11 Night James Beard Foundation Alaskan Splendors Cruise, Vancouver to Seward

​Witness the grandeur of Alaska’s premier glaciers: Mendenhall in Juneau, Kenai Fjords’ Harding Icefield, Tracy Arm’s twin Sawyer Glaciers

Departure date: 8 June 2020
Embark port: Vancouver, BC. Canada
Cruise line: Windstar Cruises
Ship: Star Breeze

Deal Inclusions

11-Nights accommodation aboard Star Breeze
All meals in all venues at all times, including room service menu available 24 hours
All non-alcoholic beverages, including cappuccino, espresso, and other specialty non-alcoholic drinks
Welcome cocktails at reception
All onboard entertainment
Unlimited use of Fitness Center
Unlimited use of all water sports equipment
Informative nightly port talks and destination briefings
Port taxes and government fees.

Popular Highlights:
• Be out on deck for scenic cruising of the beautiful Inside Passage between Vancouver and Anchorage looking for wildlife along the way
• Discover the First Nations totems of Ketchikan, Petroglyph Beach in Wrangell and the incredible beauty of Tracy Arm
• Take the journey to Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau
• Enjoy Point Adolphus, one of Alaska’s most popular feeding areas for migrating humpback whales near Icy Strait Point
• Visit St. Michael's Cathedral and find out about the Russian heritage of Sitka

Get closer with WINDSTAR’S SIGNATURE EXPEDITIONS as a team of onboard experts sails with the ship for the entirety of the cruise and leads guided Zodiac and kayak tours in the fjords.

This is a James Beard Foundation culinary themed cruise featuring Chef TBA and Beverage Expert TBA and includes:
Hosted dinner with James Beard Foundation Chef and Beverage Expert, including wine pairings
Demos by the chef of some of their recipes
Shopping at the local market with the chef
Wine, spirits, or beer tastings
Shopping and tours with the sommelier/beverage expert (based on availability)

Cruise Description

11 Night cruise departing from Vancouver to Seward onboard Star Breeze.

Witness the grandeur of Alaska’s premier glaciers: Mendenhall in Juneau, Kenai Fjords’ Harding Icefield, Tracy Arm’s twin Sawyer Glaciers. Discover Alaskan Native villages, Russian cathedrals, and Gold Rush history. Thrill as you watch a wild brown bear snatch a struggling salmon from a stream or a humpback whale breech off the bow. Cruise Misty Fjords and Kenai Fjords on the lovely Star Breeze, waters beyond the reach of larger Alaska cruise ships.

This is a James Beard Foundation culinary themed cruise featuring Chef TBA and Beverage Expert TBA and includes:

Hosted dinner with James Beard Foundation Chef and Beverage Expert, including wine pairings
Demos by the chef of some of their recipes
Shopping at the local market with the chef
Wine, spirits, or beer tastings
Shopping and tours with the sommelier/beverage expert (based on availability)

Highlights of this cruise:

Vancouver, BC, Canada
Vancouver’s location at the mouth of the Fraser River and on the waterways of the Strait of Georgia, Howe Sound, Burrard Inlet and all their tributaries makes this busy seaport an easy place for meeting. It is one of Canada’s most populated, most ethnically diverse cities that is a popular filming location. Visit the interesting neighborhoods of Gastown, Granville Island and Chinatown. Walk across the Capilano Suspension Bridge and stroll through Stanley Park. See the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Museum of Anthropology. There is an amazing variety of things to see and do here.

Ketchikan, Alaska
Dubbed the Salmon Capital of the World, Ketchikan is the southeastern-most town in Alaska and is home to the world’s largest collection of standing totem poles that are found throughout the city and at four major locations: Saxman Totem Park, Totem Bight State Park, Potlatch Park, and the Totem Heritage Center. Other attractions of Ketchikan are Creek Street, a boardwalk road built on pilings over Ketchikan Creek and the Waterfront Promenade that skirts the bustling shoreline with inviting whale-tail benches to take in the view.

Misty Fjords, Alaska - Optional Expedition Day
Misty Fjords, with its gorgeous views of natural formations is a national monument and wilderness area with steep valleys formed by glaciers and lava flows. It is part of the Tongass National Forest and is about 40 miles east of Ketchikan along the Inside Passage. With its icy blue lakes, waterfalls, snowcapped peaks and glacial valleys literally everywhere you point your camera you will get a postcard picture, depending on the weather of course. For a more up-close opportunity in this beautiful scenic sanctuary optional expeditions excursions will be available.

Wrangell, Alaska
One of the oldest towns in Alaska, Wrangell is located near the mouth of the Stikine River. Much of its history can be seen in the impressive collection of totems scattered throughout the town. Highlights here are the amazing Petroglyph Beach State Historic Park where you can find primitive rock carvings and just 30 miles away is the Anan Wildlife Observatory with the largest pink salmon runs in the Inside Passage, and a platform from which you can look for eagles, harbor seals and black bears.

Juneau, Alaska
Located on the Gastineau Channel in the Alaskan panhandle, Juneau sits at sea level below steep mountains between 3,500-4,000 feet high. Atop these mountains is the Juneau Icefield, a large ice mass from which about 30 glaciers flow, and two of them – Mendenhall Glacier and Lemon Creek Glacier are visible from the local road. A unique feature of Juneau is that it is the only U.S. capital that has no roads connecting it to the rest of the state.

Haines, Alaska
Bald Eagle Alaska
Haines is one of the most popular Alaska cruise ports and one of the best places for hiking, fishing and wildlife viewing, especially bald eagles. Within the Haines city limits Fort William H. Seward is a nationally recognized historic landmark, with some of its structures open to the public. Other cultural offerings in Haines include the Alaska Indian Arts Center where traditional craftsmen offer demonstrations of their work, the Sheldon Museum & Cultural Center where local Tlingit people are featured, the Hammer Museum, dedicated to the history of the hammer and the Tsirku Canning Company Museum with memories of Haines’ salmon canneries.

Scenic Cruising Tracy Arm / Endicott Arm, Alaska
Stunningly beautiful Tracy Arm is a fjord 45 miles south of Juneau that actually consists of two deep and narrow fjords – Tracy Arm and Endicott Arm. Both fjords are over 30 miles long. At the end of Tracy Arm are the impressive twin Sawyer Glaciers. Wildlife in the area includes black and brown bears, deer, wolves, harbor seals and a variety of birds. What you'll be able to see today and how far we can travel up Tracy Arm is weather and ice dependent.

Sitka, Alaska
Sitka is one of the oldest and most culturally significant communities in Alaska, filled with rich Tlingit, Russian, and early American settler history. Sitka is famous for its spectacular scenery, abundant wildlife, the copper-domed St. Michael’s Cathedral, the Pioneer Home and the Russian Bishop’s House. It contains 22 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is where the contract of sale was signed transferring Alaska from Russia to the United States.

Kenai Fjords, Alaska - Optional Expedition Day
Today is a day of wonder as you cruise the Kenai Fjords, Alaska’s smallest national park. Carved by glaciers flowing from the Harding Icefield to the sea, Kenai Fjords has a rugged arctic landscape and is a rich habitat for marine animals and other wildlife. Most cruise lines don’t go here so enjoy this unique opportunity and you can even take an optional expedition excursion here. As with all Alaska, what you’ll be able to see is subject to weather and ice conditions.

Seward (Anchorage), Alaska
Seward, (Anchorage’s gateway) is sandwiched between the Kenai Mountains and the Kenai Fjords National Park. It is one of Alaska’s oldest and most scenic communities, with Mount Marathon rising majestically behind the town. Even though Anchorage is Alaska’s largest city, it is also home to 1,500 moose, surrounded by national parks full of wildlife.

Terms & Conditions

Cruise costs are in New Zealand Dollars (NZD). Offer subject to availability at time of booking. Prices are per person share twin based on best available cruise fare, inclusive of all discounts unless otherwise stated. Subject to availability and currency fluctuations. All fares and taxes are subject to change without notice up until full payment is received. Itinerary may be subject to change. Credit card payments will incur a fee. Cruise deposit, amendment and cancellation conditions apply. Travel agent service fees may apply. Special conditions apply - please ask for full details at time of enquiry. Cruise Line reserves the right to re-instate the fuel supplement for all guests up to US$9 per person per day if the price of light sweet crude on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) exceeds US$70 per barrel. Please consult cruise line website for current information.