Cruise industry brings in nearly $1 billion to state economy: the cruise industry spends between $50 million and $70 million on marketing the state, which is several times larger than what the state spends to get the word out about an Alaska vacation.

• Author: Pardes, Joan

Just 10 years ago, a trip to Alaska was a dream vacation for the average traveler. Today, setting your compass to America's far north is becoming a more common occurrence and the state is reaping the benefits of a healthy tourism industry. From the Inside Passage to the Arctic Ocean, the communities that comprise America's far north have experienced unprecedented growth in the number of visitors that choose to visit Alaska every year. To support the expanding numbers of visitors, large and small businesses throughout the state now offer a variety of tours as well as providing infrastructure to keep Alaska's second largest industry chugging along. But if tourism is one of the state's economic engines, it's an outside party--enter the cruise industry, the mighty caboose pushing Alaska's tourism industry to new heights every year.

"With the numbers that we have, we can surmise that by the end of 2005 the cruise industry will bring in close to a billion dollars into the state," said Jim Calvin of the McDowell Group, which conducted a cruise industry economic impact survey based on the 2003 summer season. "That number does not include the cost of the cruise or what people spend on the boat--it only represents what people (both crew and passengers) will spend in the state."

According to this study, the direct and indirect spending that can be linked to the cruise industry in 2003 totaled out to $878 million and the numbers for 2004 were expected to be higher. Along with the direct infusion of cash into the state, the cruise industry also provided an average annual employment rate of 12,400 jobs--peaking at 21,000 summer positions that were associated with cruise-related activities. Plus, the industry dropped about $30 million into local government bank accounts through sales, bed and property taxes as well as moorage fees.

"The cruise industry is vitally important to Alaska's tourism sector because they represent more than 60 percent of our summer visitors," said Ron Peck, president of Alaska Travel Industry Association--the state's official marketing organization. "And that number does not only represent Alaska's coastal ports; in excess of a quarter of the cruise ship passengers that come through the state go up to the communities in Southcentral Alaska and the Interior on land tours."

PORTS OF CALL

According to the Northwest Cruiseship Association--an organization that represents all of the large cruise companies that visit Alaska--the...