At the end of May, we decided to book a last-minute Alaska cruise and selected American Safari Cruises' Safari Spirit. The seven-night itinerary starting on June 21, dubbed Naturalists' Whale Country, embarks from Petersburg and winds through the Inside Passage to Juneau. Our documents arrived today and the trip is suddenly seeming very real!For those of you who are unfamiliar with American Safari Cruises, they've been around for about ten years and cater to sophisticated travelers who prefer intimate yachts and hidden anchorages instead of huge multi-deck cruise ships and the more mainstream port towns of Skagway and Ketchikan.
The Safari Spirit, at 105 feet, is one of the company's mid-size vessels. Maximum guest capacity is 12 with a crew of five or six. (ASC's other yachts include the 36-passenger Safari Explorer, the 22-guest Safari Quest, the 12-guest Safari Escape, and the 6-guest Safari Legacy.)
The journey begins in Petersburg and heads through "glacier country" before swinging around the southernmost tip of Admiralty Island, cruising past Red Bluff Cove and Tenakee Hot Springs, and then crossing the Icy Strait to Juneau.
The yacht sails during the day and drops anchor each evening in protected coves and fjords that the large cruise ships will never be able to access. We booked a Mariner suite, the lowest category stateroom. It's outfitted with a queen bed, port holes, and bathroom with both a shower and Jacuzzi tub.
We were drawn to ASC by the nearly all-inclusive nature of cruise fare, which includes meet and greet services and transfers to and from the airport; shore excursions; all meals aboard the yacht; premium wine, beer, and liquor; kayaking and small-boat exploration; an onboard naturalist; and all taxes, port charges, and fees. What's not included is your airfare, travel insurance, and crew gratuities. (The suggested tip is 5 to 10% of your cruise fare.)
We also fell in love with the idea of exploring Southeast Alaska with a very small group of likeminded individuals. A naturalist travels on each itinerary and spends each day showing passengers the beauty of our 49th state. Daily activities aboard ASC yachts include kayaking, small-boat (skiff, Zodiac-like) excursions, hiking old-growth forests, whale watching, and much more.
We can't wait to embark on the Safari Spirit in June and we'll be sure to document our trip here on this blog. Stay tuned! —Andrea
Photo courtesy of American Safari Cruises
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