8 nights, Vancouver to Vancouver
Explora's name for it: A Journey through Majestic Shores & Wilderness Serenity
Eight nights, round-trip from Vancouver, into the Southeast Alaska towns most ships skip. EXPLORA III berths at Canada Place right downtown to start, then works north through working ports rather than excursion midways. Wrangell is the genuine, lived-in Alaska: a town of about 2,500 with ancient rock art at Petroglyph Beach and a Tlingit clan house, all a 15 to 25 minute walk from the dock. Sitka faces the open Pacific instead of the protected Inside Passage, so far fewer ships call and the totem trail and Russian cathedral stay quiet. Haines is the calm answer to Skagway, a fishing town wrapped around the restored 1904 Fort Seward, drier than its neighbors because the coast mountains wring out the rain. The standout is the slow transit of Endicott Arm to Dawes Glacier, a tidewater face roughly 600 feet tall that the ship rotates in place to show you. It reaches the face early, so set an alarm.
This rewards travelers who want the quiet, real towns over the float-plane and jewelry-store circuit, and who do not mind that Vancouver bookends both ends. Skip it if you want big-name Juneau and a packed shore program. One note on Ward Cove for Ketchikan: the free shuttle into town runs about 20 minutes each way and gives priority to suite and ship-excursion guests, so catch it early.
EXPLORA III is all-suite and all-oceanfront.
The itinerary, port by port
7 calls over 8 nights, round-trip from Vancouver. Open any port for my full day-ashore guide, what to see, when to go, and how the day actually runs.
Getting there: Flights to Vancouver (YVR) are already bookable for these dates. I watch the fare for booked clients so you book at the right moment. When to book your flights →
- Embark
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5 Sailing the Endicott Arm (Dawes Glacier)
- 6
- Disembark
Fares on this departure, decoded
Reading the fare fine print is the job. Here's what this sailing currently carries:
- Invitation to Discover More
- Explora's discovery fare, available across most of the calendar. Onboard credit where the offer applies.
The ship and your suite
This sailing is aboard EXPLORA III, all-suite, every suite with a private ocean-front terrace. Suites run from the entry Ocean Terrace to the Owner's Residence; the right tier depends on how you travel. Compare suites → · What's included →