Alaska Cruising Has a PROBLEM Nobody's Talking About!
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Creator's Key Takeaways
An Alaska cruise is always an incredible experience, and I would recommend that experience to anyone. But, I also think it's worth being honest about what we're all participating in.
The experience that we're buying when we go to Alaska, when we sell an Alaskan cruise, you know, that untouched wilderness, that is the very thing that's going to get eroded.
The people who live in Alaska are slowly but steadily souring on the industry that depends on their home.
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Is Alaska cruising getting too crowded? I sailed Holland America's Koningsdam to Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan and pulled into port to find FIVE cruise ships docked at once. In this video I break down the data behind Alaska's cruise boom, why my cruise skipped Glacier Bay, and what Juneau locals really think about the cruise ship invasion taking over their town. Alaska cruise tourism has exploded over the last three decades. Juneau welcomed around 500,000 cruise passengers back in 1997 and, by 2025, that number topped 1.6 million. Alaska cruise ships are now sailing at over 100% capacity, meaning nearly every cabin on every Alaska cruise is sold out all season long. New cruise lines like MSC Cruises and Virgin Voyages have entered the Alaska cruise market for the very first time in 2026, joining longtime Alaska cruise lines like Holland America, Princess, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian. Nearly 60 cruise ships are now deployed across Alaska's Inside Passage every single season, more cruise ships than Alaska has ever seen before. So what does this cruise ship boom actually mean for the towns and ports that host them? In this video, I dig into: ✅ Why Alaska cruise passenger numbers have exploded over the last 30 years ✅ Which new cruise ships and cruise lines are sailing to Alaska for the first time in 2026 ✅ Why Glacier Bay National Park strictly limits cruise ships to just 2 per day, and why my Alaska cruise itinerary didn't include it ✅ What Juneau residents really think about cruise ship overcrowding, including the failed "Ship-Free Saturdays" ballot measure ✅ How Royal Caribbean responded to local pushback by building an entirely new cruise ship dock ✅ Whether Alaska cruising could be headed toward the same overtourism backlash seen in Venice, Barcelona, and Santorini I also share my honest take from sailing Holland America's Koningsdam round-trip from Vancouver — what the Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan stops were actually like with multiple cruise ships in port at the same time, and whether all this cruise ship traffic changed my experience. If you're planning an Alaska cruise for 2026 or 2027, this video is essential before you book. I'll help you understand which Alaska cruise itineraries actually include Glacier Bay, which Alaska cruise ports are getting the most crowded, and what to expect as more cruise lines keep adding ships to this region every year. 📍 This cruise: Holland America Koningsdam, round-trip Vancouver 📍 Ports of call: Juneau, Skagway, Endicott Arm, Ketchikan #AlaskaCruise #CruiseShip #HollandAmerica ----- 00:00 – Intro 00:00 – Alaska cruise growth by the numbers 00:00 – The new cruise ships entering Alaska in 2026 00:00 – Why my cruise skipped Glacier Bay 00:00 – What Juneau locals think about cruise overcrowding 00:00 – Where Alaska cruising is headed next