Princess will bring a new style of cruising to Alaska's famed Inside Passage in 2003 with a significantly expanded schedule featuring two of the line's newest and most amenity-filled vessels -- Star Princess and Diamond Princess.
With more sailings to choose from and more than double the line's traditional Inside Passage capacity, the program follows a new itinerary using Seattle as a home port for the first time. These seven-day roundtrip cruises add to Princess' extensive 2003 Alaska season, which also features four ships sailing on the line's "Voyage of the Glaciers" Gulf of Alaska itinerary. The new Inside Passage departures offer passengers a convenient, U.S.-based discovery adventure that also provides many additional attractions to visit during pre- or post-cruise stays in Seattle.
Both ships will call at Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan and Victoria, plus cruise through the dramatic glaciers, rock walls and waterfalls of Tracy Arm and the twin Sawyer Glaciers. The 2,600-passenger Star Princess will offer 18 voyages on this itinerary departing on Saturdays between May 17 and September 13, while the new 2,670-passenger Diamond Princess will offer 14 voyages departing on Sundays, beginning June 15 and continuing through September 14.
"We've never offered this combination in Alaska before -- our largest and most amenity-filled ships sailing on an easily accessible roundtrip itinerary from Seattle," said Dean Brown, Princess' executive vice president of customer service and sales. "We are excited to have these two vessels join our already extensive Alaska lineup, which also features the first Alaska seasons for Coral Princess and Island Princess, and the return of Sun Princess and Dawn Princess -- all of which will offer cruisetour packages including Glacier Bay and Denali National Parks."
The two Inside Passage ships feature the wide variety of entertainment and dining options that have made Princess' Personal Choice Cruising program so popular. Star Princess will be sailing on her second Alaska season, while Diamond Princess, the first of Princess' new series of vessels being constructed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan, will just be entering service. The 113,000-ton ship will take over Star Princess' reign as the largest and most amenity-filled cruise vessel to sail on the west coast, and will offer passengers an even greater array of Personal Choice options.
In addition, passengers can enjoy a complete land and sea vacation by adding a Canadian Rockies tour to their Inside Passage cruise. Princess offers three escorted itineraries that will take guests to the heart of these spectacular mountains with visits to Banff, Jasper, Calgary and Kamloops, along with other local highlights. The 14- to 18-day packages feature stays at world-famous resort hotels such as the Chateau Lake Louise, Banff Springs Hotel and Jasper Park Lodge.
Early booking fares for Inside Passage voyages are up to 15 percent lower than 2002 rates, and represent a savings of up to $1,200 per couple off Love Boat Savers fares. Prices start at $899 for reservations made by February 14, 2003.
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