Wrangell’s potential summer cruise ship passenger count has dropped by about 5,000 with the loss of two mid-size ships to Klawock.
The Prince of Wales Island community opened up a cruise ship port last summer to attract more visitors — and economic activity — to the town of about 700 residents which is on the island’s extensive road system that links 10 communities.
The 728-berth Sea Nova canceled six Wrangell stops May through August, switching to Klawock, and the 750-berth Silver Seas Explorer moved an August visit to Klawock while retaining one Wrangell stop in May.
The canceled visits reduce the maximum number of cruise visitors to Wrangell this summer to just over 40,000, assuming the ships run at 100% capacity, according to the Jan. 13 calendar from the Wrangell Convention and Visitor Bureau.
Even with the loss of the seven port calls in town, this summer’s visitor count looks to come in substantially above last year’s total of around 25,000.
This summer’s move by the operators of the Seven Seas Explorer and Sea Nova is a repeat of last year, when the Seven Seas (one sailing) and the 670-berth Regatta (two sailings) both dropped Wrangell to give Klawock a try, knocking about 2,000 visitors off Wrangell’s count.
The corporate office of Regent Seven Seas Cruises did not respond last month to a Sentinel request for an interview or information on their decision to change ports this year.
Klawock is scheduled for as many as 19,000 passengers this summer, with 22 stops by three ships ranging from 728 to 1,250 berths, according to a schedule from Cruise Lines Agency of Alaska, which arranges port calls for mid-size and larger ships.
The Prince of Wales Island town is actively promoting itself as a new tourism destination.
Klawock Heenya Corp., the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act village corporation for Klawock, is developing the visitor destination with Na-Dena, the joint-venture Native tourism development company founded between Huna Totem Corp., the village corporation for Hoonah, and Doyon, the regional corporation for Interior Alaska.
The three corporations created a partnership called Klawock Island Ventures, modeled on Huna Totem’s Icy Strait Point, which opened in 2004 as a small float dock and can now accommodate two large ships at a time and counted about 500,000 cruise visitors last summer.
The new Klawock port welcomed its first ship last May with speeches, a ribbon cutting, student presentations and a performance by the Heenya Kwáan dancers, according to the Prince of Wales Chamber of Commerce.
The Klawock Island Dock Co. long operated a log sorting yard and timber-loading dock at the waterfront property that the new operators are building into a cruise destination.
“We’re excited for more communities to come online and build a stronger cruise network in Alaska,” Kate Thomas, Wrangell’s economic development director said Friday, Jan. 31, of the growing competition.
“We’re no longer in the position to sit back … and catch whatever comes our way,” she said in a phone interview from the Chicago Travel and Adventure Show, which the Wrangell Convention and Visitor Bureau participated in for the first time. The event ran Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 1 and 2.
Wrangell was one of only three Alaska communities with booths at the travel fair, Thomas said. The others were Anchorage and Fairbanks.
“It’s going to be a challenge for Wrangell” as it competes with other Alaska destinations for visitors, she said. The borough is stepping up its marketing efforts to attract not only cruise passengers but independent travelers who spend more on lodging, meals and tours.
The biggest problem of this summer’s schedule change with two ships pulling out for Klawock, Thomas said, is that it came so close to the start of the season, cutting into plans of Wrangell tour operators that had prepared for the visitors.
The first ship to call on Wrangell this year is scheduled for May 8, with the last on the calendar for Sept. 22. The largest ships on the port schedule are the 2,100-berth Nieuw Amsterdam on May 15, the 2,600-berth Grand Princess on May 19, the 3,082-berth Ruby Princess on June 10 and the 1,848-berth Westerdam on July 3.
There is a new addition to this summer’s schedule for Wrangell. The 650-berth Villa Vie Odyssey is on the calendar for July 5. The Odyssey is a unique operation: The ship is on an around-the-world cruise that started in 2023 and is scheduled to last more than three years with 425 port calls in 147 countries, according to its promotional material.
Passengers bought their onboard “villa” — starting price $139,999 for 15 years of ownership — and then pay extra for whichever travel segments they select.
The latest Wrangell cruise ship calendar is available at travelwrangell.com/cruise-ship-calendar.
The tentative cruise line schedule for 2026 looks even better for Wrangell, with ships totaling almost 70,000 berths on the schedule, according to the borough. Though next year’s calendar — like this summer’s plans — is subject to change.
Reader Comments(0)