I have been planning my next cruise, and been looking around searching for a cruise I might be interested in.

Is it just me, or are the cruiseships spending less and less time at their ports of call?

When I went to Cozumel two years ago, my ship did not leave until 12 midnight. Now it's hard to find any ship that will stay later than 8PM. It seems as if the ships hardly spend anytime in Grand Cayman as of recent.

If the ships in general are spending less time at their ports of call; then it is my theory that it is due to rising fuel costs. Perhaps to save money on fuel, the cruiseship captains are instructed to pull back on the throttle and go slower. And if so, they still need to complete the cruise and visit the ports of call during the alloted time of their cruise. So, that means leaving earlier and spending less time at each port of call. What do you think?

I think you are on to something.

It will also depend on the length of the cruise and how many other ports are on the itinerary. The situation in Cozumel could also be due to the pier space since the hurricane. The average port call is 7-8hrs for most ports. I see a Cozumel 8:00am-10:00pm port call with the new Carnival Freedom and Carnival Liberty. The same itinerary spends 9 hours in Grand Cayman.

I wonder if night time crime in some areas are a concern for the ships as well?

I have heard that it cost the cruise line more, sometimes a lot more if they stay at the port past a certain time.

Not sure if that is true, but it kind of makes sense.