Port Tampa Bay Cruise Port and Terminal Information

Table Of Content

• Which Royal Caribbean ships sail from Port Tampa Bay?
• We had to wait in line for an hour before we could even enter the terminal
• Night Western Caribbean CruiseDetails
• I didn’t prepare as carefully as I usually do for embarkation day
• The Florida Aquarium
• I cruised Royal Caribbean from Tampa for the first time. Here's what a cruise from this smaller port is like.

Although this is a great service, it can get expensive if you’re traveling with a lot of people. Also, your shuttle is only going to be available on cruise day, so if you fly in the day before you’ll have to seek alternate means of transportation. Just .3 miles from the Channelside Bay cruise terminal in Tampa, Park Connect has no hidden-fees in their pricing. Park Connect offers covered parking areas, free cancellation up to 24-hours before your cruise and an easy to user interface for pre-paying for parking. Positive impressions start from the moment the cruise guests arrive at the modern, award-winning Tampa International Airport. Residence Inn’s “Fly Here, Cruise There” package provides guests with shuttle service from the hotel to the cruise port, along with free internet and breakfast.

Which Royal Caribbean ships sail from Port Tampa Bay?

Terminal parking at the Tampa cruise port is conveniently located across the street from Terminals 2 and 3 and adjacent to Terminal 6. Break up with your weekly routine and set sail on a memory filled getaway that’ll take you so much further than a standard staycation. Royal Caribbean® offers plenty of bolder-than-ever weekend sailings to some of the Caribbean’s most stunning shores onboard the world’s most incredible cruise ships — no days off required. Which means you can fill your year with even more bucket list adventures. If you’re considering sailing from a smaller cruise port like I did, here’s what you can expect from embarkation day out of Tampa, Florida. Multiple cruise lines have already reaped the benefits of homeporting their ships at Port Tampa Bay.

We had to wait in line for an hour before we could even enter the terminal

Located in the heart of the Ybor city district where you’ll find a large Latin community is the Columbia Restaurant. They have been in business since 1905 and they make a mean Cuban sandwich on fresh Cuban bread. Our goal has been to provide our readers with expansive coverage of all aspects of the Royal Caribbean experience. One of the best parts of cruising out of Tampa, is getting to sail under the iconic Sunshine Skyway Bridge to enter the Gulf of Mexico.

Night Western Caribbean CruiseDetails

If you have severe allergies and need a menu that’s gluten-free, you can either go to The Columbia for their gluten-free options, or try out The Refinery. Here the menu changes every week, so you’ll always be able to get something different. Featuring the best New York style pizzas anywhere other than New York is Eddie & Sam’s, located on Twiggs St in Tampa. They even use water shipped directly from New York to make the dough more authentic.

I didn’t prepare as carefully as I usually do for embarkation day

Passengers can pre-pay with a credit card online for valet and self-parking. A short 30-minute drive west of downtown lands you along the Gulf of Mexico coast, which is fringed by a string of sugary beaches. Clearwater Beach and St. Pete Beach both offer an upbeat seaside atmosphere, while Caladesi Island State Park and Fort DeSoto Park provide serene shoreline settings. However, one positive aspect of sailing out of this port is that we had a beautiful view of downtown Tampa, the water, and the palm trees as we waited. For my third cruise, I embarked on a 5-night Radiance of the Seas sailing, departing from the smaller, more intimate port in downtown Tampa.

The Florida Aquarium

Dedicated parking spaces are available for guests with accessibility needs. You might explore interactive exhibits at the Tampa Bay History Center, or go stand-up paddleboarding from the Sail Pavilion. Tampa Museum of Art’s collections range from ancient to modern— and the Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park is home to splash fountains, a playground and skyline views. Unlock a treasure trove of adventures on Florida’s west coast, plus cruises to the Western Caribbean.

They do not have a specific cruise package, but they do offer free parking, as well as a free shuttle to anywhere within a 3 mile radius, which includes the cruise port. Along with a free hot breakfast and Wi-Fi, if you book this hotel’s Park and Cruise package, you’ll receive free roundtrip transportation to the cruise port, as well as parking for up to 7 days. This hotel features a “park and cruise” package that gives you free shuttle to and from the cruise port, up to 2 weeks of free parking, and a 10% discount at the hotel spa. Be sure to let them know at check-in that you wish to use their free shuttle service to reserve your seat. One of our biggest tips at Royal Caribbean Blog is to fly into your departure port the night before your cruise, to ensure that you don’t encounter delays that could make you miss your embarkation time. There are plenty of hotels to choose from located near both the Tampa airport and Port Tampa Bay, making getting to the port on embarkation day a breeze.

We’ll start with the gritty details about directions, cruise parking, hotels, and various other information that you should know while making your plans. We’ll even provide some help in getting from the Tampa International Airport to the cruise terminal. Port Tampa Bay is the home port for five ships from four cruise lines, offering itineraries to the Eastern, Western and Southern Caribbean and even Transatlantic cruises. On previous cruises, I have arrived a little earlier, but I was glad I got the chance to experience the later time block on embarkation day.

Port Tampa Bay also offers valet parking for $15.75 per day (effective October 23, 2022, previously $15), plus a one time fee of $20. This is a great option for those who have trouble walking, or don’t want to deal with the hassle of parking their car. To utilize this option, you simply pull up to the curbside of the terminal entrance, and the valets will take care of the rest. Port Tampa Bay has very convenient parking options for the cruise terminals. Since it is located so close to downtown Tampa, there are plenty of parking garages to choose from. Luckily, transportation, parking, and lodging is very easy to find here, and won’t cost you too much (depending on the options you go with).

Located within walking distance from the cruise terminals is Sparkman Wharf. Here you will find all you could ever want in dining and shopping, as well as an open-air biergarten that includes over 24 taps of Florida craft beer, all with a breathtaking waterfront view. Cruise Critic is not a booking agent and does not charge any service fees to users of our site.

We had to walk around the building to even get in line, and the lines only grew longer from there. The lines stretched out past the entrance onto the outdoor level of the terminal. After about 10 minutes, staff opened up the escalator and allowed us to walk up. Finally, our Uber driver was able to pull into the port and drop us off at the entrance. When I first arrived, I thought it looked crowded for such a small port. The only pizza restaurant that can possibly rival Eddie & Sam’s is Cappys, offering the best in both New York style and Chicago deep dish, as well as a variety of salads and subs.

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Tampa’s food scene stems from a fusion of Cuban, Spanish, Italian and Floribbean influences. Local raw bars serve up fresh shrimp, oysters, scallops and grouper from the Gulf of Mexico. For a taste of authentic Florida Cracker cuisine, try sofkee porridge, pilau (rice cakes) or fried alligator tail during your next Tampa cruise.

Experienced cruisers know that the port you choose to sail out of has a big impact on your embarkation day experience. In addition, guests are just steps from the sights, sounds and experiences of Downtown Tampa. Arguably, one of the best sites to see is the ship sailing under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. This bridge is located about a minute drive south of Tampa, and it takes the ships about 2 hours after departure to reach the bridge.