"When booking a cruise in Alaska's Inside Passage, I was skeptical I'd find a way to cruise and still enjoy the natural surroundings - even on one of the smaller ships. That is, until someone suggested the Cruise West line."
The founder of Cruise West, Chuck West, was a bush pilot in Alaska in 1946 and wanted to share the wonders of Alaska with the rest of the world.
Cruise West Experience:
Cruise West guests would rather watch for whales than spend the afternoon in a casino. They linger outside on deck as the Captain noses under a waterfall, rather than watch a video. On a small ship, the focus is outside where Nature provides the entertainment, rather than on artificial amusements conjured up to occupy your attention during long hours of open water.
With Cruise West, you're not just a visitor, you're a participant. Whether you're kayaking off a wilderness island in Mexico, hiking in a rainforest in Alaska, or enjoying a spectacular spring garden in British Columbia, each of our small-ship cruises is an engaging experience for all your senses.
In many of the remote waterways we visit, small ships are the only way to explore the area. We forsake the wider shipping lanes for channels just a few hundred feet wide, tie up to inner piers in tiny villages, and share waterways with local fishermen and perhaps a few private yachts. And our ships carry inflatable excursion craft to take you to where the action is.
When Cruise West guests visit a small port in Alaska's Inside Passage or along Baja Mexico's Sea of Cortés, we don't overwhelm the local communities or crowd nature trails. In fact, our largest vessel hosts just 138 guests. And in the small ports we visit, we've nourished excellent relationships with the local innkeepers, port directors, and storytellers.