Itinerary

After arriving in Vancouver, you will take a private transfer to your hotel and explore the city at leisure. Often voted amongst the world’s most desirable places to live, British Colombia’s biggest city is both multicultural and biodiverse, with Stanley Park, Granville Island market and Capilano Suspension Bridge just a few of the highlights.

In the evening, check out the restaurants of historic Gastown and enjoy Vancouver’s varied gastronomy.

After breakfast at your hotel, join a guided whistle-stop tour of some of the Vancouver highlights you may have missed, before being dropped off at the pier and boarding your vessel in time for the safety briefing and departure. Sail past Vancouver Island en route to the Inside Passage.

While many of the larger cruise liners pass through the Inside Passage at night, your smaller vessel allows you to navigate some of the narrower inlets, making a daylight exploration a magnificent spectacle, particularly when accompanied by some of the humpback, fin, minke and orca whales that inhabit the waters.

Forming part of the Tongass National Forest, the wildlife-rich Misty Fjords are renowned for their beauty. With snow-capped peaks rolling down into deep, forested lowlands and abundant waterfalls, the region is filled with wildlife – mountain goats, moose and bears on land, while otters, seals and sea lions skirt the water’s edge.

Alaska is thought to have been the entry point for the first groups of humans to inhabit the Americas. It is believed that different clusters crossed from Asia and spread southwards, slowly adapting, adjusting and thriving to eventually became the famed civilisations that the Europeans were to eventually “discover” thousands of years later.

Evidence of some of the early settlers can be found on Wrangell Island, where ancient petroglyphs (dated around 8,000 years old), can be observed. You will visit the local museum to learn about the region’s fascinating past, which includes US, British and Russian influence, as well as the story of the indigenous Tlingit people who still live there today.

Despite officially being the USA’s largest city by geographical area, Sitka has no road access to other settlements and is accessible only by air or sea.

Having acted as the administrative capital of Russian America, it was here that the sale of Alaska to the USA, was agreed in October 1867. Sitka’s influence slowly waned under US rule until, in 1906, it was finally replaced as the seat of governance by Juneau, which had risen to prominence as a result of the Klondike Gold Rush.

Today, only a few remnants of the city’s illustrious past remain, including the Russian Orthodox cathedral. Prior to the arrival of the Russians and Americans, the Tlingit people are thought to have been living in this region for around 10,000 years, and the city now boasts a rich blend of all three cultures.

Continue north past Glacier Bay to the aptly named Icy Bay, the meeting point of three mighty glaciers – Guyot, Yahtse and Tyndall. Here, you will take one of the small expedition boats, or kayaks to observe the calving of new icebergs. Sea lions, sea otters and harbour seals can sometimes be spotted, swimming or lazily floating on the bergs.

Pushing westward, the cruise crosses the Gulf of Alaska, giving you a chance to relax and enjoy some of the onboard facilities, including the pool, hot tubs and sauna. You can also attend lectures on topics such as the local wildlife, culture, history and geography.

Kodiak, the second largest island in the USA, is a richly forested haven, best known for its population of around 3,500 brown bears. Although the bears here share similarities with those on the mainland, they are considered a sub-species, having evolved in isolation for over 12,000 years, growing larger and displaying different behaviours to their cousins across the water. You will spend today searching for these magnificent animals, though sightings can never be guaranteed.

Katmai is home to a total of 18 volcanoes, seven of which have shown signs of activity since the beginning of the 20th century. The dramatic backdrop is also host to a population of more than 2,000 brown bears, potentially giving you the opportunity to spot the differences between them and the Kodiak variety, as they dig for clams and hunt fish in the streams.

Continuing westwards, explore some of the hidden bays and inlets of the Alaskan Peninsula. The coastline here is raw and imposing and offers further chances to see brown bears, along with majestic bald eagles.

Unga was first inhabited by indigenous Aleuts in 1833, with creole and white settlers slowly joining and then replacing them, before themselves abandoning the village in 1969, when the fishing hauls were no longer deemed sufficient to sustain the population. Now, nothing but a few wooden buildings remain, surrounded by a carpet of wildflowers gently reclaiming the land, and giving the village an eerie, ghostly appearance.

One of North America’s most productive fishing ports, in 1942 Dutch Harbour was the scene of one of very few attacks on US soil during the Second World War. The town is also known as the filming location for the television show ‘Deadliest Catch’.

Dutch Harbour is shadowed by the mighty Makushin volcano, with bald eagles, puffins, lemmings and wild horses among the wildlife that roam nearby. You will also have a chance to learn about the turbulent history of the Unungan people (also known as the Aleutians) during a visit to a local museum.

The next day will be spent at sea with more time to relax onboard as the ship traces a path north across the Bering Sea.

The remote, windswept island of St Paul is a haven for migrating birds, with over 300 different species resting on its rocky outcrop. Horned and tufted puffins, and red-legged kittiwakes are just some of those to look out for. A huge population of northern fur seals also resides on the shoreline.

The largest community of Unangan people in the USA lives on St Paul. You will visit the remains of the traditional dwellings of their ancestors, which were built half-underground to protect against the bracing winds.

Another wild and isolated island, St Matthew has proven a challenge too far for human habitation. Its few, long abandoned buildings are now at the mercy of the elements, with a vast array of birds, their only occupants since the late 1940’s. The island has been cited in scientific studies of population crashes, owing to the complete extinction of its 6,000 reindeers between the 1960’s and 1980’s.

Enjoy your last full day at sea, keeping an eye out for whales as you charge north-eastwards towards the Seward Peninsula.

Your intrepid voyage will end in Nome, a remnant of the gold rush era where the population is once thought to have grown by over 1,000 people per day, such was the excitement over the treasures found there.

From Nome, you will fly south to Seattle for an overnight stay.

Today we have included a three-hour guided sightseeing tour of Seattle, including stops at Pioneer Square, Pike Place Market, Seattle Waterfront, the Museum of Pop Culture and the iconic Space Needle.

Afterwards, you are free to explore Seattle independently before flying home. Alternatively, you could choose to extend your stay and explore more of the Pacific Northwest, such as the old-growth rainforest and towering mountains of Olympic National Park.