NATURAL WONDERS
Many of the world’s most dramatic, breathtaking shows of nature are best experienced aboard a cruise ship, either on a shore excursion or simply from the moving deck.
Cruising the fabled Inside Passage from VANCOUVER (or Seattle) to ALASKA is an unbeatable way of discovering what is arguably the planet’s most dramatic coastal scenery. The natural highlight is GLACIER BAY, a 70-mile deep fjord with 15 glaciers, often ‘calving’ just yards away from the ship’s beam. Wildlife, including humpback whales, porpoises, harbour seals, black bears, mountain goats, bald eagles and large colonies of seabirds, is also abundant. Among the classic ports of call are KETCHIKAN, the salmon capital of the world, with a preserved old quarter built on stilts; SITKA, which was the capital of Alaska when it was under Russian rule; JUNEAU, the current state capital; and SKAGWAY, the gateway to the Klondike gold fields.
Travel with Cosmos (cosmostoursandcruises.co.uk), which has a 16-day holiday that combines a tour through the heart of the ROCKIES, including BANFF NATIONAL PARK, LAKE LOUISE, the COLUMBIA ICEFIELD, JASPER and a two-day scenic rail journey aboard the Rocky Mountaineer, to VANCOUVER and VICTORIA, with a Holland America cruise along the Inside Passage. From £3,699pp, departing 9 May 2017, including flights.