Cruise Podcasts: Complete List of 30+ to Listen to, Any Time
Whether you're on the road, at home, on land, or at sea, these cruise podcasts are inspiring to listen to, no matter your location.
Whereas you need to read this blog post (hmmm….maybe we should turn it into an audio file for you!), we all know that podcasts are great for a listen while you drive, go for a walk or job, or while you're making dinner in your kitchen.
These podcasts include ones we listen to and enjoy. We list them by category, including cruise industry podcasts from the business side of the microphone to podcasts from cruise enthusiasts and influencers, to cruise-line-specific podcasts.
Disclosure: This page has affiliate links, meaning we may earn a small commission if you click the link and proceed with a purchase at no cost to you. We truly only recommend cruises, experiences, products, and services we personally use. As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.
How to Find the Best Cruise Podcasts for You, from Our List
It'd be crazy to subscribe to all of these – you'd have to make cruise podcast listening a full-time job if you were going to try to do that.
Instead, we suggest either finding a podcast that resonates with you based on the cruise line or topic. See if the host, or hosts, are to your liking after a listen.
There are some podcasts Dan listens to that I just cannot get into, and some I listen to he doesn't like. Then there are ones we both love that become the ones we listen to on road trips and at home together. It's the same with us for these cruise podcasts.
If we've linked the podcast up in Apple iTunes, Spotify, Sound Cloud, etc. it's likely it also exists on a number of other platforms. Simply search for the podcast in whatever your favorite software is for consuming the audio.
Podcast listening Essentials
Apple AirPods Pro
These noise-canceling headphones are our favorite travel accessory/electronic for listening on the go or home.
Beats Studio Buds
These noise-canceling headphones are tiny earbuds that work with Apple and Android devices. They're available in six colors: white, black, blue, grey, red, and pink.
Beats Studio 3 Wireless Headphones
Beats is a leader in sound. These noise-canceling headphones are Amazon's Choice, with over 35,000 reviews for 4.7 stars for a reason. They have a built-in microphone and are compatible with iOS and Android devices.
Wireless Waterproof Speaker
Practice going on your cruise poolside or beachside as you listen to a podcast on wireless, waterproof speakers.
Official Cruises Industry Podcasts
CLIA Podcasts
CLIA is the industry trade association whose letters stand for Cruise Lines International Association.
They have two cruise podcasts for listeners…
CLIA Cruise Podcast
These episodes are anywhere from 6 to 45 minutes to an hour. Generally speaking, each episode features an interview with someone new to cruising, including cruise line execs and travel advisors. They have episodes discussing industry news as well.
CLIA River View Podcast
This podcast is published a few times a quarter, but its episodes have solid interviews with river cruise industry pros, from managing directors of cruise lines to travel agents. We love the topic of river cruises, and we wish there were more podcasts like this available to listeners!
No Ordinary Adventure by Uncruise
Captain Dan from Uncruise, cruise line, is the leading voice behind this great podcast.
While he doesn't talk all cruise, all the time, it's hard to deny that the world of travel is interconnected no matter the “medium.” For instance, in one episode, he speaks with Joe Williams, an elder in a Tlingit tribe, about the history and culture of travel.
We first learned about the indigenous people in the Tlingit community brought through our experience with the port of Icy Strait Point in Alaska. Of course, this port is mostly reachable by cruise ships!
Captain Dan's podcast uncovers extraordinary adventures from his first-hand stories and connections. It's great for people that don't want cruise info in their cruise podcasts 100% of the time but still want that association.
The Maritime Podcast
This podcast came to our attention through Seatrade, which connects the cruise industry across the globe. Instead of focusing on cruising alone, they focus on maritime news.
This is an interesting podcast because cruises need to abide by maritime laws. Or shipping on the oceans. There's a lot of education in this relatively new but great podcast.
Cruise Enthusiasts and Influencers Cruise Podcasts
The Joy of Cruising Podcast
Hosted by author Paul C. Thornton, this podcast premiered in 2023 and already has dozens of podcast episodes published. He interviews the “who's who” of cruise media, whether DCL Duo Sam and Brian, or Dana Freeman, esteemed luxury cruise writer, or John Robert from In the Loop Travel.
Paul goes beyond media interviews, too, chatting with cruise musician Manny Kellough, acrobat and comedian Cameo Rascale, and Linda Johnson, the first lady of poker who has hosted over 200 poker-themed cruises.
Don't forget to check out his cruise books too, which is how he got his start in cruise media. He is the author of three cruise books: Award-winning The Joy of Cruising, Cruising Interrupted, and The Joy of Cruising Again. We are so proud to be featured in The Joy of Cruising Again!
➤ Check out our complete list of Non-Fiction Cruise Books list, including Paul's books!Cruise Radio
We love the Cruise Radio podcasts brought to you by Doug Parker. He is a top-notch, professional podcaster.
He has two podcasts: one short format and one longer…
Cruise Radio News
This is our go-to source for daily updates on cruise industry news. Doug keeps it brief and to the important news you need to know now.
Cruise Radio
These episodes average anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, pretty much discussing anything under the sun in terms of cruising, whether the ships themselves, up-to-date COVID cruise news and policies, private islands, and beyond! Sometimes we'll listen to a quick Cruise Radio News update, then keep listening to Doug with a longer episode of Cruise Radio.
Essential Cruise Tips
This cruise podcast is brought to you by cruise expert and author Gary Bembridge. We love his YouTube series sharing tips and advice for travelers. His voice and accent are so soothing too!
He's been on over 75 cruises, embarking on approximately 10 a year.
What we love about his cruise podcast is episodes are about 5 to 15 minutes each. So there's no excuse not to give them a listen.
The Cruise Dudes
The Cruise Dudes, Tommy Allison and Scott Andrews, keep podcasting manageable by producing one monthly episode. They have over 170 episodes under their belt, proving they're not a flash in the pan.
They share their favorite cruise tips, advice, and experiences in 1-hour episodes.
The Big Cruise Podcast
What we love about The Big Cruise Podcast is that host Baz, talks about unique information in the cruise world, including maritime historian Chris, concerning Australian and New Zealand markets.
They have occasional additional guests to share insight into the cruise industry, and they also discuss cruise news and answer listener questions. As cruising resumes, Baz plans to add cruise reviews to his podcast episodes.
Cruise Tips TV Unplugged
We, of course, love any couple who podcasts together and peppers their personalities into it. That's part of the appeal of Cruise Tips TV Unplugged for us.
Sheri and “Mr. Cruisetips TV” are the voices you'll regularly hear in episodes that discuss all things cruise casually. Episodes average 30 minutes to an hour.
Always Be Booked
This cruise podcast, hosted by Tony Casabona, shares cruise news, thoughts, and advice. We like that he pivoted during the pandemic to talk about some “staycation” conversations and stories at home, keeping it real in an uncertain time.
Shoutout to Tony's Long Island roots! I'm also from Long Island (Dan's from Buffalo), so I couldn't let that similarity pass without a mention! His bluntness and accent have us missing NY.
His 100+ episodes prove his devotion to podcasting. And his catchy, upbeat intro reminds us of another favorite (non-cruise) podcast Dan and I love, The Best One Yet. It makes us happy!
The Shipping Podcast
Host Lena Göthberg interviewed “interesting maritime professionals” on her podcast. This can be anyone from cruise pros to maritime industry innovators.
We love her interview from a few years ago with Captain Kate McCue, the first American female cruise captain who sails Celebrity Cruises ships.
Avid Travel
We identify with so many of the episodes of this podcast, by Britton Frost, including discussing River vs. Ocean Cruises, why cruising is for everyone, and talking about which cruise lines allow children.
The 100 episodes are 30 minutes or less.
La Lido Loca Cruise Podcas‪t‬
Tony Barnette talks cruise questions, news, and musings on the podcast named after the blog of the same name. Episodes average 40 minutes to an hour. After a hiatus in 2022, the podcast picks back up in 2023 with great interviews with content creators and crew members discussing all things cruise.
Podcasts from Cruise Crew
Oooooh! Don't we all want to take a peek behind the curtain on cruise ships? If Bravo's successful series, Below Deck, has proven anything, it's we all want to know how the sausage is made.
Here are three great podcasts that take you behind the doors that say, “Crew Only.”
Keeping Afloat
This podcast is brought to you by Cruise Director Kabir. It's always fun to hear about cruise experiences from people who have worked and lived on cruise ships. But he's not just interviewing people – he's telling stories. This makes listening about 1,000 times more enjoyable.
Curious about dating life on cruise ships? We are. (Spicy!) Or interested to know what it was like to be on a ship during the height of COVID-19? Want to know how he won over a rival? He shares.
His super-engaging episodes are between 5 minutes to 45 minutes. He changes the names of cruise ships and particulars to protect the innocent.
Behind the Crew Door
It's fascinating to take a look behind the curtain (and “below the waterline,” where the crew lives, as Sarah says) with hosts Sarah and Tom.
Their cruise podcast, Behind the Crew Door, is where they dish on the details. Though they stopped recording in 2021, you can listen to the 52 episodes available, averaging 25 to 40 minutes each.
Cruise Life Experience
Mitch Merucci & Mike Szwajkowski are Cruise Directors who take a light-hearted look at the cruise industry.
They published nine episodes, which were mayybbeeee something to do during the pandemic if we had to guess. We hope they revitalize the podcast and update it in the future since the last one they published was in July 2020. Regardless, the available ones are worth a listen.
My Ship Story
A trio of hosts is at the helm of My Ship Story, which was started in August of 2020 and has over 145 episodes. Scott, Eric, and Brad help crew members (past and current) to tell their best stories about life at sea and their experiences working on cruise ships. And, of course, all three hosts are past cruise crew members with a passion for the cruise industry.
The podcast episodes vary in length. Which we like because there's no need to prolong a story that takes 30 minutes to tell or shorten a story that really needs an hour.
It's really interesting to listen to stories as recent as COVID times and what it's like to deal with COVID onboard ships, or how a man ends up working in a cruise gift shop to be with his girlfriend to someone who used to work in the casino on a cruise ship and how they really make their income.
This cruise podcast is seriously binge-worthy! Subscribe to My Ship Story and listen on some road trips or even on your way to a cruise terminal.
Cruise Line-Specific Cruise Podcasts
The Royal Caribbean Podcast
This weekly podcast discusses – you guessed it – the Royal Caribbean brand.
Royal Caribbean blogger, Matt, knows so much about the cruise industry on a scale beyond one line. And he has guests that share all sorts of experiences, whether about back-to-back cruises, celebrating milestones onboard Royal Caribbean, or even what it's like to win in the casino onboard.
He has hundreds of episodes to listen to. While some are time-sensitive to their publish date because of breaking news, most of them are interesting conversations about cruising, valid anytime, from discussing listener questions to Royal Suite Class conversations (Royal Caribbean's ship-within-a-ship cruise category), to ship-specific reviews.
Browse over 500 episodes, pick one that interests you, and give it a listen!
Disney Cruise Line Cruise Podcasts
It's not a surprise that Disney Cruise podcasts are out there.
Enthusiasts who specifically want to talk about the brand, just like lovers of Disneyland and Walt Disney World do, share their love for DCL in audio format.
Here are four to enjoy…
DCL Duo Podcast
As the name indicates, this pair of podcasters, Sam and Brian, discuss their love of Disney Cruise Line on DCL Duo.
But as most DCL fans know, love for the Disney brand doesn't stop on the water. They go beyond the DCL fleet of ships to include Adventures by Disney, and share their love of the parks and Disney travel overall. We appreciate them weighing in on the Best Disney Cruise Line Ship for us at Sometimes Sailing, too!
Listen to Episode 109 to hear us chat about our first experience on a Disney Cruise together and my past experience working at Imagineering. Mikkel is also on Episode 282 discussing her experience photographing a Disney Wish wedding along with the bride and groom.
You'll quickly get hooked on this podcast and expand your listening to their episodes that go beyond DCL into other cruise line experiences. And with more than 300 episodes, there are plenty of topics to choose from!
The DCL Dude Podcast
Wes Dauer focuses on DCL pretty exclusively, deep-diving into brand-specific ports of call, and ships, and even interviews performers and crew who work onboard. On average, the episodes are between 30 minutes to an hour, with a few outliers.
DCL Podcast
Steve Kriese discusses Disney Cruise Line information on his podcast but expands into the parks, collaborations with other Disney podcasters, and touches on other cruise lines. Episodes are typically 45 minutes to an hour.
Disney Cruise Line Blog Podcast
This podcast has episodes ranging from about 20 minutes to an hour. Scott Sanders has published 60 episodes, beginning in 2016. DCL news is kept current in his blog content as well.
Cruise Podcasts that aren't Producing New Content
The podcasts below have some good content, which is why we mention them. However, it's important to acknowledge that they don't seem to produce new content. Because of this, we've noted when their last episode on record is, for each one.
Who knows – maybe one day, these podcasters will dust off their microphones and get back to it! And if not, there is still some solid content there.
Cruise Critic Podcast
This is one of the most popular cruising websites, so isn't a surprise they had a podcast. I supposed what's surprising is it never got out of the beta stage, and they only have 6 episodes published on Apple Podcasts.
Cruise Town
This podcast about Juneau, Alaska, highlights what it's like to live in a cruise port town, including information about Juneau. Its last episode is from July 2021, after the resumption of cruising post-pandemic.
CruiseHabit Podcast
The last time Ric & Billy discussed their cruise habit was pre-pandemic. They have reviewed specific ships, talked to cruise line executives, and discussed the rise of the mega-ship within less than 20 episodes, ending with a Norwegian Sky recap in July 2019.
River Cruise Radio
We were sad to find this podcast and quickly learn its episodes stopped in June 2018.
Sherry Laskin hosted the podcast. She shared information about all things river cruise, including info about USA River Cruises, her first experience on a river cruise, to Christmas Market river cruises, and beyond.
We're biased in favor of river cruises, which is not a secret. So we're both bummed about this yet glad it exists. You can still listen to the 64 episodes.
You may know Sherry as the Cruise Maven, a cruise and travel writer who doesn't fly.
Cruise Maven Travel Podcast
Sherry Laskin (mentioned above) had a cruise podcast with four episodes back in 2015. They ranged in length from 15 minutes to 26 minutes.
Popular Cruising {Video} Podcast
163 episodes was a good run for this {video} cruise podcast by Jason Leppert. The unique twist on this is its video content, which was produced weekly until December 2016.
You can't watch the videos, say, if you're driving, trying to listen only. It's just not the same because the videos are high quality and so interesting, and you'll want to watch them.
You can tune into content that gives you tours of specific ships, ones that peel back the curtain of ship operations with behind-the-scenes information or watch simple one-minute clips showcasing cruise cabins.
Most of the videos are around one to two minutes; longer videos are 15 minutes.
Fintastic Cruising
Matt (formerly of The Cruise Geeks) and his partner, Kimbra, started this podcast in August of 2019. They talk about anything cruising, from creatures you'll see while sailing (dolphins and turtles included), to ports of call, themed cruises, and beyond.
Though they stopped recording in September 2022, there are 151 available episodes to enjoy.
The Cruise Geeks
The Cruise Geeks, Tony, and Matt, had long format episodes averaging about 80 to 90 minutes each. They shared everything cruise, including ship and port info, from February 2018 to May 2019. Matt also hosted Fintastic Cruise podcast with his partner, Kimbra, mentioned above.
Don't forget to sign up for our Cruise Podcasts quick reference guide PDF, which is hyperlinked with all these cruise podcasts.