This Iconic Cruise Firm Is Launching Its First-ever Alaska Itinerary

Even individuals who don’t like cruises can get behind cruising to Alaska. It’s one of the simplest ways to navigate the glacier-carved islands of the Inside Passage or see the mountains that rise straight out of the ocean. It additionally will increase your probabilities of seeing a few of Alaska’s most famous wildlife — from whales to salmon runs.

For the primary time, MSC Cruises, the world’s third-largest cruise line, is including itineraries to Alaska with weekly sailings out of Seattle. The inaugural crusing of the route will embark on Might 11, 2026.

“Visitors from all around the world inform us they need to see Alaska’s magnificence firsthand, which makes these itineraries the proper addition to MSC Cruises’ international portfolio of bucket-list locations. Seattle shall be our fifth U.S. homeport, bringing our signature mixture of European fashion and American comforts to the West Coast as we proceed to broaden our choices within the North American market,” Lynn Torrent, EVP and chief industrial officer for MSC Cruises USA, mentioned in a press launch shared with Journey + Leisure.

MSC Cruises’ new Alaska itinerary is a seven-night journey on the MSC Poesia, a mid-sized ship that may higher navigate the Inside Passage’s slender channels and get cruise ship vacationers nearer to Alaska’s glaciers. 

In the course of the journey, visitors can expertise and go to a few of the journey’s most iconic sights, together with the 23,000 acres of personal seashore and rainforest discovered on the Indigenous-owned Icy Level Straight and the bald eagles and wild salmon in Ketchikan. The ship will journey alongside Tracy Arm to the Sawyer Glacier, dipping out and in of slender fjords and passing waterfalls, a seal colony, and roaming wild bears. Whales and porpoises are sometimes noticed in the Salish Sea surrounding Vancouver Island.

At these areas and others, visitors can disembark the ship for on-the-ground enjoyable, together with ATV expeditions into the wilderness, whale-watching excursions, and a activate the world’s largest zipline.

MSC Cruises’ new Alaska cruise will depart Seattle weekly between Might and September 2026. Charges begin at $719 per individual. 

The announcement of MSC’s new Alaska itineraries additionally gives vacationers with one other thrilling cruise alternative. Forward of the inaugural Might 11, 2026 cruise to Alaska, the MSC Poesia will journey to Seattle from Miami by way of the Panama Canal, permitting cruisers to transit by way of the enduring canal. The journey will depart Miami for Seattle on April 23, 2026. Charges begin at $1,498, per individual.

The brand new Alaska and Panama Canal journeys mark MSC Cruises’ expanded presence in North America. The corporate, headquartered in Geneva, is a market chief in Europe, South America, the Center East, and Southern Africa.