Double the Disneyland & Sea Cruises for Next 5 Years!

Get ready for new Disneyland & sea vacation possibilities! Disney Cruise Line and the Port of San Diego today announced a new agreement through at least 2031, which will approximately double the number of Disney cruises out of San Diego each year. Here are full details, plus our commentary about why we’re excited about this news.

For Disney Cruise Line guests, the extended agreement that doubles the number of sailings means more opportunities to embark on vacations to Catalina Island, Baja and the Mexican Riviera, with a broader range of seasonal itineraries and more frequent departures.

“San Diego has been an important part of our West Coast operations for more than a decade, and a place our guests love sailing from,” said Jose Fernandez, Vice President of Port Strategy, Development & Operations, Disney Cruise Line. “This new agreement supports our long-term growth and helps us continue contributing to the region’s economy.”

“We are grateful to continue our long-standing relationship with Disney Cruise Line,” said Chair Ann Moore, Port of San Diego Board of Port Commissioners. “This agreement not only enhances business operations between the Port, Disney and all our cruise line partners – it also supports a thriving cruise industry that injects millions into the region’s economy and welcomes thousands of visitors to our waterfront each year.”

The agreement secures Disney Cruise Line’s non-exclusive priority access to the San Diego Port’s North and South berths at the B Street cruise terminal, enhancing the arrival experience for passengers while also helping the Port better plan and maximize the use of its cruise ship terminals. This announcement comes as the Port is seeing an upward trajectory in cruise calls and passengers.

More than 1 million Disney Cruise Line passengers are anticipated through the Port during the course of the agreement. That represents the first time in more than 20 years that a cruise line has offered a minimum annual guarantee at the Port of San Diego. Disney Cruise Line’s seasonal call on San Diego will continue to bring meaningful economic benefits for the region, supporting local businesses and fueling jobs tied to cruise operations, tourism and port activity.

Disney Cruise Line has been a proud member of the San Diego community since it first began sailing from the Port in 2012 and remains committed to making meaningful and positive impacts in the region. This work includes collaborations with local nonprofits that focus on youth empowerment and environmental conservation.

Most recently, Disney Cruise Line provided career development and financial literacy opportunities to local students from Junior Achievement of San Diego and collaborated with San Diego Coastkeepers to help protect the natural beauty of the California coastline.

Representing the latest wave in Disney Cruise Line’s period of unprecedented global growth, this agreement ensures that San Diego remains a primary gateway for DCL. Speaking of which, San Diego will soon welcome two Disney Cruise Line ships for the 2026-2027 season, expanding West Coast sailing options for the cruise line.

The Disney Magic arrives in October, offering 3 to 7-night voyages through November followed by a 14-night Panama Canal transit to Galveston. The Disney Wonder will homeport in San Diego from October 2026 through April 2027, sailing 3 to 7-night itineraries to destinations including Catalina Island, Cabo San Lucas, Ensenada and Puerto Vallarta.

It doesn’t come as a huge surprise that San Diego is getting more ships. They’ve gotta go somewhere! Disney Cruise Line has been touting how it’ll be more than doubling its fleet by 2031, with a total of 13 ships. The Disney Adventure recently launched and will homeport in Singapore, and the Disney Believe will follow in late 2027. At least one more Wish-class ship will join the fleet in 2029, sailing out of Japan as part of OLC’s expansion plans. Disney will then launch a new class of ships that’ll debut by 2031.

Our Commentary

A common refrain of our commentaries about Disney Cruise Line itinerary announcements has been, basically: be fair to everywhere that isn’t Florida. That’s a lot of the fleet in Florida, sailing to the Bahamas and Caribbean. With the new ships coming online, I was hoping we’d start to see more interesting and unique itineraries, but it’s been more of mostly the same.

As I’ve said repeatedly over the years, I’ve found the lack of San Diego sailings a bit baffling. California is a large and highly populous state and is home to a huge Disney fan base. The demographics for DCL have to be highly favorable, so it’s wild to me that Disney Cruise Line wouldn’t want to have more sailings out of California.

Not only is that a huge demo of Californian families, but I’m also guessing there are plenty of former Disneyland Annual Passholders who would love to use cruising to get their “Disney fix.”

This is a common dynamic we’ve heard fans discuss on DCL sailings from Florida, so it stands to reason the same applies in SoCal. If anything, I’m betting it’s more pronounced since Disneyland APs have gotten worse than their counterparts in Florida.

Given all of that, it just makes sense to double the Disney Cruise Line presence in San Diego. I’m selfishly very excited about this news; we’re months away from pre-school, at which time our travel options will be much more limited.

Those 3-4 night long weekend cruises will become crucial for us, as will the short drive down to San Diego, as opposed to a cross country flight involving two travel days that are basically lost. I’m also very intrigued by several of the itineraries from San Diego, whereas I’m honestly a bit “over” the Bahamas and Caribbean cruises out of Florida.

Less selfishly, I’m really excited for the Disneyland and sea vacation opportunities this might introduce! Disney Cruise Line and Walt Disney World do this really well, collaborating on seamless packages that streamline a visit to the parks paired with a cruise.

My sincere hope is that Disney works on something similar for Disneyland and the San Diego sailings because, quite frankly, this makes so much more sense in Southern California than it does Florida.

The main reason for this is probably obvious to Disney diehards: you can spend a lot more time at Walt Disney World than Disneyland. Beyond that, I’d argue that there’s more to do in Southern California, especially between Anaheim and San Diego, than Central Florida.

The good news is that, even if Disney doesn’t put together seamless packages, it’ll be pretty easy to DIY. Grab a one-way rental car in Anaheim, drive down PCH, maybe stay for a night somewhere between Laguna Beach and La Jolla, and see the breathtaking beauty of the coast that you won’t experience on the cruise. Alternatively, take the Pacific Surfliner from Anaheim to San Diego.

There are a lot of possibilities for putting together a fantastic 7-10 day trip that includes Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and in between. Here’s hoping that the popularity of such packages increases, giving us more of an excuse to do sailings out of San Diego!

Planning to set sail aboard one of the Disney Cruise Line ships? Read our comprehensive Disney Cruise Line Guide to prepare for your trip, plan entertainment and other activities, and learn what to expect from your Disney cruise! If you want personalized recommendations for Disney Cruise Line itineraries, ships, and more, click here to get a cruise quote from a no-fee Authorized Disney Vacation Planner. They can find you all of the current discounts, and help you plan the details of your cruise!

YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think of DCL doubling its sailings out of San Diego? Would you do a Disneyland and sea package that included the parks and a cruise? Hoping Disney puts together something like this, or would you prefer DIY? Any other tips to add or recommendations? Do you agree or disagree with our advice? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!