Taking place six months after the events in ''Romancing the Stone'', Joan Wilder's (Kathleen Turner) and Jack Colton's (Michael Douglas) romance has grown stale. While moored at a port in the South of France, Joan, suffering writer's block, wants to return to New York, while Jack prefers aimlessly sailing the world on his boat, the ''Angelina''. At a book signing engagement, Joan meets Omar (Spiros Focás), a charming Arab ruler who wants Joan to write his biography. Joan accepts and leaves with Omar over Jack's protests. Jack later runs into Ralph (Danny DeVito), the swindler from Jack and Joan's previous adventure in Colombia, who demands Jack turn over the gem Jack and Joan found. Shortly after, an Arab, Tarak (Paul David Magid), informs Jack about Omar's true intentions and claims that Omar has the "Jewel of the Nile"; just as Tarak finishes his explanations, the ''Angelina'' explodes from a bomb set by one of Omar's men. Ralph and Jack team up to find Joan and the fabled jewel.