Northamerica's cruising region, the world's most important from the standpoint of passenger origination and the number of operating cruise ships, can be divided into six operational areas:
1. NORTHEASTERN PART OF THE US AND NEIGHBORING CANADA. Voyages primarily from New York and Boston visit the New England area and then on to the Maritime Provinces of Canada usually as far inland as Montreal and Quebec. The St. Lawrence Waterway is also the entry for ocean-going ships to the Great Lakes if they can negotiate the numerous locks into Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Great Lakes ports are discussed in a separate section of the World Port Directory.
The northeastern part of the US is also the origin of transatlantic routes to Europe especially to the northwestern part of that continent. It also is the primary origin of cruises to Bermuda and return. Relatively few cruises, now more frequently from the Atlantic central states, head south to the Caribbean and the Panama Canal region.
The southeastern part of the US is also the origin of more southerly transatlantic routes to Europe especially to the Mediterranean region. These operations tend to be repositioning cruises with easterly movements in the Spring and westerly movements in the Fall.
3. SOUTHWESTERN US. California is the big cruising gateway, especially with Los Angeles and San Diego for the so-called Mexican Riviera and to a lesser extent the Panama Canal, Hawaii and the South Pacific.
4. HAWAII. The fiftieth state has grown in popularity recently as the surfeit of cruise ships has led to the need for new itineraries. With no American-built and operated ships serving the area, foreign shipping has had to travel over 1,000 miles to visit Kiribati to comply with the Passenger Services Act. Nonetheless, cruises from the west coast and transpacific voyages have increased in number and will probably result in still more visits to Honolulu and the Hawaiian Islands.
5. NORTHWEST US AND ALASKA. Vancouver and the up-and-coming Seattle cruise ports are the big gateways to Alaska operating during the northern hemisphere's warmer seasons. They heavily visit Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway on the inside passage. Further northward voyages will usually visit Prince William Sound and Seward, the outport for Anchorage.
6. INLAND RIVERS AND WATERWAYS. River cruises have been a standard vacation in the US but with a recent major loss of one its largest operators, it will take a bit of time before the cruise operations recover to their previous size and number. The Mississippi waterway is by far the most important with the Ohio, Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers forming the main backbone of operations. Other rivers include the Columbia and Snake Rivers in the Pacific Northwest.
North America will continue to be the prime cruising region for the foreseeable future and will continue to be a growth leader in absolute numbers.