Alaska - Inside Passage Cruise
click here if you're in a hurry for pictures
In July of 2015 we took a family reunion cruise to Alaska. Our route was very similar to a cruise my family took in1966, so it was difficult not to draw comparisons. Back then, the tourist industry was only a side business for tiny fishing villages along the inside passage. Our ship, the SS Prince George, carried around 300 passengers and was usually the only ship in town. Today, 4 ships carrying 10 times that many passengers each will converge on a small town, disgorging many more passengers than there are permanent residents of the city. The process of transferring thousands of passengers to hundreds of waiting tour busses is a well oiled machine, but the essential character of these isolated towns is lost. Like they say - "You can't go back"
All that being said, there's still fun stuff to see! We visited three Alaska and one Canadian port. Modern cruise ships are truly marvelous floating metropolitan centers in their own right. Sporting a 1500 seat theater, Casino, a dozen restaurants and cafes, six swimming pools, there is service and convenience sufficient to cause one passenger to boast he hadn't left the ship the entire cruise.
Our Itinerary:
- Sunday afternoon in Seattle and departure, Monday - all day at sea
- Tuesday - Ketchikan
- Wednesday - failed attempt at Tracy Arm Fjord, Juneau
- Thursday - Skagway, WP&YR to Carcross, Yukon
- Friday - all day at sea, Saturday - all day at sea until 7pm arrival in Victoria
- Victoria
- Sunday - early morning return to Seattle
