San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico, is an intriguing blend of the old and the new. Founded in 1521, the city was a key port in the Spanish colonial empire, as evidenced by El Morro, the huge fortress that guards the harbor. Behind thick stone walls, Old San Juan retains its original character of blue cobblestone streets, elegant plazas and brightly colored heritage architecture. This lively center is the city’s – and island’s – cultural hub for museums, music, dining and more.

The Samaná peninsula is the Dominican Republic’s natural treasure, a region of verdant mountains, waterfalls, a beautiful bay and miles of pristine beaches. The port town of Santa Bárbara de Samaná overlooks Samaná Bay, where the annual winter gathering of thousands of Atlantic humpback whales is the top attraction. At the bay’s western end, Los Haitises National Park preserves and protects a diverse collection of subtropical plants and birds amid the forests and mangroves. Samaná’s famous beaches are on the northern coast along the Atlantic.

Few American cruise destinations have a past as engrained in popular culture as Salem. Settled by European fishermen in 1626 and named for the Hebrew word for peace – “shalom” – the seaport in 1692 was anything but peaceful. Multiple attractions harken back to the days of the witch trials, including the Witch House and the Trials Memorial. The Maritime National Historic Site comprises the Custom House, the enduring wharves and buildings along Derby Street and the Friendship of Salem, a replica of the East Indiaman tall ship launched in 1797.

Your yacht docks in Warnemünde, a charming resort town with a popular beach, a pretty promenade and gabled fishermen’s houses. Nearby Rostock enchants with its university established in 1419, St. Mary’s Church with its famous astronomical clock, the 13th-century Town Hall and the quaint Old Town. You might also travel inland to the quintessential fairy-tale castle of Schwerin Palace.

Rugged mountains, rainforest, black sand beaches and natural wonders: this is Dominica, the Nature Island. Volcanoes forged the striking interior of high peaks, deep gorges, rivers and waterfalls. Geothermal forces are still at work, from roiling the waters of Boiling Lake to blowing bubbles at Champagne Reef. The dramatic underwater topography of boulders, plunging stone walls and ancient craters is filled with colorful tropical fish, making for great diving and snorkeling as well as whale watching.

Picturesque half-timbered houses and cobblestone streets, Denmark’s highest waterfall and third largest forest, historic round churches, castle ruins and photo ops everywhere you go – welcome to Bornholm, a Danish treasure that lies closer to Sweden than Denmark. With the island’s comparatively mild climate, beaches are the main attraction for the hardy Swedes, but visitors from everywhere are enchanted by medieval Rønne and the unique round churches that were used as fortresses as well as places of worship during the Middle Ages.