Alaska Cruise Season—Booking Options for 2024 & 2025

BEARAlaska Cruise Season—Booking Options for 2024 & 2025
By Paloma Villaverde de RicoWe’ve rounded up an array of booking options for Alaska cruise season, whether clients are looking for family fun, luxury sailings or iconic itineraries…and whether they’re ready to sail this year or next. Cunard Launches Queen Elizabeth’s 2025 Alaska SeasonSailing roundtrip from Seattle, Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth will offer 11 voyages in Alaska in 2025, ranging from seven to 11 nights, from June 12 until Sept. 25.During the season, Cunard will offer 24 late evening departures, allowing your clients to explore port cities such as Ketchikan, adorned with colorful totem poles, or Sitka, where 22 buildings have earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places. While in Icy Strait Point, guests can join a whale-watching expedition or ride the world’s largest zipline, with six 5,330-ft. ziplines dropping 1,330 ft. There’s also the opportunity to visit the UNESCO-listed Glacier Bay National Park, with its ice-capped mountains and towering glaciers, with the ship also calling at Juneau, Skagway, Tracy Arm Fjord, Endicott Arm and Hubbard Glacier. On board, Cunard offers Alaska Native Voices, including a Cultural Heritage Guide, plus a Naturalist on every sailing. Explorers and adventurers will share their heroic feats, providing a unique educational component to the journey. Additionally, the onboard food and beverage options will include indigenous flavors foraged from land and sea as well as cocktails inspired by Alaska’s glacial scenery. As Katie McAlister, president of Cunard, notes: “We are incredibly excited to offer guests the new opportunity of sailing roundtrip into Alaska from Seattle. Due to strong guest demand, Cunard is offering a full summer season in Alaska, allowing travelers to delve into the region’s wildlife and visit extraordinary cities, with extended time in port to fully appreciate this captivating destination.”ROOMAdventures in Alaska with Disney Cruise LineSailing from Vancouver, the Disney Wonder will be offering 5-, 7- and 9-night cruises to Alaska from May 13 to Sept. 16. The majority of itineraries are for seven nights, and they include visits to Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan and Icy Strait Point. Passengers will have an array of opportunities for shore excursions, including touring the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park; riding the late 19th-century White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad; digging into the mining relics along Chilkoot Trail; hiking along Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area; soaring by aerial tramway to the top of Mount Roberts; observing salmon spawning at a local hatchery; and exploring Misty Fjords National Monument by floatplane. A highlight of these Alaska trips is glacier viewing along the Stikine Icecap, which is renowned for its iconic granite spires and imposing peaks. Straddling the Alaska-British Columbia boundary, it’s Alaska’s southernmost icefield and one of the three biggest icecaps in the state. A good tip is to sell from the top down when it comes to staterooms, so in this case recommend the Concierge category staterooms such as the 304-sq.-ft. Concierge Family Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah, which sleeps five. Within the Verandah category, you can recommend the 268-sq.-ft. Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah for a family of three or four. SHIPHolland America Offers Iconic SailingsThe iconic Alaska cruise line is headlining its 2024 Alaska cruise season with a new 28-day Arctic Circle itinerary that includes 12 Alaska ports, complemented by longer 14-day voyages and 117 weeklong journeys across six different ships. Meanwhile, for the 2025 season, Holland America Line added a new 14-day Ultimate Denali tour that includes two nights in Denali, an overnight at Homer, several more Alaska city visits and a 7-day cruise. With the addition of a Denali Natural History Tour to all 1-night Denali itineraries, all Alaska Cruisetours now include a complimentary tour for guests in Denali National Park. “We continue to enhance our Cruisetours to ensure we remain the number-one choice for Alaska exploration, from more access to wildlife to the most overland days on a single tour,” notes Beth Bodensteiner, chief commercial officer. “For 2025 we added a new Cruisetour option, and we are now including a Denali National Park tour for all guests. For travelers who want to see the Yukon, we remain the only cruise line to offer this experience to one of the newest UNESCO World Heritage sites.” With 17 different Cruisetours in 2025, guests can choose whether to cruise to Alaska or go overland first, and then decide to include one, two or three nights at Denali National Park. Those who want to explore farther into Canada can add a trip to the remote landscapes of the Yukon with stops in Dawson City and Whitehorse. Four ships offer Alaska Cruisetours: Koningsdam, Nieuw Amsterdam, Noordam and Zaandam. Also new for 2025 is the 28-day Glaciers & Volcanoes: Alaska to Hawaii Legendary Voyage, which departs on Aug. 31, sailing roundtrip from Seattle aboard Westerdam (guests can embark Sept. 1 at Vancouver for a 27-day journey [debark Seattle]). The sailing includes five ports in Alaska—Sitka, Seward, Anchorage, Kodiak and Dutch Harbor; four ports in Hawaii—Nawiliwili, Honolulu, Kona and Hilo; and overnights at Anchorage and Honolulu. Alaska exploration includes scenic cruising in the Inside Passage, Hubbard Glacier, College Fjord and Prince William Sound, while in Hawaii there'll be scenic cruising around Kilauea Volcano. GLACIERScenic Heads to the Arctic For clients wanting to head to the Arctic Circle and with ample time on their hands, a top recommendation is Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours’ 25-day Canadian Rockies, Alaska & Arctic Circle land/cruise journey. Highlights include visiting the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre in Whistler and feasting on an Indigenous-inspired menu; spending a full day enjoying the Okanagan’s vibrant culinary scene along with a delectable “farm to fork” lunch in British Columbia; venturing beyond Alaska’s coastline for an exploration into its rugged interior; and flying over awe-inspiring landscapes while crossing the Arctic Circle. In Alaska, travelers will visit Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, Anchorage, Talkeetna and Denali National Park, sail Glacier Bay and the College Fjord, cruise into the heart of Alaska on the Discovery III sternwheeler, see a bush floatplane take off, meet champion sled dogs, visit the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Centre and enjoy a jet boat ride. Seabourn Gets Up-Close to Alaska’s WondersThe luxury cruise line offers myriad options for exploring Alaska, with itineraries that range from seven to 14 days. Travelers looking to up their thrill factor while discovering the 49th state—which this year is celebrating 65 years of statehood—will want to know about Ventures by Seabourn, the cruise brand’s optional shore excursions that explore the state’s natural wonders via Zodiac, kayak or while on a hike. Featured Ventures by Seabourn in Alaska/British Columbia include Davidson Glacier Hike & Zodiac, Anan Creek Bear Viewing & Photography, Rainbow Falls Adventure Hike and Medenhall Glacier Valley Hike, all led by Seabourn’s Alaska expedition team made up of a marine biologist, an ornithologist, a geologist, a historian, a photographer/videographer, a kayak guide and a naturalist. Wait, There’s More! • Celebrity Cruises will see its first Edge Class ship sail to Alaska in 2024—the Celebrity Edge—that will feature 7-night itineraries roundtrip from Seattle. The Celebrity Edge will be joined by Celebrity Summit and Celebrity Solstice that will offer 57 voyages in 2024. • Silversea’s Silver Muse, Silver Shadow and newcomer Silver Nova will offer 2024 itineraries ranging from seven to 16 days traveling between Vancouver, B.C., and Seward. • Royal Caribbean International’s four ships—Radiance of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas, Ovation of the Seas and Quantum of the Seas—will also return in 2024. Itineraries range from seven days to 14 and travel between Vancouver and Seattle to the Inside Passage and Southcentral Alaska. • Lindblad Expeditions is cruising beyond the Inside Passage in a new Alaska itinerary for 2024: The 20-day Journey from Nome to Tokyo: Ring of Fire to Ainu Culture follows the Ring of Fire in the Pacific with visits to communities along the Aleutian Chain before crossing the Pacific Ocean to end in Hokkaido, Japan. Contact InformationCelebrity Cruises: cruisingpower.comCunard: onesourcecruises.com/onesource/loginDisney Cruise Line: disneycruise.disney.go.com/travel-agent-loginHolland America Line: onesourcecruises.com/onesource/loginLindblad Expeditions: portals.expeditions.com/travel-advisors/loginRoyal Caribbean International: cruisingpower.comScenic Luxury Cruises & Tours: scenicusa.com/agent-portalSeabourn: seabourn.com/en/usSilversea: cruisingpower.com

COVERHAL GATE 1HAL GATE 2 & 3HAL GATE 4Table of ContentsSANDALSSANDALS SPREADEditor's NotesAMERICAN CRUISE LINESAdvisor Speak: Passion for Cruises Led Her Here— A $3 Million Travel AgencyIndustry Insights: Tour Operators are ‘Highly Confident’ About 2024Cruise: Swanky SailingsCruise: Multimillion-dollar Revamp for Windstar Sailing YachtsATLAS OCEAN VOYAGES SCATLAS OCEAN VOYAGESPRINCESS CRUISES SCPRINCESS CRUISESSCENIC SCSCENIC LUXURY CRUISES & TOURSSEABOURN SCSEABOURNDISNEY SCAlaska Cruise Season—Booking Options for 2024 & 2025DISNEY CRUISE LINEHOLLAND AMERICA LINE SCRECOMMEND EDU HOUSE ADALASKA RAILROAD SC ADOnboard Review: Discovery Princess—10 Reasons to Book for an Alaska VoyageOnboard Review: Celebrity Ascent Offers Elevated Experience for TravelersOnboard Review: Norwegian Viva—Cruising in Comfort and StyleMexico/Caribbean: Elevating Romance Through LuxuryPALLADIUM HOTEL GROUP SPREADATLANTIS SCATLANTIS PARADISE ISLAND BAHAMASINCLUSIVE COLLECTION SCINCLUSIVE COLLECTIONSANDALS SCOnsite Review: Impression Isla Mujeres by SecretsOnsite Review: Grand Palladium Jamaica Resort & SpaOnsite Review: Sandals Dunn’s River—Sandals 2.0 Looks Mighty FineOnsite Review: 3 Melia Hotels & a Theme ParkPALLADIUM HOTEL GROUPCUNARD