Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
13 Cruises
While Washington is not a big cruise-
ship destination per se, there are sev-
eral companies offering Alaska cruises
that start in Washington and spend a
little time cruising through the waters
of Puget Sound and the San Juan
Islands. There are also several smaller
cruise lines that offer specialty cruises
on small ships. Note that rates listed
below are per person based on double
occupancy.
In the big-ship category, there are
several companies. There are 7-day,
6-night Alaska cruises offered by
Nor-
wegian Cruise Lines
(
&
800/327-
7030;
www.ncl.com). These cruises
leave from Seattle and cost between
about $1,800 and $2,800.
Holland
America Line
(
&
877/932-4259;
www.hollandamerica.com) offers simi-
lar cruises starting around $1,000.
Three- and 4-day cruises between Seat-
tle and Vancouver, B.C. are also avail-
able and start around $400.
Princess
Cruises
(
&
800/421-1700;
www.
princess.com) also offers 7-day cruises
aboard its
Star Princess.
Cruises on smaller ships are offered
by several other companies.
Lindblad
Expeditions
(
&
800/397-3348
or
212/765-7740; www.expeditions.
com) offers a 7-day cruise through the
San Juan Islands to Victoria. This
cruise costs $2,330.
Cruise West
(
&
800/580-0072;
www.cruisewest.
com) offers an 8-day cruise from Seat-
tle to British Columbia and through
the San Juan Islands. Fares range from
about $1,649 to $3,399 per person.
Catalyst Cruises
(
&
800/670-7678;
www.cruise-nw.com) offers 7-day San
Juan Island cruises on a 62-foot yacht.
The fare is $1,750 per person based
on double occupancy.
There are also a number of cruises
up the Columbia River. Most of these
play up the Lewis and Clark history
and offer plenty of land excursions. If
you prefer cruising aboard a small ves-
sel, consider a trip with
Cruise West
(
&
800/580-0072;
www.cruisewest.
com), which offers an 8-day cruise
from Portland on the Columbia and
Snake rivers. Fares range from $1,799
to $4,049 per person (with $200 dis-
counts for 6-month advance book-
ings). A 7-day cruise with naturalists
and historians on board is offered
by
Lindblad Expeditions
(
&
800/
397-3348
or 212/765-7740; www.
expeditions.com), which charges
$2,390.
The
Queen of the West
and the
Empress of the North,
two modern pad-
dle-wheel cruise ships operated by the
American West Steamboat Com-
pany,
2101 Fourth Ave., Suite 1150,
Seattle, WA 98121 (
&
800/434-
1232;
www.columbiarivercruise.com),
cruise the Columbia. Fares for the
7-night cruise range from $1,195 to
$4,845 per person. The
Empress of the
North
also cruises from Seattle to
Alaska.
FAST FACTS:
Washington
AAA
If you're a member of the American Automobile Association and
your car breaks down, call
&
800/AAA-HELP
for 24-hour emergency road
service.
American Express
In Seattle, the Amex office is in the Plaza 600 building
at 600 Stewart St. (
&
206/441-8622
). The office is open Monday through
Friday from 8:30am to 5:30pm. For card member services, phone
&
800/
528-4800.
Call
&
800/AXP-TRIP
or go to
www.americanexpress.com
for
other locations or general information.
