Inside Passage Cruises

For those look­ing for a cruise-only expe­ri­ence, this is a great option. It is a round-trip cruise from San Fran­cis­co (mean­ing you will not have to by one-way tick­ets like you will for a cross-gulf cruise), and you still hit the high­lights of the Inside Pas­sage; Juneau, Ketchikan, Skag­way & Glac­i­er Bay Nation­al Park. While you will not be able to add a land tour, it offers a great sam­pling of Alaska.

This South­east Alas­ka-based tour oper­a­tor will leave you with a new def­i­n­i­tion of what it means to have a once-in-a-life­time Alas­ka cruise: You sail on an inti­mate ves­sel — often get­ting to steer your­self, under the super­vi­sion of an expe­ri­enced licensed cap­tain — while explor­ing away from the crowds, and get­ting a won­der­ful­ly up-close view of the wildlife and scenery. Sail­ings from Juneau and Sitka. 

Start your wilder­ness jour­ney in Juneau, the state capi­tol of Alas­ka, and end in Sit­ka, the per­fect spot to view the meld­ing of Russ­ian and Alas­ka Native cul­tures. In between, vis­it Glac­i­er Bay Nation­al Park, go bird watch­ing on South Mar­ble Island, look for whales in Icy Strait, hike along inter­tidal zones, and when your cap­tain sets the course for adven­ture, slip into your kayak or skiff for a day of guid­ed explo­ration. (Itin­er­ary also  ...more

Set sail for 5 days and 4 nights with the crew of the M/V Sea Star for small ship adven­ture cruis­ing in Prince William Sound, Kenai Penin­su­la or along the Inside Pas­sage. The well-appoint­ed yacht accom­mo­dates just 12 guests, allow­ing for a per­son­al­ized expe­ri­ence where you are the explor­er! Unplug from day-to-day life and soak up the won­ders of Alaska’s amaz­ing coast­line. All meals pre­pared by an on-board chef and fea­tur­ing fresh local  ...more

Get close to Dawes, Marg­erie and Grand Pacif­ic Glac­i­er and spend one day in Glac­i­er Bay Nation­al Park, guid­ed by an expert nat­u­ral­ist. Explore Fords Ter­ror Wilder­ness area by skiff, hike inland on Chichagof Island, and Bushwack in the Ton­gass Nation­al For­est. Search for Hump­back whales in Fred­er­ick Sound and Chatham Straight, and be on the look­out for black and brown bears, eagles, seat otters, har­bor seals, sea lions, and sea birds dur­ing your  ...more

This itin­er­ary includes two full days in Glac­i­er Bay Nation­al Park, includ­ing active explo­ration in the out­back. Vis­it Marg­erie and Grand Pacif­ic glac­i­ers. Go ashore in Haines for hik­ing, bik­ing, a float trip and his­to­ry. Look for wildlife on shore and at sea, with excep­tion­al bird­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties at South Mar­ble Island.