Repositioning cruises from Vancouver to California, Mexico and Japan

A repositioning cruise from Vancouver is a one-way trip. The ship leaves Canada Place and ends somewhere else, so you fly or travel home from that city. Most of them leave in September and October, when ships finish the Alaska season and head for California, Mexico, Hawaii, Japan or the Panama Canal. This guide covers each route on our schedule, when the ships sail and what a one-way trip means for flights, parking and documents.

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Repositioning route from Vancouver	Sailings	Nights	First	Last	Lowest fare	Lowest per night
Down the Pacific coast	33	1 to 16	23 April 2027	9 October 2028	$109	$84
Hawaii, one-way	8	9 to 28	9 September 2027	8 November 2027	$905	$83
Japan and Asia	28	14 to 36	2 September 2027	1 October 2028	$1,357	$97
Panama Canal	5	20 to 23	22 September 2027	20 September 2028	$2,068	$90
South Pacific	2	24 to 31	21 September 2027	21 September 2027	$2,609	$109
South America	2	26 to 41	7 October 2027	7 October 2027	$3,409	$120

Fares are starting fares per person in US dollars, for the cheapest cabin listed with two guests sharing, taxes and port fees included, as we read them on 4 November 2026. They are not live prices. A few Princess trips in the coast row start with Alaska and then sail south to California.

What is a repositioning cruise from Vancouver?

A one-way voyage that moves a ship from one cruising region to another. Norwegian's travel blog of 27 February 2026 says repositioning cruises move ships between regions to match seasonal demand, that they are usually one-way, and that they often take place in spring or fall. Celebrity's blog says ships in regions with a short season, such as Alaska, usually offer them twice a year.

That is the pattern from Vancouver. On our schedule, Alaska cruises leave from late April to late September, the first on 24 April 2027. Holland America's release of 5 February 2026 says its 2027-2028 sailings to Hawaii, Mexico, the Panama Canal and the Pacific Coast run from October through April. At the end of the Alaska season ships sail out of Vancouver one-way, and in spring they arrive the same way.

Few of these trips have repositioning in their names. On our schedule Norwegian's are named Repositioning, Viking's crossing is the North Pacific Passage and Celebrity's Japan trips are Vancouver to Tokyo, while Princess's own pages call its short coastal trips Pacific Coastal. Search by where you want to end up rather than by the word.

When do repositioning cruises leave Vancouver?

Mostly in September and October, with a few in April and May. The coastal trips on our schedule run from 23 April 2027 to 9 October 2028. The spring ones are short trips to Seattle or Los Angeles, plus Azamara Quest's week down the coast to San Diego. The voyages to Japan run from 2 September 2027 to 1 October 2028, most of them in September, and the Panama Canal voyages from 22 September 2027 to 20 September 2028.

The season guide shows what leaves Vancouver each month, and the month pages for September 2027, October 2027 and September 2028 list every sailing, Alaska included.

Cruises from Vancouver to Los Angeles

On our schedule, 20 sailings leave Vancouver and end in Los Angeles, from 11 May 2027 to 9 October 2028. They last 4 to 23 nights, and on 4 November 2026 they started at $334 per person. Princess runs most of them.

They come in several shapes:

• Straight down the coast in 4 to 7 nights. Princess's 4-night trips sail without a stop. Its 5- to 7-night trips add some of Seattle, Astoria, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, San Diego and Avalon on Catalina Island.
• Virgin Voyages' Brilliant Lady, 8 nights, by way of Astoria, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, San Diego and Avalon. From $1,080 on 4 November 2026.
• Norwegian Encore, a 6-night trip by way of San Francisco that Norwegian names a repositioning cruise. From $709.
• Alaska first, then California. Princess's 11- and 16-night trips start with Juneau, Skagway and a glacier day, then sail south to Los Angeles.
• Mexico or Hawaii on the way. Discovery Princess's 14-night trip calls at San Francisco, Avalon and San Diego, then Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta before it ends in Los Angeles. From $1,256 on 4 November 2026. Crown Princess's 23-night trip goes by way of Hawaii.

Princess said on 13 October 2026 that its 2028-2029 California Coast season sails from Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver, with 18 departures of four to seven days and late-night calls in San Diego, San Francisco and Victoria.

Cruises from Vancouver to San Diego

On our schedule, 12 sailings end in San Diego, from 17 May 2027 to 20 September 2028, at 4 to 28 nights. On 4 November 2026 they started at $475 per person. Holland America runs most of them.

Holland America's release describes its 4-, 5- and 6-day Pacific Coast trips between San Diego and Vancouver on Eurodam, Koningsdam and Zaandam, with ports that may include Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Astoria or Victoria. On our schedule its 4-night trips leave in October 2027, Eurodam's with a call at Santa Barbara, and Nieuw Amsterdam's 5-night trip calls at San Francisco.

The other San Diego trips on our schedule:

• Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, 4 nights each with no stops, in September 2027. From $911 and $858 on 4 November 2026.
• Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas, 7 nights by way of Astoria and San Francisco. From $594.
• Azamara Quest, 7 nights by way of Seattle, Victoria, Astoria and San Francisco. From $2,059.
• Coral Princess, a 4-night trip with no stops in September 2028.
• Koningsdam's 28-night voyage by way of Hawaii and Mexico, covered in the Hawaii guide.

California cruises from Vancouver

Every California cruise from Vancouver on our schedule is one-way. Besides ending in Los Angeles or San Diego, many stop at other California ports on the way:

California port	Sailings from Vancouver that call there
San Francisco	18
San Diego, as a call	22
Los Angeles, as a call	8
Avalon, Catalina Island	6
Santa Barbara	5

These counts are calls on the way, and they include the longer Hawaii, Panama Canal and South America voyages that stop in California on their way south. Where a trip ends is in the sections above. For Oregon, Astoria is a call on 4 sailings.

Cruises from Vancouver to Mexico

No cruise on our schedule ends in Mexico. The Mexico trips end in San Diego or Los Angeles, or carry on to Florida or South America. Cabo San Lucas is a call on 8 sailings from Vancouver, Puerto Vallarta on 5 and Mazatlan on 5.

The Mexico-focused one-ways leave in the autumn of 2027:

• Holland America's Zaandam, 11 nights to San Diego. The release describes this trip as the Mexican Riviera itinerary, Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta, plus Victoria. From $1,169 on 4 November 2026.
• Holland America's Koningsdam, 11 nights to San Diego. The release lists it leaving on 19 October 2027 on the Baja Peninsula route, which it gives as Loreto, Pichilingue for La Paz, and Cabo San Lucas. Our schedule lists Mazatlan, Pichilingue and Cabo San Lucas for it. From $1,314.
• Discovery Princess, 14 nights to Los Angeles, with Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta after the California calls. From $1,256.

The Panama Canal and South America voyages also call in Mexico, at ports such as Huatulco, Acapulco and Puerto Chiapas, and Crown Princess's 23-night Hawaii trip stops at Ensenada.

Cruises from Vancouver to Seattle

On our schedule, 15 sailings end in Seattle. The shortest are one-night hops with no stops, and Princess's 3-Day Pacific Coastal of 28 April 2027 on Royal Princess calls at Victoria on the way. On Princess's page it leaves Vancouver at 4:00 pm, spends 7:00 am to 9:00 pm in Victoria, has a day at sea and reaches Seattle at 7:00 am on the fourth day. The rest are Alaska trips of 4 to 11 nights that end in Seattle instead of Vancouver.

The short cruises guide covers the hops, and the Seattle guide covers travel between the two cities.

Cruises from Vancouver to Japan

On our schedule, 28 voyages cross the North Pacific to Japan or on to Hong Kong, from 2 September 2027 to 1 October 2028. They last 14 to 36 nights. On 4 November 2026 they started at $1,357 per person, and the highest fare was $23,598.

Ends in	Sailings
Tokyo	22
Yokohama	2
Hong Kong, by way of Japan and Taiwan	4

Most go by way of Alaska first. Viking, Seabourn, Silversea, Regent, Explora Journeys and Oceania call at Alaska ports such as Ketchikan, Sitka, Juneau or Seward, and some at Kodiak and Dutch Harbor, before they cross to northern Japan. The ports there include Kushiro, Aomori, Hakodate, Miyako and Muroran. The longest go on around Japan to South Korea or Taiwan.

Celebrity's trips cross directly. Celebrity Millennium's 14-night Vancouver to Tokyo ends in Yokohama, and Celebrity Edge's 15-night trip ends in Tokyo, both in September and October 2028 and both calling only in Japan. When we wrote this on 4 November 2026, Celebrity Millennium's trip had the lowest fare to Asia.

Panama Canal cruises from Vancouver

On our schedule, 5 voyages sail from Vancouver through the Panama Canal, on Princess and Holland America, from 22 September 2027 to 20 September 2028. They last 20 to 23 nights and started at $2,068 on 4 November 2026.

They sail down the coast by way of California, Mexico and Central America, cross the canal and call at Aruba. They end in Fort Lauderdale (3 on our schedule), Port Canaveral (1) or New York (1).

Holland America's release lists Eurodam's 21-day Panama Canal voyage leaving Seattle on 2 October 2027, with the option to start in Vancouver or San Diego. It calls at Santa Barbara, San Diego, Cabo San Lucas, Acapulco, Puerto Chiapas, Santa Cruz Huatulco, Puntarenas, Puerto Quetzal and Oranjestad on Aruba before it ends in Fort Lauderdale. On our schedule the Vancouver start is a 20-night trip.

South Pacific and South America cruises from Vancouver

Royal Princess and Nieuw Amsterdam sail south in September and October 2027, and our schedule lists each voyage at two lengths.

Royal Princess sails to the South Pacific by way of Los Angeles, Honolulu, Kona, Papeete and Moorea. Her voyage ends in Auckland after 24 nights, or carries on to Napier, Wellington and Sydney after 31. On 4 November 2026 it started at $2,609.

Nieuw Amsterdam sails down the Pacific side of the Americas to Ecuador, Peru and Chile. Her voyage ends at San Antonio in Chile after 26 nights, or goes on by way of the Chilean fjords, Punta Arenas, the Falklands and Montevideo to Buenos Aires, 41 nights in all. On 4 November 2026 it started at $3,409.

Hawaii cruises from Vancouver, one-way

Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Princess and Silversea sell one-way trips that end in Honolulu, and Princess and Holland America have voyages that go on through Hawaii to California. The Hawaii guide compares them with the round trips, and covers sea days and the flight home from Honolulu.

Repositioning cruises to Vancouver

Ships also arrive in Vancouver one-way, mostly in spring before the Alaska season. These trips end at Canada Place, so they are not on our schedule, which lists departures only. Princess's page for its 5-Day Pacific Coastal from Los Angeles to Vancouver on Emerald Princess, leaving on 13 May 2027, shows calls at San Francisco and Victoria and arrival in Vancouver at 7:30 am on 18 May.

Holland America's release lists Eurodam's 22-day Panama Canal voyage from Fort Lauderdale to Vancouver leaving on 1 April 2028, and a 1-day trip from Seattle to Vancouver on 2 October 2027.

What to plan for a one-way cruise from Vancouver

A one-way trip changes three things compared with a round trip.

1. The trip home. You need a flight, or for Seattle a train, bus or car, from the city where the cruise ends. Price it before you compare a one-way fare with a round trip. Holland America, for one, offers flights booked through the line on its cruise pages.
2. Parking. You do not come back to Canada Place, so a car left in Vancouver stays there until someone fetches it. The parking guide covers the options, and the YVR airport guide covers arriving by air instead.
3. Documents. The Port of Vancouver says passengers clear U.S. Customs and Border Protection at Canada Place before boarding, because cruise ships are considered US jurisdiction. A voyage to Japan or South America also crosses into countries with their own entry rules. The cruise documents guide covers Canada Place and the US check.

On 4 November 2026 the lowest fare per night on any one-way sailing from Vancouver was $83, against $93 on a round trip. That compares the cruise fare only, before the flight home. The cheap and last-minute guide compares fares by route and month, and the hotels guide covers the night before you sail.