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Short cruises from Los Angeles and Long Beach: 3-day, 4-day and weekend trips

The schedule has 146 3-night and 154 4-night cruises. Nearly all the 3-night trips leave on a Friday for Ensenada, and most 4-night trips leave on a Monday and add Catalina. On 2 November 2026 starting fares were $209 for 3 nights and $193 for 4 nights, per person with taxes and port fees included.

By Andrew Budai · Last checked · Rates and opening hours change, so confirm before you travel.

Short cruises from Los Angeles follow a weekly rhythm. A 3-night trip leaves on Friday, the same ship comes back on Monday morning, and a 4-night trip leaves that afternoon. Carnival runs this from Long Beach and Royal Caribbean from San Pedro.

The table at the end of this guide lists every sailing shorter than a week, with today's fares.

What are the 3-day cruises from Los Angeles?

A 3-day cruise from Los Angeles is a 3-night round trip to Ensenada, Mexico, and the schedule has 146 of them. The lines sell them as 3-day cruises, and Carnival calls its version 3-Day Baja Mexico, but by the calendar you are away on four days.

About nine in ten leave on a Friday. These ships carry most of the short trips:

ShipLine and terminalUsual days3-night4-nightShort trips listed
Carnival RadianceCarnival, Long BeachFriday and Monday788217 December 2026 to 20 October 2028
Ovation of the SeasRoyal Caribbean, San PedroFriday and Monday45442 November 2026 to 5 November 2027
Navigator of the SeasRoyal Caribbean, San PedroFriday and Monday, about every other week111112 November 2027 to 10 April 2028
Brilliant LadyVirgin, San PedroWednesday and Saturday226 November 2027 to 24 November 2027

Carnival Firenze adds short trips from Long Beach in November and December 2026, and a few other ships have one-off dates. The 3-night page lists every date with its day of the week.

Are there 3-day cruises from Long Beach?

Yes. All 87 of Carnival's 3-night cruises leave from Long Beach, and Carnival Radiance sails most of them. On 2 November 2026 the lowest Carnival 3-night fare was $212 per person, with taxes and port fees included.

Long Beach is a separate port from San Pedro, so a trip sold as "Los Angeles" may not leave from where you expect. Carnival's sailings all start at Long Beach, and our terminal guide shows how to check. The Long Beach page lists them by date.

How many port days does a 3-night cruise from Los Angeles have?

A 3-night cruise from Los Angeles usually has one port day. Nearly every one on the schedule has Ensenada as its only stop, plus one day at sea. The exception is Ovation of the Seas's one-way trip to Vancouver on 5 November 2027, which lists no stops.

The order changes by ship. These are the itineraries Cruisebound showed on 1 November 2026:

Carnival Radiance, 7 May 2027Ovation of the Seas, 20 November 2026
FridayLeaves Long Beach, 3:30 PMLeaves San Pedro, 4:00 PM
SaturdayAt seaEnsenada, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
SundayEnsenada, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PMAt sea
MondayBack at 8:00 AMBack at 7:00 AM

Go by the day-by-day itinerary and not the trip's name. Cruisebound calls Navigator of the Seas's 12 November 2027 sailing a Catalina and Ensenada getaway, but its itinerary shows Ensenada as the only port.

Are there weekend cruises from Los Angeles?

Yes, the Friday 3-night trip is the weekend cruise from Los Angeles, though it does not end on Sunday. The ship is back between 7:00 and 8:00 AM on Monday, so plan on taking Friday afternoon and Monday morning off. Nothing on the schedule is shorter than 3 nights.

Our weekend cruises page lists every sailing of any length that leaves on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

What are the 4-day cruises from Los Angeles?

A 4-day cruise from Los Angeles is a 4-night round trip that usually leaves on a Monday and is back on Friday morning, so it takes a working week. There are 154 on the schedule, and most add Catalina Island to Ensenada, which gives you two port days and one sea day.

Carnival Radiance, 3 May 2027Ovation of the Seas, 23 November 2026
MondayLeaves Long Beach, 3:30 PMLeaves San Pedro, 4:00 PM
TuesdayAvalon, 8:00 AM to 5:30 PMAt sea
WednesdayAt seaAvalon, 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM
ThursdayEnsenada, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PMEnsenada, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
FridayBack at 8:00 AMBack at 7:00 AM

Not every 4-night trip stops at Catalina. Ovation of the Seas's Monday trips from 27 September to 1 November 2027 list Ensenada only, and so do most of Navigator of the Seas's. Princess has a few 4-night trips, some round trip to San Diego and Ensenada and some one way to Vancouver, which need a flight home. The 4-night page has the ports for each date.

What are Ensenada and Catalina like as stops on a cruise from Los Angeles?

Ensenada is a Mexican port with a call of about eight or nine hours, and Catalina is a California island you reach by small boat. Those call times come from the itineraries above.

Plan your Ensenada day around the clock. Royal Caribbean puts La Bufadora 45 minutes' drive from the port, so the round trip alone takes about an hour and a half of the call, by our arithmetic. Because Ensenada is in Mexico, check the cruise documents guide before you book. Ensenada is not on Carnival's list of water shuttle ports.

Catalina is on that list. Carnival says its ships anchor at those ports and shuttle guests ashore, and Princess says it typically uses tenders at Avalon, so allow for the wait. Carnival says some shuttles may not be accessible to people using wheelchairs or scooters, and that the captain makes the final decision on boarding.

Is a longer cruise from Los Angeles better value per night?

Usually, and the biggest drop comes between 3 and 4 nights. When we wrote this on 1 November 2026, the 3-night trips were the most expensive per night of any length up to 8 nights. The table shows the lowest fares on 2 November 2026, per person with taxes and port fees included:

LengthSailingsLowest fareLowest per night
3 nights146$209$70
4 nights154$193$48
5 nights21$249$50
6 nights64$270$45
7 nights154$299$43

Those lows come from different ships and months, so same-ship comparisons are fairer:

  • Carnival Radiance. $105 a night at 3 nights, $54 at 4 and $50 at 5.
  • Ovation of the Seas. $70 a night at 3 nights, $55 at 4 and $68 at 7.

The typical fare says more than the lowest. On 1 November 2026 the median 4-night fare on both ships was only slightly above the median 3-night fare, by our own calculation, so the extra night and the Catalina stop cost little. A week is not always lower per night. Ovation of the Seas's lowest 4-night beat its lowest 7-night that day, though its median 7-night was the lower of the two. Fares move daily, so check your own dates. The cruise length pages and our cheap and last-minute guide go further.

Should you book a 3-night or a 4-night cruise from Los Angeles?

Book the 3-night if a long weekend is all you can take, and the 4-night if you can take the working week. On days away, the Friday trip costs you a Friday afternoon and a Monday morning, and the Monday trip costs you Monday afternoon to Friday morning.

The 4-night gives you a second port day on most sailings, and on 1 November 2026 it usually cost little more in total. The 3-night asks for fewer days off, but it does not save much money. Compare the two on your own dates on the 3-night and 4-night pages.

What does a short cruise from Los Angeles not include?

A short cruise does not reach Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan or Puerto Vallarta. On this schedule Cabo San Lucas takes at least 5 nights, and Carnival Panorama's Sunday 6-night trips from Long Beach, 51 in all, are the regular way to get there. Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta take 7 nights, and Hawaii takes 14. Our Mexico guide compares those routes.

The fare leaves out the same things as on a longer cruise. Cruisebound lists beverage packages, gratuities, Wi-Fi, specialty dining and shore excursions as extras on these sailings.

  • Gratuities. On 1 November 2026 Carnival's recommended rate was $17 a day per guest in a standard cabin, and Royal Caribbean's was $18.50. For two people on 3 nights that is $102 or $111, by our arithmetic.
  • Parking. San Pedro's posted daily maximum was $23 on 1 November 2026, which is $69 for 3 nights by our arithmetic. Carnival publishes no Long Beach rate, the city's visitor bureau listed the same $23, and the parking guide explains the limits there.
  • A second bag. Carnival advises one bag per person on 3- to 5-day cruises, against two on 6 days or longer, with a 50-pound limit on each.

Which terminal do short cruises from Los Angeles use?

Carnival's short cruises use the Long Beach Cruise Terminal, and Royal Caribbean's and Virgin's leave from San Pedro. The official schedule shows the San Pedro ones at the World Cruise Center through 31 December 2027. It ends there, so later sailings show San Pedro with no berth until it is extended.

Princess's 4-night trips can differ, because Star Princess's 26 April 2027 sailing uses the Outer Harbor. Check the row for your date.

Where else can you take a short cruise from California?

This site covers San Pedro and Long Beach only. Royal Caribbean's California page also lists 3- and 4-night trips from San Diego, which we do not track.

Sources

Cruises from Los Angeles shorter than a week

From the schedule on this site, rebuilt every day.

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