The Alaska Discount Cruise Guide

2012 Alaska Cruise Collection: 7-Day Vancouver Roundtrip Cruise Inside Passage Itinerary

Who will enjoy this Cruise the most?

The Glacier Enthusiast: Enjoy a day visiting Glacier Bay National Park or Hubbard Glacier in fjord like Yakutat Bay. Either day, will be narrated by a US Park Service Ranger.

The One Week Alaska Enthusiast: If your vacation is limited to a maximum of 7 days, this is the cruise for you. Comprehensive, affordable and easily accessible.

The History Buff: Retrace the route of the great Klondike Gold Rush of 1898 from the shores of Skagway or discover the Russian American Heritage of Alaska in beautiful Sitka.

What’s included?

7 night cruise with all meals, accommodations, sea-going transportation and entertainment on ship.

Holland America Line

Zuiderdam – 1,916 guests

Departs: May 14 – Sept. 22, 2012

Volendam – 1,432 guests

Departs: May 2 – Sept. 19, 2012

Celebrity Cruises

Century – 2,590 guests

Departs: May 13 – Sept. 9, 2012

Ports of Call

Ketchikan – is home to the world’s largest collection of totem poles, which can be viewed at Saxman Native Village, Totem Bight State Park and the Totem Heritage Center. Totems can also be viewed at many other public locations around town, and even in front of local residences. South of town at Saxman Native Village, local carvers follow in the footsteps of their ancestors by demonstrating their sculpting skills as they work on poles, canoes, paddles and masks.

Your ship docks in “downtown” and within walking distance are many interesting attractions including Ketchikan Creek, who’s shoreline bends and curves past Creek Street, a wooden boardwalk. Beginning in the prohibition era, buildings on the creek housed bordellos. Today restaurants, museums, galleries and gift shops are popular stops along the creek. It’s a fun and interesting stroll along the boardwalk.

Juneau: Alaska’s Capital City. Juneau is a thriving community offering a great blend of city amenities and small-town hospitality, all in the heart of Alaska’s majestic mountains, rivers, glaciers, and forests. Nearly 31,000 people call Juneau home – many of them working in government, tourism, mining, and fishing industries. Fascinatingly, even today the only way to get to Juneau is by boat or airplane.

Your ship will conveniently dock in “downtown” within walking distance to many tourist sites including the Alaska State Museum and copious shopping. You can come and go from the ship as you please and enjoy dinner onboard or ashore. Possibly a salmon bake!

Skagway: The Gateway to the Klondike in 1898 the population surged to 8,000-10,000; since then has settled down nicely to 846 residents! The Northern terminus of the Inside Passage and jumping off point for the Klondike. It is one of two ports connecting commerce along the Inside Passage with the Alaska Highway and points further North. Its’ personality however, is totally rough and tumble Gold Rush! The past lives on in Skagway with the Historic Boardwalk of Broadway, false front buildings, saloons and a resilient pioneering spirit.

Or, Sitka: Beautiful Sitka-By-The-Sea is settled on Baranof Island, is located on the outer coast of Alaska’s Inside Passage. Like most of Southeast Alaska communities, Sitka is only accessible by air or by sea. The downtown area and most tourist attractions are within easy walking distance of each other. Best known for its Russian-American heritage, you will easily be able to take in St. Michael’s Cathedral, the New Archangel Dancers and many other cultural and historical highlights. Sitka is a “tender-only” port, which means there is not a deep water berth for your ship. Rather, you will tender (take a small boat) from your ship to the tourist pier. For most guests, this is a quick, easy transfer which adds a bit of adventure to your trip!

Wilderness & Scenic Highlights

Tracy Arm is located 45 miles south of Juneau. It is named after a Civil War general named after Benjamin Franklin Tracy. The Tracy Arm area covers 653,179 acres and consists of two deep and narrow fjords. You will visit Tracy Arm which is approximately 30 miles long and one-fifth of the area is covered in ice. The twin Sawyer Glaciers, North Sawyer and South Sawyer, are located at the end of Tracy Arm. The wildlife in the area includes black and brown bears, deer, wolves, harbor seals and a variety of birds.

Or, Glacier Bay: The marine wilderness of Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve includes tidewater and alpine glaciers, snow-capped mountains ranges, ocean coastlines, deep fjords, freshwater rivers and lakes. It is part of one of the largest internationally protected Biospheres Reserves in the world, and is recognized by the United Nations as a World Heritage Site (UNESCO).

Or, Hubbard Glacier is the longest tidewater glacier Alaska. It originates in the Yukon Territory, 76 miles from its face (6 miles wide) in Yakutat Bay. Typically, it is a very active glacier with calving icebergs.

It takes about 400 years for ice to traverse the length of the glacier, meaning that the ice at the foot of the glacier is about 400 years old. The glacier routinely calves off icebergs size of a ten-story building. Where the glacier meets the shore, most of the ice is below the waterline, and newly calved icebergs can shoot up quite dramatically, so that ships must keep their distance from it as they ply their way up and down the coast.

Either Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier scenic visit, will be narrated by a US Park Service Ranger.