Alaskan Cruises

A cruise ship is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are considered an essential part of the experience.

An Alaskan Cruise from Vancouver, BC has become very popular.

Present-day cruise ships are organized much like floating hotels, with a complete "hospitality staff" in addition to the usual ship's crew. It is not uncommon for the most luxurious ships to have more crew and staff than passengers.

Many older cruise ships have had multiple owners over their lifetimes. Since each cruise line has its own livery and often a naming theme (for instance, ships of the Holland America Line have names ending in "-dam", e.g. MS Statendam, and Royal Caribbean's ships' names all end with "of the Seas").

Cruise ships are a means of travel with some substantial benefits... and drawbacks. Some people love them, and some people hate them, but they're worthy of consideration, especially if you find other modes of travel too difficult or inconvenient. Golf Vacations | InfoSeek Australia

Cruise ships make it easy to visit several places in a single trip without the need to pack your belongings and sit in a car/train/bus/plane to travel to each one; your hotel room comes along with you, and even provides the transportation. You may go to bed in Cabo San Lucas and wake up in Puerto Vallarta, which is a great convenience, but can also make it easy to lose a sense of where you are.

Typical itineraries also limit the time you can spend in each place, usually just a short day of activities or sightseeing. They may also include one or more days at sea: paradise if you enjoy a relaxing day by the pool, but perhaps frustrating if you prefer more active exploration. Nonetheless, the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks for enough people to support a growing industry. CRUISE.COM | CRUISE.CA
 

Some ships have been outfitted with millions of dollars worth of art and elaborate interior decor, but generally there isn't much to see on a typically ocean-going cruise ship. Even if you're traveling "along the coast", it'll usually be too far off to enjoy the scenery. Some ships travel to geographically interesting areas such as Alaska or Scandinavia where they make detours to view fjords and glaciers, and of course the view is likely to be worth taking in on a river cruise.

Generally speaking, the smaller the boat, the better scenery you can expect, because they won't need to stick to deep and open water. Depending on oceanography, you may be able to spot whales, dolphins, or flying fish swimming nearby or even alongside. But the real sightseeing opportunities come when you reach port, and are usually incorporated into shore excursions (see "Do").