San Diego Set to Homeport Nine Cruise Lines in 2009

San Diego Bay will host nine cruise lines during more than 200 voyages this year. San Diego is the year-round homeport for Carnival Cruise Lines’ Elation. Holland America Line and Celebrity Cruises also homeport ships seasonally in San Diego.

Other cruise lines scheduled to visit during the year include Azamara Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Fred. Olsen, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Royal Caribbean International and Silversea. Itineraries include the Mexican Riviera and Sea of Cortez, the Hawaiian Islands, the Pacific Coast and Panama Canal, Central America and the Caribbean.

Carnival has three ships operating out of San Diego with roundtrip voyages to Mexico. Carnival’s Elation offers weekly departures to Baja, Mexico. The three-, four- and five-day voyages stop in Ensenada, La Paz and Cabo San Lucas aboard the 2,040-passenger vessel.

Seven- and eight-day Mexican Riviera round-trips also sail from San Diego aboard the 2,124-passenger Spirit. Four Celebrity ships operating out of San Diego offer cruises through the Panama Canal and to the Hawaiian Islands.

The 2,046-passenger Infinity, 2,034-passenger Constellation and 1,886-passenger Mercury offer 14-day one-way Panama Canal cruises from San Diego; the 2,034-passenger Millennium and Mercury offer a 16-day Panama Canal cruise. The Celebrity Mercury also offers 15-day Hawaii roundtrips.

Royal Caribbean’s has two ships operating in and out of San Diego: the 2,501-passenger Radiance of the Seas and the Radiance, both offering 15-day cruises from San Diego.