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A seven-night Western Caribbean cruise from Galveston can give you three very different port days. Cozumel has a long window and easy west-coast choices. Roatán rewards a beach or snorkeling plan. Costa Maya is the short call where ambition needs the tightest edit.
This example is Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas round trip from Galveston, with departures shown on December 6, 2026 and April 25, 2027. It spends 10 scheduled hours in Cozumel, 9 in Roatán and 7 in Costa Maya, with three sea days between Galveston and the ports.
The schedule covers the sailings we track and undercounts some cruise lines. Confirm the order and times on your own booking, since other Symphony departures visit the same three ports in a different sequence.
The matching Eastern Caribbean plan from Port Canaveral uses the same approach: one main booking at each stop, with the spare time left flexible.
The route at a glance
| Day | Stop | Scheduled times | Main plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Galveston | Departs 3:00 PM | Board and confirm port bookings |
| 2 | At sea | No port call | Keep the day onboard |
| 3 | Cozumel | 8:00 AM-6:00 PM | Reef snorkeling or a beach club |
| 4 | At sea | No port call | Reset between excursions |
| 5 | Roatán | 8:00 AM-5:00 PM | West Bay beach and snorkeling |
| 6 | Costa Maya | 7:00 AM-2:00 PM | Mahahual beach |
| 7 | At sea | No port call | Leave the day open |
| 8 | Galveston | Arrives 7:00 AM | Disembark |
These are scheduled windows. Time ashore starts after the ship clears and ends before all-aboard. The shorter Costa Maya day especially needs a return plan built around the 2:00 PM departure.
Day 1: leave Galveston at 3:00 PM
Treat embarkation as a travel day. Board under Royal Caribbean’s assigned process, find the excursion meeting information and check which Cozumel pier appears in the latest itinerary. Symphony of the Seas has a dedicated ship page for its route and sailing details.
If you are driving or flying in, settle the parking, hotel and airport transfer before adding another reservation. The Galveston parking and hotel planner covers those logistics, while the Gulf cruising overview compares Galveston with the other regional homeports.
Day 2: use the first sea day to confirm Cozumel
The first sea day sits between Galveston and Cozumel. Use it to check the exact pier, the excursion meeting point and the return instructions. Royal Caribbean usually uses Cozumel’s southern piers, though the current booking should settle it for your date.
With three sea days on the route, not every onboard day needs a paid reservation. Put the shore budget into the activities that depend on local transport or a boat, then let the sea days remain open.
Day 3: Cozumel from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Cozumel has the longest scheduled stop on this example, with 10 hours between arrival and departure. The clear choices are a snorkel trip on the west-coast reefs or a west-coast beach club reached by taxi.
Choose snorkeling when the reef is the reason for the day. A booked boat keeps the meeting point and return together. Choose a beach club when you prefer a flexible stay, then agree the taxi fare and leave enough time to reach the correct pier.
The mainland ferry toward Playa del Carmen and Tulum uses most of the call. Attempt that plan only as a booked tour with return protection, because the day adds a ferry and a road transfer before the return crossing. The Cozumel one-day plan has the pier and taxi detail.
Day 4: keep the middle sea day clear
The second sea day separates Cozumel from Roatán. It gives you a clean buffer between two water-focused ports and time to confirm where the Roatán excursion begins.
Review the meeting time before dinner and pack the shore bag that night. The ship reaches Roatán at 8:00 AM, so a morning spent finding sunscreen and shoes is avoidable.
Day 5: Roatán from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Royal Caribbean usually uses the Port of Roatán Town Center at Coxen Hole. Check the current berth on your sailing, then make West Bay the center of the day. The nine-hour scheduled window gives room for a taxi to the beach and snorkeling from shore.
A booked snorkel boat is the alternative when you want the water portion organized. Confirm whether it leaves from Coxen Hole or includes transport from the cruise terminal. For an independent beach day, agree the taxi fare before leaving and set the return plan while you still have the driver.
West Bay works because the beach and snorkeling can share one destination. There is no need to add a separate island circuit unless that drive is the activity you actually want. The Roatán port-day plan explains Coxen Hole, West Bay and the return buffer.
Day 6: Costa Maya from 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Costa Maya is the short call. Chacchoben is roughly an hour each way by road, and all-aboard comes before the 2:00 PM departure. Visit the ruins only on an early booked tour whose schedule is built around the ship.
Mahahual is the lower-risk choice. The village and beach sit just over 2 miles from the pier, a short taxi ride away. Beach clubs rent loungers, and taxis wait outside the port gate with zone fares. Agree the price for the whole car before leaving.
The port complex has pools and shops if you want to stay close. A Mahahual beach day gives you a destination beyond the complex while keeping the road transfer short. Save a more ambitious inland outing for a call with a later departure.
Day 7 and day 8: return to Galveston
Day 7 is the third sea day. Use it as the quiet end of the trip rather than carrying unfinished shore plans onto the ship. Review the disembarkation instructions and confirm the transportation waiting in Galveston.
Symphony is scheduled to arrive at 7:00 AM on day 8. That time does not guarantee an immediate walk off the ship. Keep airport or pickup timing separate from the published arrival and follow the assigned disembarkation process.
Other seven-night routes change the port-day balance
Carnival Breeze and Carnival Dream routes can combine Cozumel, Belize City and Roatán. Other versions use Montego Bay, Grand Turk and Cozumel, or Key West, Celebration Key and Nassau. Belize City is a tender port, so that variation needs the transfer planning in the tender-port article.
MSC Seascape and Norwegian Viva also appear with Cozumel, Roatán and Costa Maya combinations, while Viva adds Harvest Caye. Disney Magic uses Nassau and Castaway Cay. These routes serve different kinds of days even when the cruise length stays at seven nights.
Use the Caribbean ports and Mexico and Pacific Coast ports collections to check replacement stops before reusing this plan. Match each activity to the actual order and hours shown for your sailing.
The route works when each stop has one center. Give Cozumel the reef or beach club, Roatán the West Bay day and Costa Maya the shorter Mahahual plan. The three sea days already provide the space between them.