6. Western Caribbean
Ziplining Excursion (Photo: Brocreative/Shutterstock)
Why: The Cayman Islands offer some of the best coral reefs and greatest underwater visibility of any major dive site in the Caribbean. Mainland Mexico’s Yucatan boasts jungle trails, access to the Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza, dolphin encounters and the ecotourism theme parks at Xcaret and Xel-Ha, where swimming in underground rivers, helmet diving and ziplining are all in a day’s work. And Jamaica is an active cruise traveler’s paradise, too, with opportunities for kayaking, rafting, river tubing, parasailing and four-wheeling.
Who: We pick action-packed Royal Caribbean. Onboard many of its ships, you’ll find rock climbing walls, basketball courts, ice skating rinks, ziplines and surf pools; look, too, for a surfing simulator, The Ultimate Abyss (the tallest dry slide at sea) and a trio of water slides, on Harmony of the Seas, which sails Western Caribbean itineraries. Plus, cruisers have the option to go bobsledding in Ocho Rios; ziplining on the world’s largest overwater run in Royal Caribbean’s private port in Labadee, Haiti; and snorkeling in Cozumel, Mexico; as well as swimming with dolphins, diving, biking, horseback riding and parasailing throughout the Western Caribbean.