Cruise rules are not the same as flying in. The answers for ports of call assume you arrive and leave on the ship the same trip. Where you join or leave the ship — and any country you fly into or out of — follows the normal visa rules for your passport, which can be stricter.
Find out which visas you need for every port on your cruise — for any passport, taking into account the US, UK, Schengen, Canadian, Australian and other visas or residence permits you already hold. Each answer shows the rule it comes from and the official source. This summary assumes you hold no other visa — the interactive checker shows how a US, UK, Schengen, Canadian or Australian visa or residence permit changes each answer.
Caribbean, Bahamas, Bermuda & Central America
Aruba (Oranjestad): No visa needed for a cruise call. Cruise ship passengers don't need a Caribbean visa if the stay in port lasts no more than 24 hours. Everyone still needs a valid passport.
Curaçao (Willemstad): No visa needed for a cruise call. Cruise ship passengers don't need a Caribbean visa if the stay in port lasts no more than 48 hours. Everyone still needs a valid passport.
Bonaire (Kralendijk): No visa needed for a cruise call. Cruise ship passengers don't need a Caribbean visa if the stay in port lasts no more than 48 hours. Everyone still needs a valid passport.
Sint Maarten (Philipsburg): No visa needed for a cruise call. Cruise ship passengers don't need a Caribbean visa if the stay in port lasts no more than 48 hours. Everyone still needs a valid passport.
Bahamas (Nassau, Freeport, Perfect Day at CocoCay): Visa needed. The Bahamas government says people whose nationality normally needs a visa must get one even when arriving and leaving by cruise ship — including the cruise lines' private islands.
Mexico (Cozumel, Costa Maya, Progreso): No visa needed for a cruise call — confirm with your cruise line. Travel guides say cruise passengers of any nationality don't need a Mexican visa for a port call; the visitor permit is issued at the first Mexican port. This isn't on an official INM page we could find, so confirm with your cruise line.
Jamaica (Falmouth, Ocho Rios, Montego Bay): No visa needed.
Cayman Islands (George Town): No visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Turks and Caicos (Grand Turk): Visa needed.
Bermuda (King's Wharf (Royal Naval Dockyard), Hamilton, St. George's): No visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Dominican Republic (Puerto Plata (Amber Cove, Taíno Bay), La Romana, Samaná): Visa needed.
Belize (Belize City, Harvest Caye): Visa needed.
Honduras (Roatán (Mahogany Bay, Coxen Hole)): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Costa Rica (Puerto Limón, Puntarenas): Visa needed.
Panama (Colón, Fuerte Amador, Panama Canal transit): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Colombia (Cartagena, Santa Marta): Apply online before you travel.
Puerto Rico (San Juan): Visa needed.
US Virgin Islands (St. Thomas (Charlotte Amalie), St. Croix): Visa needed.
Antigua and Barbuda (St. John's): Apply online before you travel.
St Kitts and Nevis (Basseterre (Port Zante)): Apply online before you travel.
St Lucia (Castries): Visa on arrival.
Barbados (Bridgetown): No visa needed.
Grenada (St. George's): No visa needed.
USA (Alaska, Hawaii) & Canada
United States (incl. Alaska & Hawaii) (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Port Canaveral): Visa needed.
Canada (Vancouver, Victoria, Halifax): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line. If your passport needs a Canadian visitor visa, cruise lines on Alaska and New England routes ask for one even for a few hours in Victoria or Halifax. One cruise line (Cunard) treats port calls as 'in transit', so ask yours — but expect to need the visa.
Europe & Mediterranean
Schengen area (Barcelona, Civitavecchia (Rome), Venice/Trieste): Visa needed. There's no cruise exemption: if your passport needs a Schengen visa, you need one to go ashore. If the cruise leaves the Schengen area and comes back (Turkey, Montenegro, the UK, Morocco…), get a multiple-entry visa — a single-entry visa ends when the ship leaves.
United Kingdom (Southampton, Dover, Liverpool): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Ireland (Dublin, Cobh (Cork)): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Gibraltar (Gibraltar): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Türkiye (Istanbul (Galataport), Kuşadası (Ephesus), Bodrum): No visa needed for a cruise call. Turkey's foreign ministry says cruise passengers can enter without a visa for up to 72 hours, with permission from local authorities (arranged by the ship). Stay in the port city and nearby provinces. If you fly into Turkey to join a cruise, you need a normal visa or e-Visa.
Montenegro (Kotor, Bar): Visa needed.
Albania (Durrës, Sarandë): Apply online before you travel.
Morocco (Casablanca, Tangier, Agadir): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Australia, New Zealand & South Pacific
Australia (Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne): Apply online before you travel.
New Zealand (Auckland, Wellington, Bay of Islands): Electronic authorisation needed. Every cruise passenger arriving in New Zealand needs an NZeTA (plus the tourist levy), whatever their passport — even if your nationality would need a visa to fly in. Australian citizens don't need one; Australian permanent residents do.
New Caledonia (Nouméa, Lifou, Maré): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Vanuatu (Port Vila, Mystery Island, Luganville): No visa needed.
Fiji (Suva, Lautoka, Savusavu): Visa needed.
Asia
Singapore (Marina Bay Cruise Centre): No visa needed.
Malaysia (Port Klang (Kuala Lumpur), Penang, Langkawi): Apply online before you travel — confirm with your cruise line.
Thailand (Laem Chabang (Bangkok), Phuket, Koh Samui): Visa needed — confirm with your cruise line.
Vietnam (Phu My (Ho Chi Minh City), Chan May (Hue/Da Nang), Ha Long Bay): Apply online before you travel — confirm with your cruise line.
Japan (Yokohama, Tokyo, Kobe): No visa needed for a cruise call. Japan's 'landing permission for cruise ship tourists' lets passengers land without a visa for sightseeing if the ship has been designated by Japan's Ministry of Justice, you return to the ship before it leaves, and you stay no more than 7 days (one port) or 30 days. Ask your cruise line whether the ship is designated.
South Korea (Busan, Jeju, Incheon (Seoul)): Apply online before you travel — confirm with your cruise line.
China (Shanghai, Tianjin (Beijing), Xiamen): No visa needed for a cruise call. Foreign tour groups (2 or more people, arranged through a travel agency registered in mainland China) arriving by cruise ship can enter visa-free for up to 15 days at any of China's 13 cruise ports. The whole group must stay with the ship until it leaves China. Ask your cruise line whether your shore programme qualifies.
Hong Kong (Kai Tak Cruise Terminal): No visa needed.
Philippines (Manila, Boracay, Puerto Princesa): No visa needed.
Indonesia (Bali (Benoa), Komodo, Jakarta): Visa on arrival.
Taiwan (Keelung (Taipei), Kaohsiung): Visa needed.
Middle East
United Arab Emirates (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sir Bani Yas): Apply online before you travel — confirm with your cruise line.
Qatar (Doha): Apply online before you travel.
Oman (Muscat, Khasab, Salalah): Apply online before you travel.
Before you sail
Your passport should be valid for at least 6 months after the cruise ends — most cruise lines require it.
Visas you rely on must still be valid on the last day of the cruise, not just when you board.
A single-entry visa is used up when you leave. If the cruise leaves a country and comes back, you need a multiple-entry visa.
Exemptions for people holding another country's visa usually need the actual visa in your passport — an ESTA or eTA doesn't count.
Cruise lines can refuse boarding if a document is missing. Ask them in writing if anything here says 'confirm'.