50th Alaska Season Begins for Princess Cruises

Princess Cruises’ 50th year sailing in Alaska is now underway following the arrival of Ruby Princess in America’s northernmost state.

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Six further ships in the Princess Cruises fleet will head to Alaska, including the 3,560-guest Royal Princess on May 11, marking the cruise line’s largest ever deployment to the region.

A variety of cruise and cruisetour options will be available up to September. Alaska cruises range in length from seven to 12 days and depart from Vancouver, Anchorage (Whittier), Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Princess also owns and operates five wilderness lodges in riverside locations near national parks, offering more than 20 cruisetour options for guests. Princess cruisetours combine a seven-day cruise with a multi-night land tour and exclusive ‘direct to the wilderness’ rail service.

Several new initiatives have been introduced to mark the 50th anniversary. They will be offered alongside Princess Cruises’ ‘North to Alaska’ onboard programme, which includes ‘puppies in the piazza’ – when some of Alaska’s newest sled dogs and their handlers come aboard – and the ‘cook my catch’ fishing shore excursion.

The initiatives include:

·  A number of new shore excursions in Juneau, Ketchikan and Icy Strait Point such as:

– A luxury whale watch by yacht in Juneau
– An interactive self-guided jeep adventure in Juneau
– The Ketchikan pub walk
– A rainforest trail bike and hike adventure in Ketchikan
– A seafood feast and tribal dance show in Icy Strait Point
– A wilderness hike and kayak adventure in Icy Strait Point

· The introduction of the ‘Glacier Tea’ cocktail, a take on the Long Island Ice Tea

· A special Alaska beer tasting flight

· An onboard Northern Lights planetarium in the theatre of every Alaska ship

· A mini museum exhibit featuring notable images from the 50 years Princess Cruises has sailed to Alaska

Tony Roberts, Princess Cruises’ vice president UK and Europe, said:

We take more people than any other cruise line to Alaska and have hosted over 5 million guests during the last 50 years. Alaska is a truly stunning destination and there’s no better way to explore it than via a cruise. A wealth of itinerary options are on offer for anyone looking to book a bucket list sailing to the region this year. The Great Land’s glaciers, wildlife, national parks and beautiful port cities are simply not to be missed.