Three Ways to Cruise from Korea: Incheon and Busan Departures, Mid-Cruise Boarding in Busan, and Charter Packages

What Is Convenient About Boarding in Korea, and What Should You Watch Out For?

Boarding at a Korean port means you do not need to fly to start your trip. You can check your bags at the terminal and board without worrying about airport transfers or jet lag. The travel industry also identifies “being able to board directly in Korea with less travel burden” as one reason more people are trying cruises for the first time.

However, boarding in Korea does not mean you will return to Korea. All of the departures in category (A) end in another country, such as Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, or the United States. Since these are one-way cruises, you need to fly home from the city where you disembark, so plan your return flight and disembarkation-day schedule together.

(A) Departing Directly from Korea — 17 sailings from Incheon, 2 from Busan

TravelersMap’s cruise data lists 21 future cruise departures from Korea. We are introducing 19 of them, excluding 2 Busan departures whose departure details are being rechecked. You can plan each day of all of them with our Cruise Planner.

Departures from Incheon — following the Japanese archipelago to Tokyo. Most itineraries call at Jeju, then ports on the western side of Kyushu and Honshu, such as Nagasaki, Kagoshima, and Hiroshima, and end in Yokohama or Tokyo. The next departure is a 9-night Norwegian Jade sailing that leaves Incheon on November 21, 2026 and reaches Yokohama on November 30. The same ship also departs from Incheon in spring and fall 2027 and spring 2028. For a shorter trip, there is a 3-night MSC Bellissima sailing from Incheon to Keelung, Taiwan, on June 20, 2027. Premium cruise lines with fewer passengers, such as Regent Seven Seas and The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, also depart from Incheon.

Departures from Busan — smaller ports in Kyushu and Shikoku. In April and May 2028, Emerald Xara sails from Busan to Osaka over 10 nights, calling at Tsushima, Nagasaki, Kagoshima, Beppu, and Matsuyama. Since it is a small-capacity ship, it can also call at ports too small for large ships.

※ The two Seven Seas Splendor departures on April 16, 2028 are on the same ship. You can choose between an 11-night sailing ending in Tokyo or a 31-night sailing continuing through Alaska to San Francisco.

(B) Boarding a Cruise Mid-Route at a Korean Port

There are few ships departing from Korea, but there are many more ships calling at Korean ports. Our data lists 355 future cruise sailings departing from abroad and calling at Korean ports such as Busan, Jeju, Incheon, Yeosu, and Sokcho. Busan is the most frequently visited.

Some of these ships are sold by Korean travel agencies as “board in Busan” products. The ship has already departed from Shanghai or Hong Kong, but you board when it calls at Busan and travel only the remaining segment. We confirmed two examples on sales pages.

Example 1 — 5 nights, boarding in Busan and disembarking in Yokohama. Royal Caribbean's Spectrum of the Seas departs Hong Kong on January 3, 2027, and ends its voyage in Yokohama on January 11. If you board when the ship calls at Busan on January 6, it will continue via Nagasaki (January 7) and Kobe (January 9), reaching Yokohama on the afternoon of January 10. The ship leaves Busan at 6 p.m. on January 6. Boarding procedures in Busan close earlier, so be sure to follow the boarding time provided by the seller. Since this is a one-way trip ending in Yokohama, you will also need to arrange a flight home. View the full itinerary for this ship

Example 2 — 4–6 nights, boarding and disembarking in Busan on a round-trip sailing from Shanghai. In January–February and August–September 2027, MSC Bellissima sails round trip from Shanghai, calling at Jeju, Busan, Fukuoka, and Sasebo. Boarding in Busan gives you a 4-night, 5-day to 6-night, 7-day trip that goes via Shanghai and returns to Busan. Since both the departure and arrival ports are Busan, you do not need a flight. You board at the Busan Yeongdo Cruise Terminal, and the ship departs at night. View examples of sailings on the same route

• CruiseTMK sells Example 1 as a cruise-only product (sales page), while HanaTour sells it as a package including a return flight (cruise product list). Example 2 is sold as a “Busan departure” product by Lotte Tour Development (sales page) and HanaTour (cruise product list). The Busan boarding dates listed on the Lotte Tour page are January 26 and 30; February 4, 8, 13, 17, 22, and 26; August 13, 18, 22, and 26; and September 1, 5, 9, and 14, 2027. (Checked on 2026-10-29 · subject to change; confirm with the seller.)

Other Cruises Calling at Korea (check boarding availability with the cruise line). The ships below also call at Korean ports, but we could not confirm from official information or sales pages whether passengers can board in Korea. If interested, first ask the seller whether you can board in Busan (or Incheon or Jeju).

• Princess — Diamond Princess and Sapphire Princess: Japanese circumnavigation cruises of 7–28 nights round trip from Tokyo or Yokohama include Busan and Jeju (November 2026–November 2028; 154 sailings in our data).
• Royal Caribbean — Spectrum of the Seas: 3–6-night round trips from Shanghai include Busan, Incheon, and Seogwipo (January 2027–April 2028).
• Celebrity — Solstice and Millennium: 10–14-night round trips from Tokyo or Yokohama include Busan and Seogwipo (March 2027–October 2028).
• Holland America — Noordam and Westerdam: 14-night round trips from Tokyo and other itineraries include Busan, Yeosu, Sokcho, Incheon, and Jeju (November 2026–April 2028).
• Regent and The Ritz-Carlton: 9–14-night round trips from Tokyo include Busan.

For a cruise boarded mid-route, you must board within the time the ship is in port, and fares and boarding availability vary by seller. Be sure to confirm the date and boarding time with the seller before booking.

There are also cruises that depart from abroad and disembark in Korea. Our data lists 23 such departures. For example, Norwegian Jade leaves Tokyo on March 5, 2027 and reaches Incheon on March 14. MSC Bellissima leaves Tokyo on June 10, 2027, calls at Kagoshima, and reaches Incheon on June 14. This is an option to fly one way and return to Korea by ship. You can also plan these departures with the Cruise Planner.

(C) Charter Ships and Travel Packages

These are products where a Korean travel agency charters an entire ship or bundles a cruise with flights and an escort. Many are round trips boarding and disembarking at a Korean port, and have Korean-language guidance. Here are the products we confirmed through public announcements or sales pages. All information is as of October 29, 2026 and may change, so confirm with the seller before booking.

• Lotte Tour Development charter · MSC Bellissima · Round trip from Incheon, 6 nights/7 days · 1 departure on June 14, 2027: Incheon → at sea → Keelung, Taiwan → at sea → Sasebo, Japan → Incheon. Board and disembark in Incheon, so no flight is needed. Source: Lotte Tour charter page · Sidae Ilbo, 2026-09-14
• HanaTour charter group package · Adora Cruises · Busan round trip, 6 days · Departure on May 7, 2027: This itinerary visits Busan, Fukuoka, and Shanghai. Source: HanaTour cruise product list
• Modetour exclusive cruise · Busan round trip · Only 2 departures, on May 17 and October 8, 2027: Check the seller’s detailed information for the ship and route. In June 2026, Modetour also chartered Costa Serena for its first exclusive charter, sailing from Busan to Hakodate and Otaru. Source: Modetour home page · Herald Business, 2026-01-30
• HanaTour · Eastern Venus · Japan round trip from Busan, 3 or 4 days: An independent-travel-style product for a short trip to Japan. Check departure dates on the sales page. Source: HanaTour cruise product list
• Going forward: Lotte Tour Development announced a partnership with MSC to expand its charter program to 2 ships in 2028 and up to 3 ships in 2029. Dates have not yet been announced. Source: Herald Business, 2026-01-27

How to Choose Your First Cruise

1. Start by planning how you will return. If you want a trip without flying, a round trip from Busan or Incheon (example 2 in category B or a charter in category C) is the easiest. For a one-way cruise, it is more relaxed to stay one night in the disembarkation city before flying home.
2. Count the days you will be away from home. For a one-way sailing, count through the day you fly home after disembarking; for mid-route boarding, count from the day you board, not the day the ship originally departed.
3. Decide whether to buy just the cruise or a package. Buying only the cruise gives you a wider choice of ship and cabin. Packages and charters include flights, an escort, and Korean-language guidance, but the dates are fixed.
4. Fares keep changing by date and cabin. We have not listed prices in this article. Check the fare for a departure you are interested in as of the current date.

Summary

• Cruises departing directly from Korea leave from Incheon or Busan, and all are one-way cruises ending in another country.
• There are also “board in Busan” products for ships that depart from Shanghai, Hong Kong, or Tokyo and call at Busan. Some are round trips from Busan.
• Charter and package cruises sold by Korean travel agencies often bundle a round trip from a Korean port with flights and an escort, making them less daunting for a first cruise.

If you find a departure you like, Cruise Planner lets you plan each day for that date directly. Add the date you fly home after disembarkation to see your full trip length at a glance.

For more detailed travel advice, plan your trip with AI in the Cruise Planner below.