Alaska’s Inside Passage: Where the Mountains Meet the Sea

Embarkation in Whittier

Your voyage begins in charming Whittier, a small, picturesque fishing town of just a few hundred residents, nestled between towering mountains and the deep blue waters of Prince William Sound.

Surrounded by dramatic glaciers, cascading waterfalls, and lush temperate rainforests, it serves as a gateway to the sound – a haven for kayakers, photographers, and adventurers drawn to its pristine fjords and abundant wildlife.

Once you board MS Roald Amundsen, settle in and take your time to get to know the ship before listening to the safety briefing. Your adventure is underway!

To get the most out of your stay, we recommend joining our optional Pre-Programme.

Get ready to experience nature’s raw power

Today is a day all about glaciers. Prince William Sound is home to 150 of these amazing rivers of ice, including 17 incredible tidewater glaciers. Your captain will choose the best location for the day based on the conditions.

We’ll get as close to the glaciers as we safely can, taking our small expedition boats into the fjord or even exploring by kayak if conditions permit. From the water, you might catch sight of humpback whales, bald eagles, otters, and harbor seals, all of which inhabit this icy wilderness.

Cruising through Icy Bay offers dramatic views of towering tidewater glaciers like Guyot Glacier, Yahtse Glacier, and Tyndall Glacier calving ice into the sea. You’ll often see floating icebergs in brilliant shades of blue, creating a striking, ever-changing landscape. Wildlife is abundant, with chances to spot harbor seals resting on ice, sea otters drifting nearby, and even bears or mountain goats along the shoreline. On clear days, the backdrop of the Saint Elias Mountains adds an awe-inspiring sense of scale to the experience.

Embrace the thrill of wild Alaska

Today is another day of exploration as we sail into Icy Strait and take a closer look at some of the islands and islets. As ever – we will gauge the weather and other conditions to decide upon the best location.

Using our expedition boats, we may get close to some of the rocky shores here, and it’s possible we may land and take a nature walk. The coast in this region grows more rugged the closer we get to the open sea, and there are rocky pinnacles and sea caves galore.

In the evening, well pass by Point Adolphus, which is located on the northern tip of Chichagof Island, across from Glacier Bay National Park. The nutrient-rich waters are known for attracting humpback whales and other marine life, so be sure to get out on deck and have your camera ready.

Unlike most cities of Southeast Alaska, Haines can be reached by road. With a population of 2,200, Haines lies in the upper northern reaches of the Inside Passage and is an important access point to the Yukon Territory and Interior Alaska. While cruising into Haines, see the Lynn Canal, the longest and deepest fjord in North America. Once in town, mountains seem to surround you on all sides while the jagged cathedral peaks of the Chilkat Mountains loom over Fort Seward. Haines has two distinct personalities. On the north side of the Haines Highway is the section of Haines that developed around the Presbyterian mission. After its missionary beginnings, it served as the trailhead for the Jack Dalton Trail into the Yukon during the 1897 gold rush to the Klondike. South of the highway, the town resembles a military post, which is exactly what it was for nearly half a century. In 1903 the U.S. Army established Fort William Henry Seward at Portage Cove just south of town. The post (renamed Chilkoot Barracks in 1922) was the only military base in the territory until World War II. In 1939, the army built the Alaska Highway and the Haines Highway to connect Alaska with the other states. Today, the community of Haines is recognized for the Native American dance and culture center at Fort Seward as well as for its superb fishing, camping and outdoor recreation.

Witness ancient forests and abundant wildlife

Explore Alaska in true expedition style on today’s exploration day in Lynn Canal, a magical corner of the Inside Passage. This is an area where old-growth forest dominates, meaning there’s abundant wildlife and a spine-tingling feeling of wild nature.

Conditions permitting, we’ll take to the water in our small expedition boats and seek out secluded coves and thickly forested shorelines. Try and catch a glimpse of some of Alaska’s most iconic wildlife, including bears, Bald Eagles, Sitka black-tailed deer, and moose. If it’s safe to do so, we might land and explore the shore.

As part of the Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness, Tracy Arm is within the Tongass National Forest. Tracy Arm is one of Alaska’s classic fjords. At the end of the narrow and almost 50 km long fjord, passing breathtaking mountains, steep cliffs and spectacular waterfalls, one can see the twin Sawyer Glaciers, South Sawyer and North Sawyer, active tidewater glaciers. Wildlife of the area includes whales, harbor seals, eagles, kittiwakes, Arctic Terns and Pigeon Guillemots.

Chatham Strait is a long, scenic waterway in Southeast Alaska known for its deep fjord-like channels and dramatic coastal mountains. It’s a prime location for wildlife viewing, where visitors often spot humpback whales, orcas, sea lions, and bald eagles. The strait also serves as an important route within the Inside Passage, offering stunning views of glaciers, forests, and remote island communities

Klawock is a city in Prince of Wales–Hyder Census Area, in the U.S. state of Alaska, on the west coast of Prince of Wales Island, on Klawock Inlet, across from Klawock Island. The population was 755 at the 2010 census, down from 854 in 2000.

Rudyerd Bay is one of the highlights of the Misty Fiords, 40 miles east of Ketchikan, along the Inside Passage. This fjord cuts through steep-sided mountainous terrain and extends far into the mainland. The scenery is stunning, with dramatic thousand-foot waterfalls plunging down rainforest covered cliffs to the water below.

See sublime scenery as we sail the Inside Passage

The Inside Passage coastal route takes us through the great North American Pacific Fjordland, a protected stretch of water over 930 miles long.

Our smaller expedition ship allows us to reach areas that larger vessels can’t, meaning you’ll get to explore lesser-traveled channels with breathtaking scenery. Keep your cameras and binoculars at the ready to catch sight of whales, including humpback, fin, minke and perhaps even orca. In Princess Royal Channel, keep a lookout for the elusive Kermode bear.

Alert Bay is a small village on Cormorant Island, with approximately 1,300 residents. More than half are First Nations people. The settlement was named in 1860 in honour of the Royal Navy ship HMS Alert, which conducted survey operations in the area. The traditional Kwakwaka’wakw people of Alert Bay have endured a difficult history of devastating foreign diseases and failed government policies of assimilation. Today there is a revival of their traditions. One of the most well-known features in Alert Bay is the 173 foot wooden carved totem pole, claimed by some to be the tallest totem pole in the world.

Disembark in British Columbia’s iconic city

Your expedition ends in Vancouver, a beautiful city at the foot of the Rockies. Wander Gastown, Vancouver’s Victorian quarter or walk around beautiful Stanley Park, which offers a view of the city and a glimpse of the stunning nature you’ll see on the voyage.

Vancouver has a flavor all its own—and so does its global cuisine. Before your onward journey, we recommend you dine out in Chinatown, Punjabi Market or Little Italy for a taste of the city's buzzing atmosphere.