Description: Domestic cruises in the USA explained: which ships sail only between U.S. ports, from Hawaii to Alaska, New England and the rivers, and how to choose.
Every port American. Here is who sails them, and where.
Most cruises that leave an American port sail to another country. Domestic cruises in the USA are different: every stop is American soil, from the Hawaiian Islands to Maine’s lighthouse towns, the Mississippi’s river cities and the fjords of Southeast Alaska. They are fewer than people expect, and this site explains why, who runs them and how to choose one.
The reason is one law. The Passenger Vessel Services Act keeps foreign-flagged ships — nearly every big cruise ship — from carrying passengers between two U.S. ports. So the familiar names from Miami or Galveston always add a foreign port. Only ships flagged in the United States can sail a purely American itinerary, and only a handful of companies operate them. We explain the rule in plain English on why most cruises leave the U.S.