23 Mar 2017
Cruising from Seattle offers much more than a gateway for cruises to Alaska. Small ship cruising is growing as travellers seek more unique experiences and more intimate journeys in the Pacific Northwest.
"On small ship sailings, travellers visit inlets, channels and smaller ports, and see Puget Sound's marine wildlife up close, said Ron Peck, Port of Seattle tourism director. “Seattle is a destination city with robust tourism and small ship cruising is an excellent way to experience the Pacific Northwest.”
UnCruise Adventures and American Cruise Lines, two small ship lines operating in the Pacific Northwest, have the capacity to increase the number of people sailing round-trip small ships from Seattle by 4000+ passengers in 2017.
Headquartered in Seattle, UnCruise offers two itineraries that are round trips out of Seattle. From April to May and September to November, weeklong adventure cruises explore the islands, temperate rainforests and hidden coves found in the secluded waterways of the Pacific Northwest. The 76-guest Wilderness Discoverer offers an Explore! Olympic Wilderness & San Juan Islands itinerary sailing in Washington's Puget Sound from south Hood Canal north through the Salish Sea and San Juan Islands with visits to Olympic National Park, Mt. Constitution and Sucia and Orcas Islands.
The 22-guest Safari Quest sails a British Columbia's Yachters' Paradise itinerary exploring Victoria, Harmony Islands, Princess Louisa Inlet, Jervis Inlet, Gulf Islands, B.C.; and San Juan Island, WA. With a focus on outdoor adventures, guests spend their days hiking, kayaking, beach combing, paddle boarding, exploring on skiff excursions and seeking out wildlife.
American Cruise Lines' offers the Puget Sound and San Juan Islands itinerary on the 'American Spirit'. Each of its 25 sailings will have up to 100 guests on board, on 7 days of bliss delving into delightful small towns such as La Conner and Victorian Port Townsend on the Olympic Peninsula. Spend time in Victoria and Port Angeles and soak up the Scandinavian and Native American cultures in Poulsbo.
All of these trips are best bookended with a few brilliant days in Seattle, the Emerald City, which Cruise Critic named as Best Homeport in North America 2016.
For information on Seattle and Washington State visit www.Seattle-WashingtonState.co.uk
HELPFUL LINKS Video of Uncruise experience: https://youtu.be/noDbe2Re6Pk
https://www.uncruise.com/destinations/pacific-northwest-cruises
http://www.portseattle.org/Cruise
http://www.experiencewa.com/guides
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiCtKIXPRiTYiCaK7kd64vA
Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter; www.Facebook.com/SeattleWashingtonStateUK
@Seattle_WAUK
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Caroline Corfield-Rose, Director,
Core Communications Europe Ltd
27 Belsize Lane, London NW3 5AS
Tel: 00 44 1923 839 375 / Mobile: 00 44 7979 706 5539
caroline@corecommunications.co.uk / Twitter: @carolineatcore
EDITOR'S NOTE:
The Port of Seattle operates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport which is ranked as the 9th busiest airport in the USA, serving 45.7 million passengers annually. Light-rail connects the airport to downtown Seattle in 30 minutes. In 2016, Cruise Critic, the world's largest review site for cruise planning, named the Port of Seattle the number one Homeport in North America. Nine major cruise lines (Carnival, Celebrity Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Oceania Cruises, Royal Caribbean and Seabourn) provide 7 to 14 day cruises to Alaska to explore wildlife, wilderness and the area's awe-inspiring wonders.
