Americas

Alaska

Glaciers calving into the sea, whales breaching, and wild frontier towns.

Overview

Sailing Alaska

Alaska is a bucket-list sail for good reason: glacier calving, humpback whales, and towns that still feel like the frontier. I steer clients toward glacier-cruising itineraries with a full day in Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier, plus a land-tour add-on for those who want Denali in the same trip.

Best time to sail: May – September

Where to Sail

The routes within Alaska

Two different ways to see Alaska by ship. Here’s how they differ.

Inside Passage

The classic round-trip route from Seattle or Vancouver. Calm, protected waters and gold-rush history, with no flights needed at either end.

KetchikanJuneauSkagwayIcy Strait PointSitka

Gulf of Alaska (Glacier Route)

A one-way sailing between Vancouver and Seward or Whittier, trading the round trip for an open-water push to a major glacier. Easy to pair with a Denali land tour.

KetchikanJuneauSkagwayHubbard Glacier or College FjordSeward / Whittier

Did You Know

Why Alaska is worth it

1Hubbard Glacier is the largest tidewater glacier in North America, six miles wide where it meets the sea, and it's one of the few glaciers in the world that's actually still advancing.

2Juneau is the only U.S. state capital that can't be reached by road. The only ways in are by plane or by sea.

3Ketchikan calls itself the Salmon Capital of the World, and it holds the record for the most rainfall of any city in Alaska, pack a rain jacket.

4Skagway's entire downtown is a National Historic Landmark, preserved almost exactly as it looked during the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush.

A Closer Look

What Alaska actually looks like

Hubbard Glacier
Ships idle in front of the face for hours on glacier-cruising days, close enough to hear the ice crack before it calves.

Creek Street, Ketchikan
A former red-light district turned boardwalk of shops built on stilts over the water, a short walk from the cruise dock.

Downtown Skagway
The Arctic Brotherhood Hall, its driftwood facade built in 1899, right on the boardwalk blocks from where ships dock.

Photos: Bernard Spragg. NZ, Wikimedia Commons, CC0 · Diego Delso, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bo Mertz, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

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Ready to plan your Alaska sailing?

Tell me your ideal dates and budget, and I’ll send a shortlist of itineraries and ships that fit.

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