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'I swapped 40 years of sun-burn holidays for icey trip that took my breath away'
At a whale's pace - on an Alaskan cruise, Michael Smallwitnesses one of natureâ??s greatest spectacles with the company that was the first to take tourists to the 49th state, 75 years ago
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Try somewhere cold and wet for a change, suggested a friend. “Maybe a cruise?” Shiver me timbers – now that would be a departure for me.
For nearly 40 years my wife Shan and I fled Britain for a sun-soaked holiday whenever we had the chance. Frying on a lounger with a cold drink to hand seemed like a proper break. I’d even met Shan at a boozy barbecue in Majorca in the early 80s.
The trouble was, my devotion to the sun god had consequences. Like many Brits of my generation, I acquired a tan but also solaris keratosis and squamous cell carcinoma – skin damage induced by overexposure to ultraviolet light.
The NHS sorted it, bless ’em, but now in our mid-60s maybe it was time to put away the T-shirts and cossies and embrace thermal vests and waterproofs. And what better way to take the plunge than with a trip that would be on most people’s bucket list (should that be ice-bucket?) – a cruise to Alaska, The Last Frontier.
Mike and Shan enjoyed Dutch pea soup in Glacier Bay (Image:
DAILY MIRROR)Starting from Vancouver on the Pacific west coast of Canada, a week’s journey north through the jaw-dropping Inside Passage has it all. One thousand miles of spectacular fjords, pristine glaciers, Klondike Gold Rush mining towns plus enough wildlife to keep Sir David Attenborough happy.
Humpback whales, orcas, seals, sea otters and bald eagles abound, and if you’re lucky you might even glimpse a black or brown bear. Not many holidays offer you the opportunity to say “Thar she blows”, and, “There’s gold in them thar hills”, in the same sentence.
Days 1 & 2: Vancouver to JuneauBrits have been marvelling at the sights of the Inside Passage since Captain George Vancouver and HMS Discovery pitched up in 1794 to chart the Pacific northwest for the Crown. Two million tourists a year now cruise the thousands of islands and countless coves of this spectacular land which boasts the world’s largest temperate rainforest, the Tongass.
And as we sail north on our first full day at sea, it’s not long before we spot our first humpback whale... an unforgettable moment. First the spout of water from the head, then a glimpse of body before the tail flicks up and the giant beast disappears on a deep dive for food in the krill-rich icy waters.
You’d be forgiven for spending the entire day looking for whales and orcas but as the weather gets chillier, it’s also a chance to get your bearings aboard the ship.
They travelled with Holland AmericaHolland America Line has been ploughing these waters for 75 years and was the first cruise line to take tourists to the 49th state. It was also the first to land the Responsible Fisheries Management certificate. Its Pinnacle-class vessels like Koningsdam are the perfect size for such seven-day jaunts. It has all you need and more but isn’t so big that you get lost every time you leave your cabin, with a relatively modest 2,650passengers.
HAL started in 1873, taking immigrants to the New World from Rotterdam, and the firm is proud of its Dutch heritage.
There’s a Grand Dutch Cafe on board with traditional beers and delicacies. Also unique to the Pinnacle-class ships and worth checking out in the evenings are BB King’s Blues Club for live R&B and the Rolling Stones lounge.
Day 3: Juneau, AlaskaSteep-sided cliffs frame the state capital Juneau, set within a snow-capped fjord and accessible only by air or sea. It’s home to around 30,000 bald eagles and they’d like you to know they aren’t bald... they have magnificent white head feathers. The name derives from an older meaning of the word, “white-headed”.
Juneau, in common with many Alaskan towns, is also famed for its rainfall. I’m no stranger to that, being from Wales, but hereabouts enjoys an average 222 rainy days a year hitting 90in. It is also one of the best places on Earth to see humpback whales. A 10-minute coach trip takes tourists to Auke Bay, where several boats are ready to take them to the middle of its cold, choppy waters. It’s not long before a humpback emerges briefly.
The boats aren’t allowed within 100 yards of them. Adult females, weighing up to 40 tonnes, are among 10,000 who migrate here in spring and summer. They’ve travelled 3,000 miles from Hawaii to grow fat on krill and small fish, so they deserve to scoff in peace.
The couple stayed in a Verandah Stateroom (Image:
©2016 Michel Verdure - www.verdurephoto.com)Day 4: Juneau to Skagway, AlaskaThe “Gateway to the Klondike Gold Rush” of 1898, Skagway retains the look of a 19th-century frontier town, minus the mud, gun-slinging, and bordellos. It quickly became Alaska’s largest city with 20,000 souls trying to hit paydirt. Only a few made their fortunes. Many ended up dead along the trail to the Klondike or in the Gold Rush cemetery. More died on the 500-mile journey to the Yukon.
The stampeders used mules to carry their supplies from sea level up to the snow-covered summit of White Pass and the Canadian border at 3,000ft. Now you can hop on the White Pass and Yukon Railroad and sit in replica and restored carriages for the 20-mile ascent.
Day 5: Skagway to Glacier BayThis is the journey’s show-stopper. An unspoiled wilderness, Glacier Bay takes your breath away. In 1794 Captain Vancouver marvelled at “a sheet of ice as far as the eye could distinguish”. Today that mega-glacier has retreated to leave a five-mile inlet covered in ice and snow and a dozen tidal glaciers.
The awe-inspiring Margerie Glacier, a mile wide and rising 200ft out of the sea, is the focal point of a 3.2million acre national park, with peaks rising 15,000ft.
As Koningsdam slips quietly into the bay, passengers gather on deck for the views, with a running commentary from US Park Rangers who join the ship at the head of the inlet. Park staff point out only two cruise ships are allowed into the bay each day to try to retain the unspoiled beauty of what is the local Tlingit people’s ancestral homeland. It’s a special day.
Day 6: Glacier Bay to KetchikanKetchikan is the self-proclaimed salmon capital of the world, seeing all five species of Pacific salmon battling their way up the local creek from the sea to spawn. It’s also known for having the largest collection of standing totempoles in the world, the cultural legacy of the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshianpeople.
Did I mention Alaska is wet? Well Ketchikan is inordinately proud of its rainfall figures, measured by its “Liquid Sunshine Gauge”. It had a record 202in in 1949 and has an average of 150 a year. The town’s lumber industry has all but disappeared but the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show pays homage to it as two teams compete at chopping, sawing and throwing before racing up and down poles.
Corny but fun. Also worth checking out are Creek Street – a historic boardwalk on stilts above the water, where brothels were banished in 1903 – and the Arctic Bar on the quayside, a proper local boozer.
Day 7: At sea en route to VancouverWhat do you do on your last day, at sea? The energetic might plump for Pilates in the fitness centre, tai chi at the poolside or maybe go on deck for pickleball. You might prefer a lesson in oil painting on canvas ($25 extra), bingo in the Blues club or a mixology class in the Ocean Bar.
Or how about sitting in the Crow’s Nest bar, with its panoramic views, taking in your final look at the Great Land as we head for Canada? A time to reflect on the trip’s highlights. Best food? With Italian, French, sushi, and even a New York deli , we were spoiled for choice.
American TV chef Masaharu Morimoto’s pop-up restaurant was pretty special, but so was the hot dog at the New York deli. Sights? Skagway was packed with history and had a fascinating Gold Rush museum. Glacier Bay was simply awesome.
Yet the standout memory was tinged with sadness. As we departed Glacier Bay we spotted an ice floe with half a dozen seals basking in the weak sunshine. Unfortunately for them, a minute later a pod of orcas was seen steaming straight for that chunk of ice... and lunch.
That’s the raw beauty of an Alaska cruise. As you’re cocooned in luxury, Nature just gets on with it.
Just don’t forget to take your brolly... and a bag of superlatives to describe your dream trip when you get back home.
Book the holidayHolland America Line offers a seven-day Alaska cruise round trip on Koningsdam from £749pp. Sails from Vancouver on May 17 and calls at Tracy Arm Inlet, Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay (scenic cruising) and Ketchikan; May 16, 2026 sailing from £1,109pp. Flights extra. hollandamerica.com More info at travelalaska.com hellobc.com
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