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Next year, Oceania’s Regatta will join Disney Wonder, Wilderness Discoverer and Wilderness Adventurer for spring and summer
Alaska cruises. // © 2010 |
On the heels of Alaska state legislature's announcement to reduce the head tax on cruise passengers, Oceania Cruises opened bookings for its first Alaska cruise season in 2011.
Frank Del Rio, Oceania founder and the chairman and CEO of parent company Prestige Cruise Holdings, said the move to reduce the tax was "an important consideration" in the decision to bring the line's 684-passenger Regatta to the region. Oceania will offer 10 sailings with four itineraries.
The first is a 14-night Majestic Alaska cruise, sailing roundtrip from San Francisco and calling in Victoria and Vancouver, Canada; Sitka, Hoonah, Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan, Alaska; and Astoria, Ore., with departures on May 12 and Aug. 26, 2011.
Another itinerary offered is the 12-night Alaskan Grandeur route between San Francisco and Vancouver, calling in Astoria, Victoria, Wrangell, Juneau, Hoonah, Sitka and Ketchikan, departing on May 26 and Aug. 14, 2011.
The 10-night Frontiers and Glaciers itinerary sails roundtrip from Vancouver and calls at Sitka, Hoonah, Kodiak, Wrangell and Ketchikan, departing on June 7 and Aug. 4, 2011.
Lastly, a 12-night Glacial Wilderness route between Vancouver and Anchorage calls in Ketchikan, Wrangell, Juneau, Hoonah, Skagway, Sitka, Seward and Homer. It departs on June 17 and 29, 2011, as well as July 11 and 23, 2011.
Pricing for the new itineraries starts at $3,499.
Oceania's Regatta will join two other recent cruise line debuts in Alaska next year: the 2,400-passenger Disney Wonder will offer seven-night roundtrip cruises out of Vancouver from May 3 through Aug. 30. The ship will call in Juneau, Ketchikan and Skagway and visit Tracy Arm. Rates start at $939, not including government taxes and fees.
In addition, a new brand, InnerSea Discoveries, named by parent company of American Safari Cruises, will operate the newly renovated 49-guest Wilderness Discoverer and Wilderness Adventurer on an unusual seven-night Inner Reaches itinerary between Ketchikan and Juneau in 2011. There are no set ports of call, but guided shoreside adventures of varying intensity are scheduled, including hiking, snorkeling, whale-watching, birding, polar bear club swims, glacier viewing and yoga sessions. Optional add-ons at an additional cost include river kayaking and jet-boat excursions, fishing with expert guides from a fully outfitted boat, glacier floatplane tours, cave exploration and overnight wilderness hiking, kayaking and camping ashore.
Pricing for the one-way cruise begins at $1,795.
Disney Cruise Line
www.disneycruise.disney.go.com
InnerSea Discoveries
www.innerseadiscoveries.com
Oceania Cruises
www.oceaniacruises.com
