When you board a cruise, you’re expecting brilliant views and while lots of docks aren’t always in the most scenic parts of town, it really stands out when you come across one which looks Insta-worthy.
Travel insurance company AllClear Travel has been doing some research into exactly where the most pretty cruise ports in the world are, so that you can get the cameras ready. It presented a group of people with different images of cruise ports and ‘their visual engagement was measured using eye-tracking technology’. Very futuristic.
Basically, the faster a participant’s attention was drawn to a photo, and the longer they looked at it, the better it scored. After that each destination was given a score out of 100, making them all easy to rank.
The number one spot was claimed by Valletta in Malta, which received a perfect 100 out of 100. The port offers excellent views of the city, which is one big UNESCO World Heritage Site – literally. AllClear describes this as a ‘masterpiece in harbour aesthetics’, and its proximity to town is ideal for anyone whose cruise is only docking for a day.
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The dock is only a fifteen minute walk away from the city’s historic centre. Inside Valetta, AllClear recommends checking out the Upper Bakra Gardens ‘for panoramic views of the harbour itself’. What you’ll see as you gaze over the port below is ‘golden limestone reflecting off the glistening water’, and, of course, the ever-blue Mediterranean sea.
The Port of Ushuaia made it into second place with a score of 86 out of 100. Right on the south coast of Argentina, this is often the last stop before cruisers make their way south towards Antarctica, so it’s a good thing it comes with snow-capped mountain views.
It was back to Europe for third place, where Palermo in Sicily received 83 out of 100. It’s no shock that Italy is a scenic place, and being west-facing this port gets particularly stunning light at sunset.
Here are the ten most gorgeous cruise ports in the world
- Valletta Cruise Port, Malta
- Port of Ushuaia, Argentina
- Port of Palermo, Italy
- Stadsgården Cruise Terminal, Stockholm, Sweden
- Nassau Cruise Port, Bahamas
- Aruba Cruise Terminal, Aruba
- Lisbon Cruise Port, Portugal
- Overseas Passenger Terminal, Sydney, Australia
- Port Sultan Qaboos, Oman
- Ege Port, Türkiye
You can see the full ranking, including what each spot scored, on AllClear’s website.
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