea has long been a popular place to cruise but with many of the itineraries heading there starting in the UK, you often have 3-4 wasted days just sailing there and back.
By choosing a repositioning route, you can spend less time at sea and more time exploring the region and then you can also add on a stay in one of the regions turnaround ports such as Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo or Helsinki.
America to Iceland
This is one that has grown in popularity recently as it was so often the case that ships from the northeast of America would sail only to Greenland or Canada and back so if you wanted to go to Iceland, you needed to start in Northern Europe.
Now there are lots of options to continue your journey from North America to Iceland and with many of the itineraries sailing through the incredible Prince Christian Sound, this is an ideal journey for those who love cold weather cruising and to visit some of the most remote places in the world.
On the Iceland side, all ships will embark or disembark in the capital city of Reykjavik whilst Boston and New York are the most popular ports in the US.
South Pacific Crossing
This one mixes a couple of the itineraries on this list into one huge adventure that will need plenty of time (around 35 nights) and lots of money to be able to do, but if you are lucky enough to be able to, it will likely be one of the best cruises you ever do.
Starting in Sydney, you will head east to the white sandy beaches of the South Pacific island paradises such as Fiji, Samoa and Tonga before continuing east to Hawaii, where you will sail around the beautiful volcanic islands and often overnight in Honolulu.
From there you will continue onto the United States with some going to either La or San Diego in California and some continuing further north to Seattle or even Vancouver in Canada.
