The True Spirit of Alaska

BEAR Viewing in #Alaska with the assistance of Captain Mel Erickson and his famed boat aptly named the Alaskan Gamefisher can help you to discover the true spirit of the location and its natural inhabitants namely the bears. You get the opportunity to watch the beautiful creatures in their own habitat without being threatened in the least.

While Alaskan Brown bear viewing might be your primary objective, the Alaskan Gamefisher enables you to widen your experience by permitting you to fish for the choicest salmon and halibuts in the icy waters of Alaska as well. 

The proficient guides accompanying you are quick to show you the tips and tricks of digging clams while the astounding sight of five magnificent snow-covered volcanic mountains all around the National Park area is sure to make you wonder at the magic of nature.


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Back on track

THE Alaska Railroad will restore all regularly scheduled freight and passenger services beginning today, Tuesday, Dec. 4, following the 7.0-magnitude #earthquake that struck South central #Alaska on Friday, Nov. 30.

Following the earthquake, there were a number of areas that sustained damage, and some sections of track that were deemed impassable required immediate repairs. These included an area just south of Eklutna Lake as well as a portion of track south of the Cheri Lake Road crossing.

The first post-earthquake passenger train to run will be the Winter Hurricane Turn Train on Thursday, Dec. 6, followed by regularly scheduled Aurora Winter Trains this weekend. Holiday Trains will also resume service this weekend. Winter and summer services will continue as scheduled, and all package and day trip itineraries are now available for booking.



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Worlds most popular cruise destinations

THE world's leading cruise reviews site, Cruise Critic and its online #cruise community, has announced the winners of its third annual Cruisers' Choice Destination Awards, naming the world's most popular cruise #destinations, based entirely on consumer ratings submitted with reviews on Cruise Critic. The awards name the top cruise destinations across 18 regions worldwide. New in 2018, the awards also highlight the best cruise lines to visit each region.

The Eastern Mediterranean port of Kotor, in Montenegro, came out as the number one destination hotspot for UK cruisers. The Baltic Sea port of Talinn, capital city of Estonia, secured second place in popularity, and the Aegean island of Santorini proved third favourite overall, for UK cruise travellers.

Highlighted Awards:

Glacier Bay in Alaska was named the Most Popular Cruise Destination in 2018 – It's one of the best Inside Passage locations for glacier and wildlife viewing, with its Margerie Glacier considered one of the most photogenic glaciers.

Edinburgh secured the top destination award in the British Isles & Western Europe category – for the very first time - beating Barcelona, Rome and Venice, among many others. 

Cuba's capital city of Havana was named the Best Cruise Destination in the Western Caribbean & Riviera Maya for the first time. While international cruise lines have long visited Cuba, U.S. travelers were only able to begin visiting the island once regulations were eased in 2016.

Dubrovnik has been named the Top-Rated Eastern Mediterranean Destination for the past two years, and has done it again this year to score a hat trick.


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Viking's ocean fleet expands

NAMED after the prominent constellation and in honour of Dr. Fisher’s work on NASA’s Orion exploration vehicle project, the 930-guest 47,800-ton Viking Orion arrived in Livorno, Italy on June 16. The ship will continue her maiden season sailing itineraries in the Western and Eastern Mediterranean this summer before heading east to sail Viking’s newest itineraries in Asia, Australia and Alaska.

New ship features include a planetarium-like immersive theatre, an “Explorations in Space” collection conceived as a photographic journal through space, with a broad range of vintage photographs, including astronaut portraits and documents of complex mission activities, produced by NASA and captured by National Geographic photographers.

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Most booked U.S cruise destination?

 ACCORDING to an annual trends survey of travel agents by leading travel agency company Travel Leaders Group, #Alaska #cruises are, for the first time, their most-booked U.S. destination, beating out Orlando and Las Vegas.

Statistics further tell that story. According to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), the number of cruise visitors to Alaska is expected to break records this year with 34 ships bringing more than 1.165 million passengers to the destination. Alaska will be hot next year as well, with 37 ships expected to bring more than 1.3 million passengers.

The high demand for Alaska cruises has a lot to do with the state's amazing scenery – from snow-capped mountains and immense glaciers to emerald rainforests. Travelers return with stories of extraordinary experiences with wildlife and with guides who enthrall visitors with tales of native culture, frontier spirit and a rich, colorful history that includes the Gold Rush. Next year, Alaska will celebrate its 60th anniversary of statehood.

Cruise ships typically begin Alaska cruises in Seattle, Vancouver and ports near Anchorage, though there are also longer sailings from ports such as Los Angeles and San Francisco. On any itinerary, passengers have the extraordinary experience of cruising past blue icebergs to see glaciers thunderously calve into the sea in Glacier Bay National Park and other equally impressive settings.

At ports of call such as Juneau and Skagway, bald eagles fly overhead as you view totem poles and learn Gold Rush history. Shore excursions take travelers into the wild by land, sea or air, including such experiences as flightseeing over a glacier, boarding a small boat to follow whales and joining active excursions, including hiking, biking, kayaking, canoeing, glacier trekking, and even snorkeling.

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Alaska West Air celebrate 40th Anniversary in 2018

2018 marks the 40th anniversary of Alaska West Air providing flightseeing, bear viewing and guided trip services in #Alaska. 

The flightseeing company began in 1978 and has provided adventure services to clients from all around the world. From Disney, Warren Miller, BBC, MTV and National Geographic as well as its estimated 4,000 to 6,000 private guests each year.

Some of its most popular destinations include Katmai National Park and Preserve, Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Chinitna Bay, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge and the iconic naturalist Dick Proenneke’s historic cabin on the shores of Twin Lakes. 

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The Legendary Cunard experience returns to Alaska

IN 2019, Cunard will sail to #Alaska, bringing the beauty of the Pacific Northwest to guests once again. A series of voyages beginning in May 2019 will combine the magnificence of Alaska with the luxury of Cunard as Queen Elizabeth sails from Japan to Alaska and then remains in the region through June. The ship will then transport passengers down the West Coast of the United States, through the Panama Canal to New York, on to Iceland and the British Isles.

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Picture Credit:  kees torn 68359921@N08/35297270670 QUEEN ELIZABETH photopin

What a catch . . .

FISHING #vacation website fishlodges.com recently listed their 100th fishing lodge in the Pacific Northwest (North America). The major milestone comes as the site is gearing up to expand beyond the Pacific Northwest for a portion of the next 100 #fishing lodge listings. Having started with Alaska and BC, where the majority of features lodges are located, the site has already started signing up lodges in Washington, Oregon, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories.

"The idea behind fishlodges.com-consolidating key information from lodge websites into a searchable database and making it easily accessible-has been a popular since day one" states "Chief Navigator" Eric Embacher. "Our website traffic growth has validated the execution of this idea, and this in turn has proven popular with lodge owners, who increasingly want to list with us."

fishlodges.com.

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Seattle breaks Alaska cruise ship records

BREAKING all #Seattle records, almost 960,000 visitors will join 203 cruise ships this summer to sail from Seattle in Washington State to Alaska. 

The cruise industry to Alaska started in 1999 with just six sailings and has now has grown into a business valued at over £300 million with 11 premium vessels to choose from this year.

The success of the cruise industry has helped underpin the hotel and tourism expansion of Seattle and the north-west Pacific state of Washington.

Easy access with daily direct British Airways and Delta flights add further impetus to selecting Seattle as the start point of choice for Alaska cruises.

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Picture Credit: Bellevue, Seattle, WA, at night via photopin.com