Cruises and new tourist activities heating up Alaska

Tourism has been down the past couple of years in Alaska  but repeat visitors made up around one-third of all travelers to Alaska in 2010, and officials of the state’s Travel Industry Association say early bookings indicate overall visitation will return to pre-2009 levels.
 

“Overall visitation to the state for the summer of 2010 came in at 1.51 million,” according to the travel association’s estimates.
 

But new offerings in a state that has always been popular for cruises should also boost state attendance:
 

• InnerSea Discoveries, the newly launched sister brand to high-end American Safari Cruises, began plying Alaska’s waters in May. Weeklong adventures between Ketchikan and Juneau and two-week itineraries between Seattle and Juneau aboard two newly refurbished ships holding just 49 guests will give cruisers a more close-up, nature-rich experience.

• Alaska-based Allen Marine Tours launched a new small-ship cruise line, Alaskan Dream Cruises, in May. Featuring two former Cruise West ships, the new cruise line focuses on wildlife, culture and sustainable travel with eight-day trips from Sitka with stops at Inside Passage destinations such as Icy Strait Point, Point Adolphus, Hobart Bay, Tracy Arm and Glacier Bay National Park.
 

• Princess Cruises has introduced a new Alaska cruise/tour option just for fishing fans as part of the 2011 season. The new 14-day land/sea vacation includes special excursions just for anglers, inviting them to cast their lines in some of the state’s premier fishing spots.

In other new activities

• A tour in Skagway will have visitors zipping above the treetops. The four-hour Mammoth Waterfalls and Ultra Zipline Adventure offered by Alaska Excursions opened in May complete with 12 ziplines up to 750 feet long and four adventure sky bridges overlooking various waterfalls and the forest floor.

• The Ultimate Alaska Adventure tour offered by Alaska Wildland Adventures introduces guests to a combination of outdoor activities on the Kenai Peninsula including sea kayaking, dog sledding on a glacier, white-water rafting, horseback riding, flightseeing, hiking and more.

• A three-night guided hiking trip with Rust’s Flying Service will allow visitors to explore Denali National Park from air and land.
 

• K2 Aviation is offering a new Denali flightseeing/hiking trip in 2011. Departing from Talkeena, this three-hour trek is limited to six guests or less and combines a floatplane ride with a guided wilderness hike in Denali National Park.

• Alaskan Northwest Adventures began offering five-hour birding tours on the waters of Safety Sound near Nome this year. Safety Sound is known as a premier spot to view many of the migratory birds that nest near Nome on their way further north or inland.
 

• By David Wilkening