port of call

noun

1. a port visited briefly by a ship, usually to take on or discharge passengers and cargo or to undergo repairs.

port of call

noun

1. any port where a ship stops, excluding its home port

2. any place visited on a traveller's itinerary

Word History and Origins

Origin of port of call¹

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

She added: "Now it's my first port of call, whenever I am coming up to a big event I think to myself: 'What can I borrow?'."

From BBC

The first port of call is Santa Cruz de Tenerife and as the Avontuur approaches, the crew can hear the distant drums of the city's enormous carnival.

From BBC

I’m a married woman in my 30s with a horror of vacationing in hot places, breaking bread with strangers and visiting ports of call where the local culture consists of Margaritavilles and novelty T-shirt shops.

From Salon

So you can imagine the appeal of the possibility of becoming the first European port of call for masses of container ships from Asia, depending on how fast the polar ice continues to melt.

From BBC

It began at the Munich Security Conference last month, a regular port of call for a US vice-president.

From BBC